The very basic equipment needed to play a mahjong game is tiles and dice. Not all sets contain the same number of tiles. In general, Asian mahjong sets will lack the joker tiles needed to play American forms of mahjong. Japanese mahjong sets will contain additional red fives but lack flower tiles and jokers.
In addition to tiles and dice, mahjong sets may include other accessories such as a wind indicator, chips, or racks.
Tiles
Tiles come in different shapes, colors, and material. However, they have the same basic features. Sets should have 136+ tiles, and all the tiles should look identical on the backs and sides. Aside from the tiles shown below, a set might have jokers (used in American mahjong), blanks (extra tiles in case you lose some, or an alternative design for white dragon tiles), and bonus tiles. There are four copies of each tile in a set, with the exception of bonus tiles.
Main Article: Suits
Suit Tiles
There are three suits in mahjong: bamboo, dots, and characters. The suits are numbered one through nine (108 tiles total).
Bamboos
Bamboo tiles, one through nine |
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In most sets, 1-bamboo looks like a bird, but some sets use a 1-bamboo that has just one green bamboo stick.
Characters
These are the character tiles |
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If you don't want to learn Chinese, make sure you get a set that has the English numerals too.
Dots
Same deal as the bamboo and characters. |
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Main Article: Honors
Honors
Honor tiles are the non-numbered, non-suit tiles. These include three dragons and four winds (28 tiles total).
Dragons
Dragon tiles |
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Green, Red, and White Dragon tiles. If your set has English letters, the green dragon is labeled F, red is C, and white is P or B. Sometimes the white dragons are completely blank tiles.
Winds
Wind tiles |
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East, South, West, and North Wind tiles. If your set has English letters, they are labeled E, S, W, and N.
Main Article: Flowers
Flower (Bonus) Tiles
Bonus tiles, which include flower and seasons, are commonly known just as ‘flowers’ for short. In most rules, the bonus tiles are optional. (Eight tiles total).
Flowers
Flower tiles |
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These are flower tiles, numbered one through four.
Seasons
Season tiles |
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Same deal as flower tiles. There is only one copy of each bonus tile.
Main Article: Jokers
Joker Tiles
Joker tiles are used only in American mahjong as wilds (8 tiles total).
Jokers
Joker tile |
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They are typically blank or have the work ‘joker’ spelled out. The pictures on them may vary. Some enthusiasts would go so far to have their blank joker tiles personalized.