Playing mah jongg is meant to be fun. Like all games, some basic disciplines should be observed to make the game more enjoyable.
Before starting the players should agree on the rules of
the game, including the following:
The minimum and maximum number of Fans of
a winning hand.
The method of scoring.
The number of rounds to be played.
The number of winners allowable in any single game.
Whether or not the
nondiscarder pays the winner.
Whether or not the Dealer remains the Dealer
after a Fortune hand.
The number of tiles to be left untouched on the wall
when a game seems to come to a draw.
The number of dice to be used.
The
penalty for falsely declaring a win.
Other common rules and courtesies of mah
jongg include the following:
Be on time.
Always keep calm. Never get
too excited or upset.
Do not withdraw from the game before the number of
rounds is completed.
Turn all the tiles face down and mix them well before
building the walls.
Count the stacks of tiles while building the walls.
Immediately after the drawing of the initial 13 tiles is completed,count the
tiles in your hand.
Cast the dice inside the walls and only after the walls
are built.
Use only the right hand to draw a tile from the wall or to
retrieve a discarded tile.
Keep up speed in drawing and discarding tiles.
Sort and rearrange your hand of tiles only when you are waiting for your turn.
Constantly review your hand and consider your next discard tiles, to avoid
making other players wait.
Display your revealed sets face up on the table to
your left.
Always declare a warning when you have 3 revealed sets of the same
suit.
Frequently push the wall of tiles toward the center of the table, so
that other players can reach them easily.
Do not draw before your Upper House
discards.
Gently place discards face up on the table inside the walls.
When your luck is down, never slam your discards down on the table in a display
of temper.
Do not complain about having a poor playing hand.
Do not
complain when other players discard tiles that are not useful to you.
Do not
change your mind when claiming a discard.
Do not change your mind by
reclaiming your discard.
Do not declare Pung, Gong or Sik after another
player has drawn a tile from the wall following the last discard.
Do not
change your mind after declaring Pung or Gong.
If you forget to draw a
make-up tile from the end of the wall
to replace a Flower tile or after
declaring a Gong, you cannnot draw a make-up tile after your Lower House has
drawn a tile from the wall or claimed a discard.
If you fail to declare Pung,
you are not allowed to claim the same tile subsequently discarded by other
players. You can declare pung only after you have made a discard.
The winner
of each hand of the game must be rewarded by the losers immediately, as any
unpaid debt is believed to bring bad luck to the winner.
Never leave the
table during each set of four rounds of the game (especially during the West
Round). Interrupting the game is also believed to bring bad luck to the winner
but good luck to the interrupter.
Do not discuss your own or another player's
hand or hint at someone's strategy during the game.
Onlookers shall not give
advice to the players nor discuss the game.
After each round of the game, the
North House should change
the Jongg Indicator to display the new round of the
game.
