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How to Play Raku Mahjong

Raku Mahjong is a free mahjong game you can play right in your browser. Beyond the standard "Normal Game," it offers several modes: a "Special Game" with joker tiles and special abilities, three-player play, and a 2v2 team battle. With a hand-checking feature and AI assist, even beginners can play with confidence.

Mahjong Basics

Mahjong is a table game for four players (three in three-player mahjong). Each player repeatedly draws and discards tiles, aiming to complete a hand of "four sets (melds) and one pair" by adding a 14th tile to a 13-tile hand. Completing it is a "win" (agari).

• Set (meld) — a "run" (three consecutive tiles like 1-2-3) or a "triplet" (three identical tiles).
• Pair — two identical tiles.
• Yaku — you need at least one scoring pattern to win. Riichi, Tanyao, and value tiles are common.
• Dora — bonus tiles that increase your score.

Winning on your own draw is a "tsumo"; winning on another player's discard is a "ron." If the wall runs out before anyone wins, the hand is a "draw" (ryukyoku), and points move based on who was ready (tenpai).

Flow of a Game

1. On the start screen, pick the number of players, the type (normal/special), and the match length, then start.
2. After the deal, repeat drawing and discarding to build your hand.
3. Once ready, declare Riichi or aim for a concealed win.
4. A win or draw ends the hand; points are settled and the next hand begins.
5. Final standings are decided by your points after the set number of hands.

Match length can be "Single hand," "East-only (Tonpuu)," or "Half-game (Hanchan, East + South)."

Controls

• Discard — click (tap) a tile in your hand to discard it.
• Auto-discard — a button that immediately discards the tile you just drew, for faster play.
• Melds (Pon/Chi/Kan), Riichi, Ron/Tsumo — buttons appear at the bottom when available.
• Show hands — view every player's hand.
• Yaku list — see which scoring patterns are possible; great for learning.
• Tedashi mark — marks discards in the river that came from the hand (not the drawn tile).
• Undo — take back your last action (handy for practice).

Modes

Mode	Description
Normal Game (4-Player)	Standard four-player mahjong.
Normal Game (3-Player)	Three-player mahjong with 108 tiles (2–8 man removed). Includes North-tile bonus.
Special Game (4-Player)	The Normal Game plus joker tiles and special abilities.
Special Game (3-Player)	Three-player play plus joker tiles and special abilities.
Team Battle (2v2)	A team game where you and your left-hand player are allies (4 players).

4-Player Rules

Mahjong rules vary by region and style. These are the rules used in this game (4-player). Starting points: 25,000 (begins at East 1).

Rule	This game	Details
Open Tanyao	Yes	Tanyao is valid even with called melds.
Swap calling	No	Discarding the same/sujitile right after a call is prohibited.
Atozuke	Yes	A yaku just needs to exist at the moment of winning (no strict pre-declaration).
Red dora	Yes	One red 5 each in man, pin, and sou.
Multiple ron	Double ron: Yes	Two simultaneous rons both win (no head-bump). Three simultaneous rons end the hand as a draw.
Abortive draws	Yes	Nine terminals, four-wind discard, four-kan, four-riichi, three-ron.
Noten penalty	Yes	A total of 3000 points moves between ready and not-ready players.
Tenpai renchan	Yes	Dealer repeats on a dealer win or a draw while the dealer is ready.
Agari-yame	Yes	The game ends if the dealer wins while leading in the final hand.
Bankruptcy end	Yes	The game ends in the hand where any score goes negative.
West round	Yes	If no one has 30,000+ at the end of South 4, play extends to the West round.

3-Player Rules

Based on common three-player rules. Starting points: 25,000 (begins at East 1; a half-game runs through South 3).

Rule	This game	Details
North bonus tile	Yes	The North tile is set aside as a bonus dora; draw a replacement each time.
Tsumo loss	Yes	On a non-dealer tsumo, the absent fourth player's share is not paid, reducing the take.
Tiles used	108 tiles	Man is only 1 and 9 (2–8 man unused). Pin, sou, and honors are full sets.
Red dora	Yes	One red 5 each in pin and sou (no red 5 man).
Open Tanyao	Yes	Tanyao is valid even with called melds.
Swap calling	No	Discarding the same/sujitile right after a call is prohibited.
Atozuke	Yes	A yaku just needs to exist at the moment of winning.
Multiple ron	No	Two simultaneous rons are treated as a draw, not a win.
Abortive draws	Yes	Nine terminals, four-kan, three-riichi, double-ron draw.
Noten penalty	Yes	A total of 3000 points moves between ready and not-ready players.
Tenpai renchan	Yes	Dealer repeats on a dealer win or a draw while ready.
Bankruptcy end	Yes	The game ends in the hand where any score goes negative.
West round	No	No extension is played.

Special Game (Joker Tiles & Abilities)

The "Special Game" adds two special elements to the Normal Game. Starting points can be 25,000 / 50,000 / 100,000.

Joker Tiles

Four wild tiles that can stand in for any tile are added (140 tiles total in 4-player; 112 in 3-player).

Special Abilities

Each player picks one ability before the game (one per player, no duplicates). The main abilities are:

Ability	Effect
Hyper Call	The draw right after a call becomes a useful tile; the starting hand favors calling.
Hyper Dealer-Keep	The hand after a win starts with a strong deal and easier useful draws, aiming for a bigger hand.
Hyper Insight	Your next 6 draws are predicted, and you can see opponents' winning tiles.
Hyper Dora	Dora gather in your hand more easily, and ura-dora hit more often.
Hyper Deal	A 50% chance to start with a ready (tenpai) hand.
Hyper Stealth	Your discards are hidden from others, and you can't be ronned even if you discard their tile.
Hyper Kan	Calling a kan lets you draw a useful tile; the hand favors kan.
Hyper Random	A random ability is chosen at the start of each hand and active only for that hand.
Hyper Joker	One joker is guaranteed in the deal; an 80% chance to draw a joker each turn.
Hyper Flush	A 70% chance the deal skews to two suits or fewer.
Hyper Pick	Each turn, look at the top 3 tiles of the wall and draw the one you want.
Hyper Recover	A "Recover" button lets you swap one tile in hand with one from anyone's discards.

Team Battle (2v2)

Four players split into two teams. You and your left-hand player are allies; the player across and to your right are opponents. The winner is decided by the combined score of the two teammates. Since a teammate's win counts for your team, you can enjoy cooperative play unlike standard mahjong.