Learn the goal: complete a legal winning hand (typically by forming the required sets and a pair)
Know the tile types:
Suited tiles (Dots, Bamboo, Characters)
Honor tiles (Winds: East/South/West/North; Dragons: Red/Green/White)
Understand common set types:
Chow: three suited consecutive tiles (e.g., 3-4-5 of the same suit)
Pung: three identical tiles
Kong: four identical tiles
Pair: two identical tiles (used in the final winning hand)
Start a round:
Shuffle tiles and deal the initial hand to each player (commonly 13 tiles)
Determine who is the dealer (often by a draw or predetermined method)
Take turns:
Draw a tile on your turn (from the wall) unless using a rule variant that differs
If you can complete a winning hand with the drawn tile, declare win
Otherwise, discard one tile to the discard pile
Call tiles from others (common rules vary by variant):
Chow: only from the player immediately before you and only for suited tiles
Pung: from any other player if you have the matching two tiles
Kong: from any other player if you have the matching three tiles
Manage open vs closed hands:
Called sets are typically “open”; hands without calls are “closed”
Scoring changes depending on whether sets are open/closed
Declare special actions when allowed:
Win: when your hand matches the winning pattern required by the ruleset
Kong: when you have four identical tiles (either from your hand or as a claim)
Replacement draw: after declaring a Kong, draw an additional tile if your ruleset uses this
Track melds and your remaining tiles:
Keep sets you’ve formed (chows/pungs/kongs) and your ungrouped tiles separate
Know common winning patterns (rules vary):
Standard hand: four sets (chow/pung/kong) plus one pair
Special hands: e.g., Seven Pairs, Thirteen Orphans (only if your ruleset supports them)
Follow rule-specific limitations:
Some variants restrict which calls are allowed on certain discards
Some variants change turn order, tile counts, and winning conditions
Score the hand:
Use the specific scoring system for your variant (often based on fan/yaku)
Apply dealer/seat bonuses and other rule-specific modifiers
End of round:
If someone wins, scoring is calculated and the round ends
If the wall is exhausted (no win), the round may end in a draw depending on rules
Practice with a specific variant:
Choose a ruleset (e.g., Mahjong Riichi, Hong Kong, Taiwanese, American/MCR)
Play several rounds using the same rule package to learn the exact requirements