Mahjong Gameplay, Taking Turns, Drawing and Discarding

Following the Deal, Charleston and Courtesy Pass, it is time to play the game!

FIRST TURN IN MAHJONG:

The dealer takes the first turn by discarding a tile face up in the center of the table and saying the name of that tile out loud. Remember that the Dealer had 14 tiles to start, so there is no need to draw, the Dealer simply discards her 14th tile to start the game.

The player seated to the right of the dealer goes next, and gameplay goes around the table counterclockwise.

HOW TURNS WORK:

Each player begins a turn by drawing a tile from the wall and placing it in their rack and ends their turn by discarding a tile face up in the center of the table. When a tile is discarded, the player says the name of the discarded tile.

The most recently discarded tile is “Live” until the next player racks the tile they drew at the start of their turn. Any player can claim the Live tile by saying “Call,” or “Pause.” When a player calls a tile, she must expose that section of her hand on top of the rack, to show the number of tiles required. For example, if a player needs 4x 2-Bams the player must show all 4 tiles in the exposure and can use Jokers to show them. If a player calls a tile and exposes it, that becomes that players turn. The exposing player then ends her turn by discarding and the next player to the right goes next after the discard.