Where can jokers be used?
A joker can stand in for any tile in a group of three or more identical tiles: a pung, kong, quint or sextet. It can never be used in a single or a pair, which rules jokers out of singles-and-pairs hands, NEWS and the singles of year hands, and a discarded joker is dead.
Updated · The Open Apps, Inc.
Placing jokers
- Look for your groups of three or more. Pungs (3), kongs (4), quints (5) and sextets (6) can take jokers.
- Keep naturals for singles and pairs. Use your natural tiles first where jokers can't go.
- Fill the gaps with jokers. Each joker fills one missing tile in a big group.
- Expose with jokers if you call. When you call a discard for a pung, kong or quint, the rest of the exposure can be jokers from your rack.
- Watch for swaps. A joker you expose can be taken by any player who has the tile it stands for, on their turn.
Joker or not, group by group
The size of the group decides.
| Group | Jokers allowed? |
|---|---|
| Single (one tile) | No |
| Pair (two) | No |
| Pung (three) | Yes |
| Kong (four) | Yes |
| Quint (five) | Yes; a quint needs at least one joker, as a set has four of each tile |
| Sextet (six) | Yes |
| Singles in year hands and NEWS | No |
Use it in ChatGPT
Jokerly American Mahjong is a ChatGPT plugin. With your rack in front of you, try:
- “Here's my rack [photo]. Which hand on my card am I closest to?”
- “What should I pass right in the first Charleston?”
- “Can I swap my 5 Dot for the joker in their 5 Dot pung?”
Coming soon to ChatGPTHow it works in ChatGPT
Questions
- How many jokers are in an American mahjong set?
- Eight, in a set of 152 tiles.
- Can I call a discarded joker?
- No. A discarded joker is dead and can't be called.
- Can I call a discard with jokers in my exposure?
- Yes. When you call a discard for a pung, kong or quint, you can complete the exposure with jokers from your rack.
- Can jokers be passed in the Charleston?
- No. Jokers may never be passed.