Mahjong Rules & Types of Games

We offer Chinese Classic, International and Riichi rules. You can play either with real money or for fun.

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We offer the following types of games:

• Single Hand - A Single Hand Game is a quick one-hand game where the monetary settlement is done at the end of each hand. A single hand of mahjong is played without having to consider the traditional point calculations; the player that declares mahjong wins the combined table wager. This option can be played by 2, 3 or 4 players. Players pay their bet if the win is on self-draw. In case of a win on discard, the discarding player pays double and the other players pay half.
• Full Game - A Full Game is divided into a number of rounds (two for riichi, and four for classic and competition rules). In each round every player will play at least once in each wind (in riichi and classic games, the play will repeat in case of washout). These games are not regularly scheduled; they simply begin when all four seats are filled. The winner wins all the money in the pot (less rake).
• Multi-table tournament - Multi-table tournaments are announced with a set start time. You can register for a tournament by paying the buy-in and the entrance fee. When the tournament starts, you will automatically be placed at the initial table. A tournament consists of a series of games which are time limited, using the same rules as in a Full Game. Each game ends after a set amount of time. The normal table point distribution is 1st Place: 4 points, 2nd: 2p, 3rd: 1p, 4th: 0p. The player with the largest total of table points wins the tournament and the money is distributed according to the payout structure that is presented in the tournament info.
  

  Single Hand

  This game mode is a quick one-hand game where the monetary settlement is done at the end of each hand. Single hand games can be played by 2, 3 or 4 players. In single hand games, the goal is to form a valid mahjong hand as quickly as possible. The value of the hand has no influence on who wins.
  To play a single hand game, you pay the fee for the table, which will let you join the table and start the first hand. The player that declares mahjong first wins the amount paid by the other players, and a new hand begins. For each new hand, the fee for the table is paid again to form a new pot.
  Some rules that are only sensible for complete games of mahjong are not used for single hand games. These differences are:
• Prevailing wind is not used.
• The deal is always rotated regardless of how the previous hand ended.
• No riichi or counter sticks are left on the table between hands (only applicable for riichi rules). The values of the sticks go back to their owners.

The player that declares mahjong wins the combined table wager. Players pay their bet if the win is on self-draw. In case of a win on discard, the discarding player pays double and the other players pay half.

Full Game

In this mode a full game of mahjong, which stretches over several hands, is played. The game is divided into a number of rounds. (Two for riichi, and four for classical and competition rules.) During a round, the winds are rotated from player to player, until all players have played in all winds. This signifies that the round has come to an end.
Each round has a prevailing wind. The first round is the east round, and the following is the south round. For riichi, there are only these two rounds, while the classical and the international competition rules also have a west and a north round.
To play in a full game, you pay the bet for the table, which will let you join the table with a set amount of points. When all players have been seated, the game starts with the first of a series of hands and at the end of each hand the points are settled between the players.
When the game has ended, the player with most points receives the pot that is paid by the other players, minus the commission (rake).

Multi Table Tournaments

In a multi-table tournament, a large number of players sign up and play against each other in a series of games. A game in a multi table tournament is as many hands as the participants can play in a predefined amount of time, so the game may end in mid-hand. After each game, the player receives table points according to their positions in the game, and the totals of these points are used to determine the winner of the tournament.
To participate in a multi-table tournament you click on Register to sign up. The tournament fee is withdrawn from your account when a sufficiently large number of players have signed up to the tournament. Some time before the tournament starts, the registration will close, and beyond that point, no further registration will be accepted.
When the tournament starts, you will automatically be placed at your first table, and the game will begin. It is important that you are logged in when the tournament starts, otherwise you will lose your place in the tournament and your entrance fee will be lost. After the time allocated for a game is over there is a short pause, and then you will automatically be seated at your next table, where you will meet new opponents in the following game.
This process continues until the pre-determined numbers of games have been played, and the tournament ends. After the tournament has finished, the final placements are shown in the tournament information tab.

Table Points

At the end of each game in a tournament a total of 7 table points are distributed among the players according to their placement in the game. When the tournament ends, the players that have managed to accumulate the highest total number of points will receive the tournament prizes according to their positions. In case of a tie in table points, the total number of regular points accumulated during all the games is the tiebreaker.
The table point distribution is done the following manner: the high scorer receives 4 table points; the second highest scorer receives 2 table points; the third highest receives 1 table point; and the fourth player receives 0 table points.
If two players' scores are equal, they split table points between them. In case of a tie for highest score, both players receive 3 table points each, and the third and fourth player 1 and 0 table points respectively. In case of a tie for second-highest score, the first player receives 4 points, the tied players 1,5 points each, and the fourth player 0 points. In case of a tie for third-highest score, the first player receives 4,5 points, the second 2,5 points, and the tied players 0 points each and so on in logical fashion, for the remaining possible cases.
The rules used in multi-table tournaments are the same as is used in a Full Game with the only exception being how a game is finished. A multi-table tournament game ends after a set amount of time, regardless of how many hands have been played, and what round the game is in. The last, interrupted hand of the game is ignored and is not included in the final scoring of the game.

Multi Table Tournament Rules

• All tournaments will begin at the scheduled time stated in the tournament lobby.
• For optimal fairness in tournaments, the number of participating players must be a multiple of four (4). Excess registered players are dropped from the tournament and any entry fees and buy-ins are refunded.
• Players are assigned seats randomly and are not allowed to choose or change their seats. Player can cancel their tournament registration as long as the registration time has not run out (fee and buy-in is refunded to player)
• The tournament ends when the time period ends.
• The player with most table points wins the tournament. If two players have the same table points the player with most points wins. If players end up on the same points then the pot is split.
• Any chat or action to help another player is unethical and is prohibited.
• All prizes will be distributed according to the specific details of each individual tournament. All details concerning a tournament may be found in the tournament lobby.
• Players, whether in the hand or not, may not discuss the hands until the action is complete.
• A player may play on only one account during a tournament. Violation of this rule may result in disqualification from the tournament as well as both/all accounts being frozen.
• Any play that is deemed unethical, such as team play will result in a player(s) being disqualified from the tournament and the account(s) being frozen.
• In the event of a server interruption or tournament crash, players will be compensated according to our interrupted tournament pay-out (roll forward) policy.
• Country restricted tournaments: The tournament is only open to citizens of that country using an IP address registered to that country.
• All decisions made by eMahjong.net regarding any aspects of a tournament are regarded as final.

Multi Tournament Disconnection

If the player gets disconnected the player will automatically be deactivated. This means that you will sit out as long as you are disconnected. When a disconnected player's connection is reinstated the player can continue to play.

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