Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles

What Is Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles

Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles is a striking 24-fan hand in Chinese Mahjong that unites all seven distinct honors (one of each wind and dragon) with seven “knitted,” non-adjacent suited tiles to produce a 14-tile layout that forms no melds or pairs whatsoever. Achieving this hand requires methodically discarding duplicates and adjacencies while preserving each wind and dragon. Though it is rare—and often goes unnoticed by opponents until it’s too late—its completion yields a powerful 24-fan score that can decisively alter the game. If you see a promising start with many distinct honors and spaced-out suited tiles, this “seven-star” unconnected hand can become a dazzling and high-reward pursuit.

The Tile Pattern of Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles

In Chinese Mahjong, Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles requires your 14-tile winning hand to be completely “unconnected,” meaning:

• No two suited tiles are adjacent (so no chow is possible).
• No pair or triplet appears (so no pung/kong or standard pair).
• All seven distinct honor tiles are present (one of each Wind: East, South, West, North, plus one of each Dragon: Red, Green, White).
• The remaining 7 suited tiles are “knitted” so that they, too, cannot form sets or pairs.

Example:

• Seven Honors: East, South, West, North, Red Dragon, Green Dragon, White Dragon
• Seven “Knitted” Suited Tiles (one possible combination): 1 B, 4 B, 7 B, 2 C, 5 C, 2 D, 8 D

Fan Value of Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles

Under the Chinese rules, Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles is awarded 24 fan. Because 24 fan greatly exceeds the usual 8-fan minimum for a legal win, completing this hand often clinches a dominant score in the round.

Strategies and Considerations of Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles

Check for Many Honors: If you are initially dealt multiple distinct honor tiles (winds/dragons) plus scattered suited ranks (especially 1–4–7 or 2–5–8 or 3–6–9 patterns), consider “Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles.”

Compare to “Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles”: Lesser Honors requires at least one honor, but not necessarily all seven. If you see you have a shot at gathering all seven honors, you can aim for the bigger 24-fan payoff.

Avoid Duplicates: Discard any extra copy of a tile the moment it appears, because forming a pair ruins the “unconnected” structure.

Avoid Adjacencies: If you draw a tile that is next to another in rank (e.g., 6 B while you have 5 B), discard it to keep your suit tiles spaced out.

Honors Priority: Since you need every wind and dragon, do not discard them if you still lack one of the seven distinct types.

Difficult to Spot: Many opponents will not suspect you are collecting every single honor plus a knitted set of suits—especially as discarding “normal” adjacency tiles can appear random.

Stealth Advantage: Because this hand requires no meld calls (you cannot chow/pung/kong anyway without forming sets), it remains concealed. Opponents might guess you are aiming for a big flush or a standard special hand, but “Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles” is less common.

High-Risk, High-Reward: Securing all seven distinct honors can be tough. If other players discard them early and you cannot pick them up, or if duplicates appear, you may have to pivot away from this hand. If you do succeed, 24 fan can swing an entire game. The difficulty is offset by the potential for a game-changing payout.

Potential Pivots: If collecting all seven honors fails (you can’t find that last missing honor tile), you might still manage a “knitted plus some honors” layout for 12 fan—though the structure is stricter than standard “All Unrelated.” If you see too many honors are claimed by others or you keep drawing duplicates, consider switching to a more conventional pattern (e.g., “All Terminals and Honors” if possible, or a simpler hand).