Conclusion: “yaku” is necessary to rise! You can't get better with dora alone
In riichi mahjong, you cannot win unless you have "yaku" of 1 han or more. riichi, tanyao, yakuhai, etc. are "yaku", and dora is not yaku, but is an additional point element that increases the score of the successful move. No matter how many dora you have, if you don't have any other yaku, you'll end up with "chombo" or "no yaku." First of all, let's memorize the basic five yaku (riichi, tsumo, tanyao, yakuhai, pinfu) and understand the differences between "closed hand only", "calling OK", and "grabbing".
If you are worried about words such as meld, pair, tsumo, ron, etc. or the basic rules, please read first.Introduction to mahjong rules for beginnersIf you read this, this yaku list will become easier to understand.
Consider yaku, han, and dora separately.
yakuis the name of the determined win condition.hanis a unit that represents the value of a hand by summing up the yaku and dora that have been established. 1 han, 2 han, etc. are determined for each yaku, and the score is calculated from the number of han and fu. The procedure for calculating the score isHow to simplify mahjong score calculationIt is explained in detail.
dora, red dora, back dora, and ka dora generally add 1 han per piece. However, dora itself is not yaku. For example, if the hand that cries includes a white triplet such as ``234 million, 456 million, 678 tubes, white white white, 55 ropes'', you can win because there is a yakuhai called white. If you don't have the white triplet and you don't have any other yaku, you can't win even if you have dora.
Check not only the number of hans but also the calling conditions
A closed hand is a state in which you move forward without chiming, ponting, or clearing the other player's discarded tiles. riichi and peace are limited to closed hand. On the other hand, yakuhai and taitowa are valid even if you sing. Three colors in the same order, all at once, mixed colors, etc. are valid even if you cry, but the price is 1 han lower than when it is a closed hand. A dark move is usually not treated as breaking a closed hand.
The list in this article is based on the official M League match rules and WRC (World Riichi Championship) published materials, and is organized around the widely adopted competition riichi mahjong yaku. However, the acceptance or rejection of yaku and the handling of points differ depending on the mahjong club, competition group, family, and game. In the actual battle, please use the rules of the participating table as the final standard.
5 yaku that beginners should learn first
There is no need to memorize all yaku at once. At first, prioritize the following five items that have a high chance of appearing and are easy to determine the direction of handcrafting.
- riichi (1 han/closed hand only):Listen to the tiles with a closed hand, play 1000 point sticks and declare. As a general rule, you cannot change hands after the declaration, but it is easier to secure Yaku, and you also have the possibility of Ura Dora.
- Closed hand Qingji Shuwa (1 han・closed hand only):This is Yaku who is trying to win the winning tile by himself with a closed hand. This applies even if you are not doing riichi.
- tanyao (1 han/calling may be possible):It is made with only a few tiles from 2 to 8. Since it does not use 1/9/honor tiles, it is a yaku that is easy to build around sequences. There are also rules that do not allow eating.
- yakuhai (1 han/calling possible):You can get 3 of either white, red, medium, field style, or self style. Since yaku does not disappear even if you pon, it is a gateway to learning calling.
- Peace (1 han/closed hand only):All 4 pairs are sequence, and the pair is not yakuhai, but the wait for win is on both sides. This leads to an understanding of tile efficiency and waiting.
If you are unsure, choose one of the following options: ``Aim for riichi with a closed hand'', ``get 3 yakuhai'', or ``reduce 1, 9, and honor tiles to see tanyao''. Before calling, check out loud the yaku that remains after the call to avoid missing yaku.
List of 1-han yaku
| yaku | calling condition | Key points of establishment |
|---|---|---|
| riichi | closed hand limited | Deposit and declare 1000point sticks with closed hand hearing tiles |
| One shot | closed hand limited | After establishing riichi, win uninterrupted with chi, pon, kan (including dark) within one round. |
| closed hand | closed hand limited | Win the closed hand with your own tsumo |
| peace (pinfu) | closed hand limited | sequence 4 pairs, non-yakuhai pairs, both sides are satisfied |
| One cup (Epeko) | closed hand limited | Create two sets of sequences of the same type and number |
| tanyao | Calling possible※ | It consists of only a few tiles from 2 to 8. Confirm whether or not Kuitan is accepted. |
| yakuhai | calling possible | Make a triplet or quad of white, red, medium, bafu, and own style. |
| Undersea Moon (High Tei) | calling possible | Win with the last tsumo tile, which is the submarine tile. |
| River bottom fish (Houtei) | calling possible | Ronwin with the last discarded tile |
| Minegami flowering (Lin Shan Kaihou) | calling possible | Tsumowin with the Minejo tile drawn after the tsumo |
| 搶槓 (chan kan) | calling possible | Win with a tile that another family tried to improve. |
"Calling possible" means that calling itself does not prevent the establishment of yaku. Ippatsu is a yaku that accompanies riichi and cannot stand alone. Even within one round after riichi, if someone's chi, pon, or kan is established, the right to one shot disappears, and Anko is also included in the interruption. For yakuhai, the conditions are stacked; for example, if the Azuma of the east field has three east cards, the general rule is that the field wind and own wind are treated as 2 han. Please check the rules table for the expression and handling of Renpu tiles.
List of 2-han yaku
| yaku | calling condition | Key points of establishment |
|---|---|---|
| double righting | closed hand limited | I'll be the first to riichi with my own discard without anyone calling. |
| Renpu tiles (field wind/own wind) | calling possible | A triplet with the same wind tiles as the field wind and own wind. Listed as 2-han yaku in the M League official table |
| Seven pairs of children (chi toys) | closed hand limited | Create a win shape with 7 different pairs |
| vs sum (toitoi) | calling possible | Make all 4 pairs into triplets or quads |
| three dark marks | calling possible | Make 3 sets of dark carvings or dark traps. Triplets completed with ron tiles are not marked. |
| Three colors same engraving | calling possible | Make a triplet with the same number using manzu, pinzu, and souzu |
| three quad | calling possible | make 3 quads |
| Kosangen | calling possible | Two types of ternary tiles are made into triplets, and the remaining one is made into pairs. |
| Mixed head (honrotou) | calling possible | Create triplets and pairs or seven pairs using only 1, 9, and honor tiles. |
| Same order of three colors | 1 han when you cry | Create a sequence of the same numbers with manzu, pinzu, and souzu |
| All at once (Itzu) | 1 han when you cry | Match 123, 456, and 789 sequences of the same type |
| Chanta | 1 han when you cry | Includes 1, 9, and honor tiles in all melds and pairs, and also uses sequences |
The three dark marks do not look at whether the entire hand is closed, but whether there are three dark triplets. Therefore, it will work even if you chime the remaining 1 meld. On the other hand, if you roll a tile waiting for Shabbos to complete a third set of triplet, that triplet will be treated as a bright time and may not become a third dark time. If you complete it with tsumo, it will be memorized.
Chanter requires 1.9 honor tiles in each block, and at least one set contains a sequence. If it's just a triplet, I'll consider mixing and matching depending on the configuration. It will be easier to remember similar yakus if you distinguish them by whether they require a sequence or whether they can include honor tiles.
List of 3 han・6-han yaku
| number of han | yaku | calling condition | Key points of establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 han | Two sake cups (Liang Peko) | closed hand limited | Make two sets of one sake cup shape. Seven pairs of children cannot be counted at the same time. |
| 3 han | Mixed colors (Hon'itsu) | 2 han when you cry | Consists of only one type of number tiles and honor tiles |
| 3 han | Jun-chan | 2 han when you cry | Do not use honor tiles, include 1 or 9 in all melds and pairs, and use sequences as well. |
| 6 han | Seiichiki (Chinichi) | 5 han when you cry | Don't use honor tiles, just consist of one type of number tiles |
Hon'itsu and Chin'itsu's direction is easy to tell from the appearance of their hands, but the more they cry, the easier it is to convey their aim to the other person. Hon'itsu can use honor tiles, but Chin'itsu cannot. Unlike Chanta, Junchan cannot use honor tiles and requires 1 or 9 in every pair.
The unique yaku of 4 han and 5 han are not included in the general yaku system covered in this article. In actual battles, multiple yakus and doras may add up to 4hans or 5hans. For example, add riichi1han to honichitsu3han in a closed hand.
List of yakuman
Yakuman is the highest level Yaku that is different from the normal HAN number calculation. There are big differences in the rules regarding combinations when multiple yakuman are established at the same time, whether a specific waiting method is considered a double yakuman, and how liability payments are handled, so it is important not to decide points based on the yaku name alone.
| yakuman | calling condition | Key points of establishment |
|---|---|---|
| Tenwa (Tenhou) | closed hand | The parent wins on the first tsumo after the tiles are dealt. |
| chihou | closed hand | The child wins with the first own tsumo without calling. |
| Kokushi Musou | closed hand limited | Collect one of each of the 13 types of Jiu tiles and make one of them a pair. |
| Four Dark Hours | closed hand limited | Make 4 sets of dark carvings or dark clouds |
| Daisangen | calling possible | Make white, red, and medium all triplet or quad |
| All green | calling possible | It consists only of the prescribed souzu and 癹 drawn only in green. |
| One color character | calling possible | Configure only with honor tiles |
| Koshiki | calling possible | Make 3 types of wind tiles into triplets and the remaining 1 type into pairs. |
| Daishiki | calling possible | Make East, South, West, and North all triplets or quads |
| Seirotou | calling possible | Consists of only number tiles 1 and 9 |
| four quad | calling possible | Make 4 quads |
| Nine Lotus Treasure Lanterns | closed hand limited | The basic shape is 1112345678999 with one kind of number tiles, and one similar tile is added. |
Locally known as yaku, such as jinwa, large wheel, and shirenkoku, are not included in the table above because there are many competition rules that do not apply them. When aiming for yakuman, please check the yaku you are hiring before matching.
Typical yaku seen in hand example
From here on, I will show you the 14 completed shapes, with a space between each meld. The example is to show the skeleton of yaku, and the number of han in actual battle will change depending on closed hand, side dew, win method, field wind, own wind, dora, etc.
tanyao: only a few tiles from 2 to 8
yakuhai: Gather 3 pieces of white, red, medium, field style, and self style.
Peace: All sequence, no pair, double-sided waiting
Pairwise sum: Make all 4 pairs into triplets
All at once: 123, 456, 789 in the same type
Mixed colors: only one type of number tiles and honor tiles
Kiyoshiki: Only one type of tiles
Kokushi Musou: 13 types of 1, 9, honor tiles and one pair
Daisanyuan: Make white, white, and medium all triplets.
Eating tongue, counting yakuman, and double yakuman have different rules.
Even with the same riichi mahjong, the details are not unified. Please check at least the following three points before participating:
- Eating tongue:Do you recognize tanyao who cried as 1 han? In official M League games, Dankeku is not limited to closed handyaku, but there are also tables without eating tongues.
- Counting yakuman:Is a hand with a total of 13han or more of yaku and dora considered to be equivalent to yakuman? In official M League games, the upper limit for composites other than Yakuman is three times full. The results will vary on tables that use counting yakuman.
- Double yakuman:Do you want to make special forms such as Kokushi Musou 13 Men Waiting, Shiankoku Danki, Genuine Nine Lotus Hoto, and Daishiki double Yakuman? There are also rules to treat it as one normal yakuman.
In addition, there are differences in the number of red dora, round-up mankan, compound yakuman, responsibility payment, nagashi mankan, fu and han of rempu tiles, etc. The rules for M League and WRC are also not completely identical, and each platform has its own settings. It is safe to read the rules displayed on the table first, without assuming that it is ``generally like this''.
Check procedure to determine yaku at win time
- Check win shape:Check whether it is the basic four melds and one pair, Shichitaiko, or Kokushi Musou.
- Check for closed hand or side dew:The difference is whether closed handyaku such as riichi, peace, and ichisakaguchi remain, or whether there is a decline.
- View tile types:Look at the presence or absence of 1, 9, and honor tiles, the type of number tiles used, and the composition of the sequence and triplet.
- View the field and win status:Add conditions that cannot be understood from the hand example alone, such as field wind, own wind, ron/tsumo, the last tile, and immediately after the tsumo.
- Determine yaku and then add dora:First, make sure you have at least 1 han of yaku, then add the front dora, red dora, back dora, and ka dora.
- Match the table exception:Check the settings that change the result, such as eating tongue, counting yakuman, and double yakuman.
If you tend to overlook yaku, before trying to guess the yaku name, say the structure: ``How many sequences, triplets, and types of tiles are used?'' For example, in the case of ``sequence 4, only a few tiles, no 1 and 9, closed hand, waiting for both sides'', tanyao and peace are the natural candidates.
Check for 10 seconds before crying
Before chi or pon, see if you can say one yaku after chirping. You can proceed if the remaining yaku is clear, such as ``yakuhai in the beginning'', ``1 han in one go'', ``2 han in mixed colors''. If you can't answer, remember that if you keep a closed hand, you can leave a yaku called riichi.
How to memorize the yaku list into knowledge that can be used in actual battles
Yaku is more effective when you memorize similar conditions by comparing them, rather than memorizing the table from top to bottom. The combinations are ``Hon'itsu has honor tiles and Chin'itsu has no honor tiles'', ``Chanta has honor tiles and Junchan has no honor tiles'', ``Taijiwa has all 4 triplets, and Sanankoku has 3 dark triplets''.
Next, let's look back at just one win after the match. If you record the yaku that were established, the compound yaku that you overlooked, and the han that you lost due to cries, the list will be linked to your actual judgment. It's worth seeing if there are any yaku left after the station that didn't win. The purpose of knowing yaku is not to be able to say rare yaku, but to be able to choose the path from the current hand to win.
For beginners, it is more practical to stably judge riichi, tanyao, yakuhai, and peace, and to be able to count the number of three colors in the same order and the decline in one pass, rather than aiming for yakuman in detail. If you want to combine it with the idea of tile efficiency,mahjong's introduction to tile efficiencyCheck out how to view shanten numbers, effective tiles, and 5 blocks.
Summary: Check in order of yaku, calling conditions, and dora
riichi mahjong's yaku not only remembers the number of hans, but also whether it is limited to closed hands, whether it works even if it cries, and whether the number of hans decreases when it cries. When winning, confirm one or more yaku and then add dora. First, give priority to riichi, closed hand seishi shuwa, tanyao, yakuhai, and peace, and as you get used to it, it will be easier to organize by expanding to sanshoku doshu, ichiki tsukan, hon'itsu, etc.
There are different rules regarding the recruitment and scoring of yaku. In particular, eating tongue, counting yakuman, and double yakuman can change the result, so please check the rules of mahjong parlors, tournaments, home matches, and online matches in advance.
Reference material
- M League official game rules(Check ichihan binding, dora, score calculation, yaku list, yakuman compound, etc.)
- World Riichi Championship Rules(Guide to the current WRC rule document)
- WRC Player Materials(Guidance to the official yaku list/score table)
This article is a reconstruction of the main points of the published materials in Japanese. It is not a reproduction of the text of a specific organization or the layout of the yaku list. Rules are subject to change, so please check the latest version from each organizer when matching.