Sichuan Mahjong
Sichuan Mahjong, often called Blood Battle Mahjong, is a fast four-player variant built around tile exchange, a forbidden suit, and play that continues after the first winner.
The rules below describe MahJongo’s current Sichuan table. Regional tables may use different Fan caps, settlements, or exchange directions.
Rules Used on MahJongo
The opening choices shape the entire hand, so the exchange and forbidden-suit phases are part of the core game rather than optional extras.
- 108 tiles: all three suited families remain: Characters, Bamboo, and Circles. Winds, Dragons, Flowers, and Seasons are not used.
- Exchange three: before choosing a forbidden suit, each player passes three tiles of one suit in the direction selected for that hand.
- Forbidden suit: each player chooses one suit and must discard every tile of that suit before being allowed to win.
- Calls: Chow is not allowed. Pung and Kong are allowed under the table rules.
- Winning structure: the usual form is four sets and one pair; Seven Pairs is a recognized special structure.
- Blood Battle: the hand continues after the first player wins. Play normally ends when three players have won or the wall is exhausted; one discard may produce more than one winner.
- End checks: when the wall is exhausted, the table checks forbidden-suit violations and whether remaining players are in tenpai. Tenpai means one tile away from a legal win and may include several different winning tiles.
Scoring on This Table
The current MahJongo table uses an exponential base score and caps the counted Fan at 3.
- 0 Fan: base score 1.
- 1 or more Fan: base score = 2^Fan.
- Fan cap: only the first 3 Fan are used for the base score, so the maximum base score is 8.
- Win by discard: the player who discarded the winning tile pays the base score to the winner.
- Self-Draw: each player responsible for payment pays the base score plus 1.
Fan Patterns on This Table
The names below describe the patterns used by this implementation. Their Fan value is applied before the table’s 3-Fan cap.
- Root: 1 Fan for each group of four identical tiles recognized by the table.
- All Pungs: 1 Fan for four Pungs or Kongs and one pair.
- Golden Wait: 1 Fan when four sets are complete and the winning tile completes the pair; All Pungs may also apply.
- Full Flush: 2 Fan when every tile in the hand belongs to one suit.
- Seven Pairs: 2 Fan for seven pairs.
- Kong-related wins: Win After Kong, Win on a Discard After Kong, and Robbing the Kong each add 1 Fan when their condition is met.
- Last Tile: 1 Fan for winning on the final wall tile or the related final discard under the table rules.
Practical Strategy
Speed matters, but a fast hand still needs a clean route out of the forbidden suit.
- Exchange with a plan: Pass tiles that weaken one suit without giving away too much information about the two suits you want to keep.
- Clear the forbidden suit early: Holding forbidden-suit tiles too long can block a win and create an end-of-hand penalty.
- Read opponents after a win: The remaining danger changes whenever a player leaves the hand, so reassess safe tiles and live suits.
- Balance Kongs and speed: Kongs can add value, but waiting for a fourth tile can make the hand slower or easier to read.
Sichuan Mahjong FAQ
Is the Bamboo suit removed?
No. MahJongo’s table uses Characters, Bamboo, and Circles. It removes Honor and bonus tiles, not one of the three suits.
What does “forbidden suit” mean?
You select one suit at the start and must get rid of every tile from that suit before you can win.
Why does the game continue after someone wins?
Blood Battle allows later players to keep competing for second and third wins, so one early winner does not end the hand.
Does tenpai mean waiting for only one specific tile?
No. Tenpai means the hand is one tile away from a legal win. It can have one winning tile type or several.
Can I claim a discard for a Chow?
No. This table allows Pung and Kong calls but not Chow.
Are these rules universal across Sichuan?
No. Sichuan Mahjong has several local and online rulesets. The Fan cap and settlement described here match MahJongo’s current implementation.
Sichuan Mahjong Resources
Review the all-time leaderboard or report a rule and translation issue.
Special Thanks
WasteGas, BadMorty23
Thank you for helping MahJongo improve its Sichuan Mahjong experience.