Mahjong was created during the early 19th century in China and later became popular throughout the whole of Asia.
It’s stood the test of time: nowadays, thousands of people all over the world play it, and given that it’s easy to learn but difficult to master, there’s no doubt that people will be playing for years to come.
If you’re just starting out at Mahjong, here are five tips to help you hone your strategy!
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1. Learning the Basics
While the fundamentals are easy to pick up, try to take the time to fully absorb them. If you need a reminder, Mahjong is a game typically played with four players, and the aim is to create a complete hand that consists of three or four matching tiles and a pair. Here’s a great refresher video.
2. Regarding Tile Types
Spend plenty of time familiarizing yourself with each type of tile, and memorize the different categories. There are three main suits (Dots, Characters, and Bamboos), and you’ve also got Honor tiles and Bonus tiles to consider.
Mahjong is partly about memorization because recognizing each type of tile quickly is essential so that you can focus on executing your winning strategy.
3. Deciding on Your Strategy
So, what sort of strategy should you go with? As a beginner, you should always focus on being flexible rather than trying to double down on any specific method. A game of Mahjong can change very quickly, and you need to be able to adapt.
One of the most important things to do is keep an eye on your other player’s discards; you’ll find a strategy that works well for you over time, but crucially, you need to learn how to carefully observe and memorize.
4. The Importance of Tile Efficiency
While memorization and observation are the backbone of any solid Mahjong strategy, another key element of the game is tile efficiency. It’s important to make snap decisions on which tiles to discard and which to keep. A common beginner mistake is to try to protect your hand at all costs, but more tiles aren’t necessarily better – it’s much more about quality over quantity.
Don’t be afraid to discard tiles just because you think they might be useful. More often than not, you’re just halting your own progress.
5. Practice Makes Perfect!
And finally, perhaps most important of all, make sure you get in plenty of practice! Ultimately, you can read about the rules all you want, but the only way you’ll make consistent, measurable improvements is by repeatedly playing the game.
You should also observe other people playing, as oftentimes, you can gain further insight into winning strategies you might not have figured out on your own.
Wrapping Up
Hopefully, you’ve now gained some key insights that will help you on your journey as a beginner Mahjong player. The game has a lot of depth, with the best players utilizing many different skills at once to come out on top; it’ll take time, but providing you stay consistent and remain eager to learn, you’ll get there soon enough!
