The set at a glance
| Group | Tiles | Copies | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circles | 1 to 9 | 4 of each | 36 |
| Bamboo | 1 to 9 | 4 of each | 36 |
| Characters | 1 to 9 | 4 of each | 36 |
| Winds | East, South, West, North | 4 of each | 16 |
| Dragons | Red, Green, White | 4 of each | 12 |
| Flowers | Plum, orchid, chrysanthemum, bamboo | 1 of each | 4 |
| Seasons | Spring, summer, autumn, winter | 1 of each | 4 |
That makes 42 different designs and 144 tiles in all. Sets for other styles of the game differ a little. Japanese riichi sets usually leave out the flowers and seasons, for 136 tiles. American mahjong sets add eight jokers, for 152.
The three suits
The suit tiles are the heart of the set. Each suit runs from 1 to 9, and the number is shown by counting the symbols on the face, or, for characters, by a Chinese numeral.
Circles
Also called dots or coins. Each tile shows its number as round symbols, from a single large circle on the 1 to a grid of nine on the 9. They are often said to stand for coins.
- 1 of Circles
- 3 of Circles
- 5 of Circles
- 9 of Circles
Bamboo
Also called sticks. The tiles show bamboo stalks, two on the 2 up to nine on the 9, often with a red stalk in the middle of the 5 and the 9. The 1 of Bamboo is the odd one out: on many traditional sets it is a bird, often a sparrow or a peacock, rather than a single stick.
- 1 of Bamboo
- 3 of Bamboo
- 5 of Bamboo
- 9 of Bamboo
Characters
Also called cracks or numbers. Each tile has a Chinese numeral on top, from 一 (one) to 九 (nine), and beneath it the character 萬 (wàn), which means ten thousand. You do not need to read Chinese to play: the numerals are simple to learn, and many sets, including Plum Mahjong’s, add a small number in the corner.
- 1 of Characters
- 3 of Characters
- 5 of Characters
- 9 of Characters
Winds
The four wind tiles carry the Chinese characters for the compass points: 東 East, 南 South, 西 West and 北 North. In the four-player game, each player sits at a wind and the winds also mark the rounds, so a wind tile can be worth more to one player than another. In solitaire they are simply four more tiles to match, East with East and North with North.
- East wind
- South wind
- West wind
- North wind
Dragons
There are three dragons. The Red dragon shows 中 (zhōng), meaning middle or center. The Green dragon shows 發 (fā), often translated as prosperity or getting rich. The White dragon is usually blank or drawn as a blue frame. In the four-player game, sets of dragons score well. In solitaire, each dragon matches only its own color.
- Red dragon
- Green dragon
- White dragon
Flowers and seasons
The eight bonus tiles are the most decorative in the set. The four flowers are the plum blossom, orchid, chrysanthemum and bamboo, a classic group in Chinese painting. The four seasons are spring, summer, autumn and winter. Each appears only once, often with a small number from 1 to 4.
In the four-player game, a player who draws a flower or season sets it aside, scores a small bonus, and draws a replacement. Because each one is unique, mahjong solitaire treats them as two groups: any flower can be paired with any other flower, and any season with any other season.
How tiles match in solitaire
Mahjong solitaire uses the tiles but none of the four-player rules. You clear the table two tiles at a time, and a tile can only be taken when it is free: nothing lies on top of it and its left or right side is open. Two tiles match when they are identical: 3 of Circles with 3 of Circles, West wind with West wind, Green dragon with Green dragon. A 3 of Circles never matches a 3 of Bamboo. The only exception in classic games is the bonus groups above. A full 144-tile layout is cleared in 72 pairs. Read what mahjong solitaire is for how it differs from the original game, or how to play for the full rules.
The tiles in Plum Mahjong
Plum Mahjong draws all 34 traditional suit and honor designs shown above: circles, bamboo and characters from 1 to 9, the four winds and the three dragons. It does not use flower or season tiles, so in Plum every match is two identical tiles, with no exceptions to remember.
Alongside the traditional tiles, Plum Mahjong has its own picture tiles: 120 illustrations in 13 sets. The first ten levels use pictures only, and from level 11 traditional tiles join them. Each set has a theme, and here is one tile from each:
- KoiGarden
- LanternFestival
- WhaleOcean
- TeacupTea
- RainbowSky
- CherriesFruit
- SnowmanWinter
- PandaAnimals
- ViolinMusic
- SunflowerFlowers
- Watering canTools
- DragonZodiac
- Hot-air balloonTravel
Picture sets that could be confused, such as garden plants and flowers, never share a board. Plum’s Flowers set is a picture set like the others, not the traditional bonus group: a tulip only matches a tulip.
Prefer the traditional look? Set Tile style to Classic only in Settings and every picture is drawn as a traditional tile instead. The board and its solution stay exactly the same. The corner numbers on suit tiles, and the N, E, S and W on winds, can be turned on or off. Plum boards are also smaller than the classic 144-tile layout, from 12 to 110 tiles, so every tile stays large. The page on large, easy-to-see tiles explains why.
Where the name comes from
In English the word is usually said mah-JONG, and older books spell it mah-jongg. The Mandarin name is 麻將 (májiàng). In Cantonese the game is called 麻雀, the same word as sparrow, and a bird is a familiar sight on the 1 of Bamboo.