I do not know a lot about two-player mahjong, however three-player riichi mahjong is extraordinarily common on-line (although not as a lot as four-player mahjong). It’s typically recognized by its Japanese identify, sanma. It normally has the next rule changes:

1. The 2 by 8 of characters are eliminated. This will increase the frequency of pairs, triplets, and honor tiles, makes tan’yao (a.okay.a. All Simples) more durable to get, and customarily will increase the tempo of play.
2. Players can’t name “chi” (a.okay.a. “chow”).
3. Rounds are 3 arms (plus any repeats) as a substitute of 4, since there’s one fewer participant. So a South recreation may be as brief as six arms even when no person will get eradicated.
4. Since North won’t ever be a sound spherical wind or seat wind, it could possibly act relatively like flower tiles in different types of mahjong: you name “Pei!” (or “Kita!”), set it apart face-up, and draw a alternative tile. Each pei name provides 1 han to your hand.

Pei calls are thought-about a type of dora and do not rely as a yaku for the scoring minimal. You do not must name pei, although; you’ll be able to nonetheless use your north as bizarre tiles to finish your hand. You may discard them for those who want a secure tile late within the hand.

If north is a dora tile as proven by the dora indicator, it should operate as a traditional dora whereas in your hand, however not for those who name pei on it; every pei at all times contributes precisely 1 han to your hand.

Finally, it’s potential to name ron on one other participant’s pei, much like robbing a kan, although you do not acquire any han for it. But you do get 1 han for those who tsumo instantly after a pei name, simply as you’d after making a kan.

Also bear in mind that you just get fewer factors for tsumo than for ron, as a result of the payouts are the identical as for 4-player mahjong however there’s one fewer participant to gather factors from.