The Basics

The Main Characters

There are 3 suits- Craks (characters), Bams (bamboo) and Dots. Each suit is numbered 1-9 (4 of each). Each suit has a matching dragon: Craks have the red dragon, Bams have the green dragon and Dots have the white dragon which is also known as soap. Again there are 4 of each dragon. There are 8 Flowers (considered neutral). Our sets contain 10 Jokers, although according to the NMJL you play with 8 jokers. There are Winds- North, South, East and West (4 of each). And lastly, there are 6 blank tiles. Thats a total of 160 tiles! 

The Card

Each year, usully in April, the National Mahjongg League (NMJL) publishes a new card that is used to play American Mahjong. They publish the card in 3 colors- these colors are NOT specific to a particular suit. The abbreviation F=flower, D=Dragon, N=North, E=east, W=West, S=South. It is especially important to read the parentheses on each line. 

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