Thirteen Orphans

What is Thirteen Orphans in Japanese Mahjong

Thirteen Orphans is a yakuman yaku that requires the player to form a hand consisting of 13 distinct tiles, including one of each terminal tile (1s and 9s) and honor tiles (winds and dragons), with a pair of any of these tiles. The hand is considered one of the rarest and most difficult to complete, as it requires very specific tile combinations, and the player must be lucky enough to draw the necessary tiles. Thirteen Orphans is highly prestigious and grants yakuman points, making it one of the most valuable hands in Riichi Mahjong. It is a test of patience and luck, and achieving this hand is an impressive accomplishment.

How to Achieve Thirteen Orphans？

Thirteen Orphans requires the player to form a hand consisting of the following tiles:

1 of Pin, 9 of Pin, 1 of Sou, 9 of Sou, 1 of Man, 9 of Man, East Wind, South Wind, West Wind, North Wind, White Dragon, Green Dragon, Red Dragon.

Thirteen unique tiles: The hand consists of 13 different tiles in total—one of each terminal and honor tile. The player must form 12 distinct tiles (with 1 of each of the above tiles) and add a pair of any of these tiles to complete the hand.

One Pair: The hand must include a pair of one of the above tiles. Since all the tiles are unique, this is the only repeating tile in the hand.

No Other Tiles: The hand cannot include any non-terminal tiles or non-honor tiles. Only terminal tiles (1s and 9s) and honor tiles (winds and dragons) can be used.

Yakuman Tier: Thirteen Orphans is a yakuman hand, meaning it is one of the highest-scoring hands in Riichi Mahjong. It typically grants 32,000 points for the dealer and 48,000 points for a non-dealer.

What is the Strategy and Risk of Thirteen Orphans?

Very Rare Hand: Thirteen Orphans is one of the rarest hands in Riichi Mahjong because it requires a very specific combination of tiles. Unlike many other hands, Thirteen Orphans does not require any sequences (chow) or triplets (pung) formed from consecutive tiles. Instead, it relies entirely on terminal tiles (1s and 9s) and honor tiles (winds and dragons), all of which must be collected in specific combinations.

Forming the Hand: The main difficulty of Thirteen Orphans is drawing the right tiles. Since it consists of 13 different tiles, there is a significant amount of luck involved in drawing the tiles necessary to complete the hand. Once you have 12 different tiles (one of each terminal and honor tile), you need to wait for a pair of any of the tiles. This pair can be formed by either drawing the same tile twice or calling it from another player (if you are playing under rules that allow calling for pairs).

No Sequences or Triplets: The hand does not involve any sequences (chow) or triplets (pung) that you can typically form with regular tiles. The entire hand must be constructed with individual terminal and honor tiles.

Self-Drawn or Called Pair: Thirteen Orphans must be a concealed hand (no open melds), but the pair can be completed by either self-drawing or calling from another player’s discard. However, the pair is the only place where you can accept a tile from another player. All other tiles in the hand must be self-drawn.