Mahjong is one of the most interesting and competitive games you can play with your friends. If you have your mind set on dominating in Mahjong, you will need to have a strategy. However, learning the game well enough to strategize effectively takes a lot of practice and patience.
While there is no such thing as the “ultimate” Mahjong trick that will ensure you win every time, following some general gameplay advance can give you the advantage you need to win.
In this post, we discuss five tips and tricks for playing Mahjong.
Tips and Tricks for Playing Mahjong
Here are five tips that can help you win more Mahjong games:
#1 Plan Ahead So You Always Know What to Do
It’s important to carefully consider which tiles you pick up and choose not to. The best Mahjong players always have a good idea about what they want their final, winning hand to look like.
Bear in mind that your opponents observe you closely and continually work out what tiles you have based on what you pick up and what you don’t.
For this reason, don’t shy away from bluffing. It’s an effective strategy, given that you’re experienced enough to know your way about it.
You can rely on the tiles you’ve picked up for your hand, but it’s best to be cautious and not rush decisions.
#2 Keep Your Play Style Flexible
Mahjong is an unpredictable game, and you will need to abandon seemingly perfect plans and think on your feet to try and win games. The best Mahjong players understand the finicky nature of the game.
If you see the game’s direction changing, be flexible and change your tactics. This way, you’ll keep the other players guessing.
It’s worth using the tiles available to you and making an alternate hand when you need to switch things up.
To achieve Mahjong, you will likely need to adjust your plan as the game progresses.
#3 Avoid Taking the First Discard
Picking up the first discarded tile will reveal a lot of your hand to the other players. Therefore, to avoid giving away your overall game plan, it’s best to avoid picking up the first discard.
It’s best to hold off on grabbing discards when possible throughout the game, and relying on the wall for your cards. Since Mahjong involves 144 tiles, don’t worry about not having another opportunity to build a hand.
Making smart decisions and delaying playing a hand for later are skills you will need to learn to win more Mahjong games.
#4 Always Keep a Pair Handy
Pairs are the most useful sets to have in your hand. You can use them as is or build a Pung, Chow, or Kong out of them.
Therefore, if you have a pair in your hand, prioritize keeping those tiles in your hand.
It’s important to remember that if you pick up a discarded tile to make your pair a Pung, you will need to show the other players your tiles. This is not a good move to make early on in the game since the other players will adapt their strategies around your approach.
The best thing about pairs is that you don’t need to act on them and can leave them in your hand and make something of them later in the game.
#5 Avoid Tile Gaps
Leaving gaps when setting up a rack is something many new Mahjong players do, and it’s not hard to understand the reasoning behind it.
Arranging tiles in combinations enables you to see your next moves, and it’s easy to remember your hand.
However, making tile gaps in your rack will alert your opponents to what you’re up to. The players may adjust their approach to the game to include blocking by not discarding tiles that they think you need.
If you’re a seasoned player or just plain devious, you can leave random gaps in your rack to throw players off. For instance, you can make unrelated tiles appear as a pair.
Conclusion
The tips above will enable you to make better decisions in every game and improve your overall Mahjong skills.
While these basic tips will help you initially, the most experienced players have their own strategies.
Watching other players and chatting with them about the game are two other great ways of learning more about Mahjong. You will slowly learn strategies and have your own “bag of tricks” whenever you play Mahjong.
The best part? Implementing these tips and tricks is not considered cheating, so you can always be sure that you’re playing fair.