Modern Japanese Mahjong ======================= Scoring, Part 1 : Fan's and "Scoring Patterns" ---------------------------------------------- version 1.01 by Alan Shiu Ho Kwan (version 1.0 contains corrected Japanese names and kanji in JIS code) (This article can be downloaded from http://home.netvigator.com/~tarot/Mahjong/mj_jap01.txt ) Introduction ------------ This article describes the central aspect of scoring in Modern Japanese Mahjong, the counting of fan's (doubles). Modern Japanese is a modern pattern-based system, with quite a number of scoring patterns ("special hands"), many of them being worth more fans than the same pattern in Classical Mahjong. Although points are also counted in Modern Japanese, the scoring is dominated by fans. This article lists the most common patterns, and their common values. Unlike many other publications, I prefer to organize the patterns by category, rather than by value. Besides patterns and scoring, "abortive draws" are also covered, in section 0.2. 0.0 Outline ------------ Only the hand that goes out is scored (as per most modern scoring systems). There is a 1 fan minimum limit for going out. Patterns with the same numbering in both first two components of its index belong to the same series. Only one pattern (and only one copy of it) from each series can be counted in a single hand. (The exception is 3.1, where you can claim 1 fan for each set of scoring honors in your hand, or 2 fans for a set of Double Wind.) Modern Japanese is a modern pattern-based system, which means that multiple patterns (in different series) are often combined (in conjunction with /dora/ bonuses, too) to yield a more valuable hand. The term "triplet" for the remainder of the article includes both triplets (pongs) and quartets (kongs). All the "patterns" listed here are merely scoring 'bonuses'; except for the hands listed in 10.0 Irregular Hands, you need a Regular Hand with 4 sets and a pair, with a pattern which is worth at least 1 fan, to go out in the first place. Like most other modern systems, there is no single definite standard for Modern Japanese. Many people play house rules and uncommon patterns, many not described here. There are several "official" Mahjong associations in Japan, with their sets of "official" rules. There may be but minor differences between these "official" rules sets. I am trying to list all the commonly used patterns here. I hope I have not left out anything important. Note that definitions and values may vary among groups of players. The rest of 0. describes other rules; the scoring patterns begin with 1.0 . You may want to skip ahead to 0.3 for the moment and come back to 0. later, if that is what you're looking for in this article. I use the term "pattern" for the word /yaku/ in Japanese. 0.1 Dora bonus tiles --------------------- At the start of each hand, a tile (i.e. 4 identical tiles with the same name) is randomly specified as the /dora/ bonus tile. A hand which goes out receives one bonus fan (double) for each dora tile it contains. However, /dora/ does not fulfill the 1 fan minimum requirement for going out: if your hand does not contain any patterns that are worth any fans, you cannot go out regardless of how many /dora/ tiles you have. /Ura-dora/ is a common optional rule (usually not recognized officially) that states that whenever a player who has performed /riichi/ goes out, yet another /dora/ tile is randomly selected, and each occurrence(s) of that new /dora/ adds another fan to the value of the hand. Some experts show disdain for this rule. /Kan-dora/ is a common optional rule that states that whenever a quartet (kong/kan) is declared, an extra /dora/ tile is 'immediately' randomly selected. Different people play with different 'immediacy': some players select the /kan-dora/ as soon as the kong is declared, while others do not select it until (and unless) the player making the kong has drawn his supplement tile and discarded without the discarded tile being claimed for going out. /Kan-ura-dora/ is an optional rule that states that when /kan-dora/ has been generated, and a player who has performed /riichi/ goes out, an /ura-dora/ is generated for each existing /kan-dora/, in additional to the one for the original /dora/. Some experts show much disdain for this rule. The random selection is done by turning face-up a tile in the dead wall. That tile is called the /dora-indicator/; the /dora/ tile is the 'following' tile in numerical sequence. This is illustrated as follows: B1 -> B2 -> B3 -> ... -> B8 -> B9 -> B1 C1 -> C2 -> C3 -> ... -> C8 -> C9 -> C1 D1 -> D2 -> D3 -> ... -> D8 -> D9 -> D1 E -> S -> W -> N -> E White -> Green -> Red -> White For example, B5 indicates B6, and White indicates Green. Flower and season tiles are generally not used in Modern Japanese Mahjong. 0.2 Abortive Draws ------------------- There are several situations where the hand ends in a draw before the wall is exhausted. I call these situations abortive draws. The hand ends immediately, and either the current dealer re-deals, or the deal passes, depending on local rules. 0.2.1 9 Terminals Abortive Draw / kyuu shu yao kyuu tou pai 九種幺九倒牌 If a player, immediately after his first draw in the hand, and without any Chi, Pon, or Kan before his turn, has 9 /different/ termial and honor tiles in his hand, he may (at his discretion) reveal his hand and end the hand immediately in an abortive draw. 0.2.2 4 Winds Abortive Draw / suu fon tsu ren da 四風子連打 If, on the first round of discards in the hand, without any Chi, Pon, or Kan action, all 4 players discard exactly the /same/ /Wind/ tile, the hand ends immediately in an abortive draw. 0.2.3 4 Quartets Abortive Draw / suu kan nagare 四槓子流れ Whenever a total of 4 quartets have been declared by a plural number of players in a hand, the hand ends immediately in an abortive draw. 0.2.4 4 Players Riichi Abortive Draw / suu ka riichi 四家立直 Whenever all 4 players have declared /riichi/, the hand ends immediately in an abortive draw. Some players void this rule. 0.2.5 3 Players Go out Abortive Draw / san ka agari 三家和 When 3 players claim the same discard to go out simultaneously, the hand ends in an abortive draw and is not scored. Some players void this rule, instead scoring the hand normally. 0.3 Key -------- [index number] [English name] / [Japanese name] : [values] [status] [Japanese or Chinese name in new-JIS encoding] I make up the English names myself, since I haven't found a universially agreed "standard" for Modern Japanese. Please ignore any discontinuity in the numbering of the index. They mean nothing. The Japanese names are spelled in /romaji/, and should be pronounced accordingly. (If you don't know the rules for Japanese pronounciation, my suggestion is that you should not try to read them as English words.) I use capital letters for the part of the name that is often used as a short form by the Japanese. Some of the incorrect readings in version 0.8 have been corrected. Some names get multiple readings (a more "Chinese" one and a more "Japanese" one, for example), but only one is shown here. The JIS encoding will show up as gibberish unless you have the software to read it. If it does, please just ignore it. There are two values listed for each pattern. The first value applies when the hand is concealed: no claimed discards except for the final tile when going out. The second value apllies when the hand has claimed one or more discards before going out. Note that this discrepancy applies to each and every pattern contained by the hand, so keeping the hand "concealed" is a more important concept in Modern Japanese than in /any/ other version of Mahjong. The values indicated herein are the common or official values. Some players use different values for some patterns. "Limit" under value means the "maximum limit" at quadruple Full House. (Some players who play "double limit and beyond" optional rule apply double limit to some instances of some limit patterns.) "NA" stands for "not applicable". The status is either "(UO)" for "(generally) unofficial" (usually not recognized officially), or omitted for patterns usually recognized officially. The descriptions for some Classical Japanese patterns have been omitted. Again, remember that these are all /scoring/ patters for Regular Hands (4 sets and a pair), although some also apply to the "7 pairs" Irregular Hand. You need either a Regular Hand, or an Irregular Hand under 10.0, to be able to go out. 1.0 General patterns --------------------- 1.1 Valueless Hand / pin fu : 1/0 平和 Hand contains no points from triplets, eyes, or final tile position. Many players allow forfeiting the 2 points for self-draw (but not for final tile position) in order to claim pinfu. (The non-concealed hand scores no fans and 10 points.) 1.2 Self-Draw in Concealed Hand / men zen chin TSU MO : 1/NA 門前清自摸 (A Concealed Hand which claims a discard to go out gets 10 points.) 1.3 No Terminals (All Simples) / tan yao : 1/1 断幺九 hand contains no terminals or honors, only numeric tiles 2 to 8. Some plays require the hand to be Concealed, but most don't. 1.4 Nine Connected Sacred Lamps (Nine Gates) / kyuu ren poo too : Limit/NA 九連宝灯 a concealed hand with 1112345678999 in one suit 1.5.1 riichi : 1/NA 立直（リーチ） 1.5.2 Double Riichi / daburu riichi : 2/NA ダブル立直 If a player declares riichi on his first turn in the hand, this is called a double riichi, and is worth 2 fans instead of 1. 1.6 Hitting with One Shot / ip patsu : 1/NA (UO) 一発 Going out within one round (without any Chi, Pon, Kan action) of /riichi/. If you go out exactly on your next draw after riichi, you get riichi, ippatsu and self-draw, for a nice 3 fans just for that. 2.0 One-Suit patterns 一色系 ---------------------- 2.1.1 Mixed One-Suit / HON i chi : 3/2 混一色 2.1.2 Pure One-Suit / CHIN i chi : 6/5 清一色 2.2 All Green / ryuu ii soo : Limit/Limit 緑一色 A hand consisting of only 23468 (no 1579) of Bamboos, and Green Dragon. Some players require the presence of the Green Dragon. For a good reference on whether the Green Dragon 'should' be required, please see http://www.mahjong.or.jp/rule/ans/ans97.html 3.0 Honor Tiles 字牌系 ---------------- 3.1 each triplet of scoring honors / (yaku hai) : 1/1 役牌 Dragons, seat wind, round wind. Instead of saying "yaku pai", Japanese players often read out the name of the tile, such as "ton" for East. 3.2.1 Small Three Dragons / shou san gen : 2/2 小三元 3.2.2 Big Three Dragons / dai san gen : Limit/Limit 大三元 3.3.1 Small Four Winds / shou suu shii : Limit/Limit 小四喜 3.3.2 Big Four Winds / dai suu shii : Limit/Limit 大四喜 3.4 All Honors / tsuu ii soo : Limit/Limit 字一色 4.0 Triplets and Quartets 刻子、槓子系 -------------------------- 4.1 All Triplets / toi toi : 2/2 対々和 4.2.1 Three Concealed Triplets / san an ko : 2/2 三暗刻 4.2.2 Four Concealed Triplets / shuu an ko : Limit/NA 四暗刻 4.3.3 Three Quartets / san kan tsu : 2/2 三槓子 4.3.4 Four Quartets / suu kan tsu : Limit/Limit 四槓子 Some players play that a player goes out immediately when he declares his 4th quartet (thus an Irregular Hand) without matching the pair of eyes, as per very old Chinese Classical rules. Others play that he has to fish for his eyes; some of them play that no other players can make a 5th quartet then, while others play that the hand ends in an abortive draw if any other player makes a quartet. (see 0.2.3) 5.0 Identical Sets 同順系 ------------------- 5.1.1 Two Identical Sequences / ii pee koo : 1/0 一般高（一盃口） e.g. C-345 C-345 (Note: The first kanji writing is the original Chinese writing. However, historically that has been lost in Japan, so the writing in parenthesis has become the commonly accepted substitute in Japan.) 5.1.2 Double of Two Identical Sequences / ryan pee kou : 3/0 e.g. C-345 C-345 D-789 D-789 二盃口 Some players count this for only 2 fans. 5.1.3 Three Identical Sequences / ?? : 2/2 (UO) 一色三順 e.g. C-345 C-345 C-345 5.1.4 Four Identical Sequences / ?? : 4/4 (UO) 一色四順 e.g. C-345 C-345 C-345 C-345 6.0 Similar Sets 三色系 ----------------- I call sets in the same numbers across 3 different suits "similar sets". I use that name because it is shorter than "sets in the same numbers in 3 different suits". 6.1 Three Similar Sequences / SAN SHOKU dou jyun : 2/1 三色同順 e.g. B-345 C-345 D-345 6.2.2 Three Similar Triplets / san shoku dou ko : 2/2 三色同刻 e.g. B-444 C-444 D-444 7.0 Consecutive Sets 連続面子系 --------------------- Consecutive Sets must be in the same suit. 7.1 Nine-Tile Straight / IK ki TSUU kan : 2/1 一気通貫 This pattern must be a 123 sequence, a 456, and a 789 in the same suit, as in the example below. e.g. C-123 C-456 C-789 7.2.1 Three Consecutive Triplets / san ren ko : 2/2 (UO) 三連刻 e.g. C-444 C-555 C-666 7.2.2 Four Consecutive Triplets / suu ren ko : Limit/Limit (UO) 四連刻 e.g. C-444 C-555 C-666 C-777 Some players require that the eyes be in the same suit, or be consecutive too (i.e. C3 or C8 in the above example). 8.0 Terminals 幺九系 -------------- Terminals are the 1 and 9 number tiles. 8.1.1 Every Set Including Mixed Terminals / hon CHAN TAa yao : 2/1 混全帯幺 a 1, 9, or Honor tile in each set, and also the eyes e.g. B-111 C-123 D-789 RRR C-99 8.1.2 Every Set Including Terminals / JYUN CHAN taa yao : 3/2 純全帯幺 8.1.3 Mixed Terminals / hon roo too : 2/2 混老頭 8.1.4 Pure Terminals / chin roo too : Limit/Limit 清老頭 9.0 Incidental bonuses ----------------------- 9.1 Catching the Moon from the Bottom of the Sea / HAI TEI moo yue : 1/1 海底摸月 9.2 Catching the Fish from the Bottom of the River / HOO TEI roo yui : 1/1 河底撈魚 going out on the last discarded tile in the hand, when the wall is exhausted of playable tiles 9.3.1 Blossom on the Hill / rin shan kai hoo : 1/1 嶺上開花 going out on the replacement tile drawn for a quartet 9.4 Robbing a Kong / chan kan : 1/1 搶槓 (Note: The patterns in 9.5 require that no Chi, Pon, Kan action has been performed by any player. The same is true for 1.5.2, Double Riichi, before the Riichi action.) 9.5.2 Blessing of Heaven / ten hoo : Limit/NA 天和 the dealer going out on his first turn 9.5.3 Blessing of Earth / chi hoo : Limit/NA 地和 a non-dealer going out on the dealer's first discard, or on his first turn 9.5.4 Blessing of Man / ren hoo : Full House/NA 人和 A non-dealer going out before his first turn, on a discard by someone other than the dealer.) (Note: The definitions and distinctions of these three may vary. Also, the values may vary: some players play that Blessing of Man gets Limit.) 9.6 kan buri : 1/1 (UO) 槓ぶり Going out on the tile discarded by a player who has just made a kong and drawn a supplement tile. 10.0 Irregular Hands --------------------- Irregular Hands are hands that do not consist of 4 sets and a pair. 10.1 Thirteen Orphans / koku shi mu sou : Limit/NA 国士無双　／　十三幺九 10.2 7 Pairs / chi toi tsu : 2/NA 七対子 7 /different/ pairs. Some players allow identical pairs, but they are usually not allowed in "official" games. The hand is actually scored as 1 fan and 50 points (or 0 fans and 100 points, or 2 fans and 25 points), which is really slightly less than 2 fans. It is counted as 2 fans for above-Full-House hands. 11.0 Garbage Discards 流し満貫 ---------------------- 11.1 Garbage Discards / nagashi mangan : Full House/NA 流し満貫 If the hand ends in an /exhaustive/ (not abortive) draw, and a player's discards consists of only terminals and honors, and none of his discards have been claimed, and he has not taken any Chi, Pon, Kan action himself, the hand is scored as if he has gone out with a Full House. The contents of his hand are immaterial. END OF DOCUMENT "Live life with Heart." Alan Kwan / tarot@netvigator.com http://home.netvigator.com/‾tarot (hard-core game reviews)