Keep in mind that different versions of the game have a different number of tiles. Some only have 136, for instance. Some sets are very expensive because they are hand carved!

The suits tiles will have numbers, 1-9, and like playing cards, each tile will have a corresponding amount of the respective symbol, except for the character suit, which has the Chinese character for the number. The number 1 tile for bamboo is a bird, typically an owl or a peacock.

You’ll have 16 wind tiles, 4 each of east, south, west, and north, which you play in that order: remember “eat soy with noodles. " They typically have the first letter of the word in the upper left-hand corner. The dragons are usually represented by Chinese characters, but they’ll also have a “C,” “F,” or “P/B” on them instead of the numbers 1-9 like the suit tiles. You get 4 sets of the same 3 tiles. [4] X Research source

The pictures on these tiles vary by set. A set might have plum, orchid, chrysanthemum, and bamboo flowers, 1 of each. Then, it will have 1 tile for each season. You might also have 4 blank tiles, which can be used as jokers.

The person to the right of the East Wind, the South Wind, goes first. [6] X Research source

In traditional mahjong, you make a wall of tiles in front of each player before dealing, 36 tiles each in stacks of 2. Then you push all the walls together to form a square. The East Wind throws 2 dice, then counts from the right to that point in the wall and pushes 2 stacks of tiles forward to put in their hand. Players take turns pulling out stacks, 2 stacks at a time until they reach 12 each. Then, the East takes 2 tiles and the other 3 players take a single tile.

On the third pass, you can use a “blind” pass, meaning you can move 1-3 tiles that are passed to you on to the next person without looking at them. Make sure you still pass 3, making up the extra from your hand. You can also do a courtesy pass at the end, where the players across from each agree to exchange 1-3 tiles. This is optional, and both players must agree on the pass, stating how many tiles they want to exchange. Whichever number is lower is the one used.

To decide whether to keep a tile, check to see if it matches any tiles in your hand. You’re trying to form melds, which includes 3-of-a-kind, 4-of-a-kind, and straights. If you used the wall method of dealing tiles, then the East has 14 tiles. In that case, the East Wind can discard a tile to start the game, which anyone can claim. [11] X Research source

Discarded tiles just go into the middle of the table. You can line them up if you wish.

Some variations only allow you to claim the third tile of a chow from the person directly before you. If you’ve played a 3-tile pong on the table, you can’t claim the fourth tile, though you can play it if you draw it from the wall/draw pile. You can play a whole game without showing any melds from your hand, which is called “concealed melds,” but you can’t claim any discarded tiles. Not showing melds gives you extra points. Melds laid on the table are called “exposed melds. "

If you’ve picked up a tile and looked at but haven’t racked it yet, someone can still claim the discarded tile. In that case, you need to put the tile you picked up back where it came from.

If you are mainly drawing tiles, then play just goes from person to person.

You do this on your turn after you’ve picked up and racked a tile.

These are similar to 3-of-a-kind, 4-of-a-kind, and a run or a straight in rummy. In some versions, you can only have 1 chow in your hand. Chows do not give you points at the end, but they contribute to forming mahjong. When you lay out melds, place the long ends next to each other and group them in front of you. The only time you “play” a meld is when you claim a discarded tile, as you have to show your meld then. Otherwise, you wait until you call mahjong to reveal your melds, much like gin rummy.

For instance, you might have 2 melds that are 3-of-a-kind and 1 that’s a run of 3, plus a pair.

Play continues without that player if the hand is disqualified.

If you don’t want to score only the winning hand, then you score each person’s hand essentially the same, but the mahjong hand gets an extra 20 points.

Each flower or season gets 4 points, while a pair dragons or your own wind gets 2 points.