Whether you are a tournament player, an advanced player, an intermediate player or a beginner, you should find these fine points of Mahjong useful and helpful. When getting ready for the Charleston, decide on three tiles to pass right.
Choose tiles that don’t fit your potential hand categories. Keep flexible, do not lock into a hand too soon.
The pre-Charleston sort
The pre-Charleston sort ahead is when the players spends 30 seconds getting their tiles in order and scanning for natural groups. This step is like stretching before a workout — it helps you see possibilities faster once the Charleston begins.
What should not be passed in the Charleston? If possible, the following tiles should not be passed together, number one a pair; two identical tiles number two like numerals number three all one suits number four all wins number five all dragons number six all related numerals, such as all odds are all evens number seven all flowers number eight a joker; can never be passed.
As the Charleston finishes, narrow down to the one matching hand from the card; the hand with the best tile match. This helps your brain lock on to real options faster rather than aimlessly rearranging your tiles.
After the Charleston has been completed, there is very little to guide the players but their own hand. Each discard, and every tile called by others, tells the players something. Each tile a player draws, if it is in the early stages of the game, may affect the player’s plan. After play has started, 13 tiles should be on the rack at all times. All tiles should be kept close together in a straight line without brakes. And no time during the game should tiles be separated on the rack because this allows the opponents to see how near your hand is to Mahjong. It has been well said that for the first six straws from the wall, the game is all luck; after that, it is all skill. Every player is responsible for their own hand. They should not throw in their tiles or expose their tiles at the call of Mahjong until the Mahjong hand has been verified.
The game of mahjong is not a toy. A child three years old or younger or a pet may choke on a tile or an accessory. Keep this game away from young children and pets. Some consider Mahjong the most difficult game in the world if it is played to perfection. At the same time, some consider Mahjong one of the most delightful games of all; if one does not care to put too much mental effort into playing it, whether you play it well or just for fun, the interest and excitement are still there. There is enough luck, and, with jokers in the game, to allow anyone to win, in spite of their skill levels.
