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Mahjong: A Visual Guide

themahjong.guide

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Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#41

Post by blue1 »

gyomu wrote: post #39
wavemode wrote: post #7

Really lovely designed website. Though I get the sense that, typically the easiest way to learn how to play a game, is to walk through actually playing the game. Listing out a bunch of facts about how the game works is mostly just confusing for a newcomer - the brain doesn't retain that kind of information well. The example of this I often give is Magic: The Gathering. Very easy to learn how to play just by playing i…

Related: Every Board Game Rulebook is Awful (100 page PDF) https://boardgametextbook.com/EBGRIA.pdf Overview here: https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/13453/blogpost/164134/every-b...

Interesting... However, ironically, EBGRIA is awful too, in its own way. The typography is rudimentary.

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#42

Post by djyde »

jader201 wrote: post #9

Some (mostly American?) people know Mahjong as a solitaire game [1] that they likely have played on their phone or Windows PC/Mac. This article is talking about the (arguably less known?) 4-player competitive game [2], and assumes you already know the difference (which some may not). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong_solitaire [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong

Playing mahjong together during Chinese New Year has become an essential tradition.

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#43

Post by djyde »

CJefferson wrote: post #19

This is a really nice website! In China it turns out there are lots of rule sets. The city I'm currently living in (Changsha) has it's own ruleset for example, with less tiles than these examples.

In my city, Guangdong, Cantonese mahjong doesn't allow chows, only pongs, and you need to self-draw to win.

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#44

Post by Steve44 »

comrade1234 wrote: post #17

There are so many different variations of the rules, especially scoring. Scoring can vary even from family to family. We've been learning for a few years now and still ignore things like prevailing winds and I don't remember what else off the top of my head. Basically we have a document of our own rules and we add to it as we get more advanced. Eventually we'll play with the winds and seasons and the goal is Hong Kon…

I've been playing a few times a year with family and once we got over the steep learning curve we really enjoy it and play for many hours several times a year.

What has helped a LOT is we've developed a double sided sheet we print out with the basic game mechanics, tiles, and scoring. It still needs some tweaking but means our rules[1] are clear and we can quickly refer to them as we're playing.

We've a second sheet which shows the winds, once that's been decided we just just orientate it with the players.

[1] We're very aware there are lots of sets of rules, we've just decided on the ones we consistently play.

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#45

Post by Steve44 »

test1235 wrote: post #33

can someone explain this bit to me: Break the wall Whose wall? Count the total counter-clockwise starting from the dealer (East = 1). 東 East 1 · 5 · 9 南 South 2 · 6 · 10 西 West 3 · 7 · 11 北 North 4 · 8 · 12 East -> South -> West -> North - is that not clockwise? What am I missing?

I think the problem is that website shows NESW going clockwise, is should be the other way.

> N

> E W

> S

(sorry about formatting)

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#46

Post by Taikonerd »

Steve44 wrote: post #44
comrade1234 wrote: post #17

There are so many different variations of the rules, especially scoring. Scoring can vary even from family to family. We've been learning for a few years now and still ignore things like prevailing winds and I don't remember what else off the top of my head. Basically we have a document of our own rules and we add to it as we get more advanced. Eventually we'll play with the winds and seasons and the goal is Hong Kon…

I've been playing a few times a year with family and once we got over the steep learning curve we really enjoy it and play for many hours several times a year. What has helped a LOT is we've developed a double sided sheet we print out with the basic game mechanics, tiles, and scoring. It still needs some tweaking but means our rules[1] are clear and we can quickly refer to them as we're playing. We've a second sheet…

I wish the rules were trimmed down a little. I feel like there's a really lovely tight game under all the accumulated house rules and finicky stuff. And the existing rules tend to scare off newbies.

Interestingly, an experienced player proposed "Tibet rules," which are rules specifically for newbies that cut out a lot of the advanced mechanics: https://riichi.wiki/index.php?title=Tibet_rules&mobileaction...

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#47

Post by JamesSwift »

kyleblarson wrote: post #38
yapyap wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Less known to the Western centric HN crowd, maybe.

I only have 2 data points, but my mom in the southeastern US (in her 70's) and all of her friends have started playing and are fully addicted and the same seems to be true at my golf club in Inland Northwest. Maybe it's getting a toehold? (in a very non-HN demographic)

Yes its become a hot game among socialites. Complete with a SAAS subscription for the “yearly cards” and a marketing push to play the sanctioned version.

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#49

Post by bottlepalm »

jader201 wrote: post #9

Some (mostly American?) people know Mahjong as a solitaire game [1] that they likely have played on their phone or Windows PC/Mac. This article is talking about the (arguably less known?) 4-player competitive game [2], and assumes you already know the difference (which some may not). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong_solitaire [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong

It's not even talking about the American Mahjong variant which is super popular, mostly with older women, in surprise surprise America.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_mahjong

Re: Mahjong: A Visual Guide

#50

Post by mcfedr »

jader201 wrote: post #9

Some (mostly American?) people know Mahjong as a solitaire game [1] that they likely have played on their phone or Windows PC/Mac. This article is talking about the (arguably less known?) 4-player competitive game [2], and assumes you already know the difference (which some may not). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong_solitaire [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahjong

mostly people know if from windows i assume
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