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Theories to learn at each Rank

By IcyPhoenix

This will give you a rough outline of the things you should learn at each rank, that will help you progress in that rank.

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Created by

IcyPhoenix
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Category: Gameplay Basics, Secrets, Walkthroughs

Languages: English

Posted

Updated

8 Oct, 2024 @ 11:16pm

8 May @ 5:40am

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Guide Index

Overview

Intro

Bronze Room

Silver Room

Gold Room

Jade Room

Misc

Comments

Intro

I've been playing this for awhile now and haven't really seen a break down of what you should learn at each rank, I'm not gonna write what everything is cause that would make this guide a billion lines long, theres plenty of google resources and if you can't find them you can always ask and I'm happy to link them

Bronze Room

You'll have to google each theory yourself for indepth explanation.

Bronze:
- 5 Block Theory
- Basic efficiency: https://euophrys.itch.io/mahjong-efficiency-trainer
- 99% of kans are bad
- Yakus: Riichi, Tanyao, Yakuhai
- Simple Discard Order (Isolated Honor tiles, Isolated Terminal Tiles 1/9, Isolated Tiles)

Silver Room

Silver:
- Folding
-- Genbutsu (tile discarded by the player you want to fold against)
-- Suji (147 / 258 / 369)
- Simple Shapes
-- Penchan (12 -> waiting on 3)
-- Kanchan (13 -> waiting on 2)
-- Ryanmen (23 -> waiting on 1/4)
-- Ryankan (135 -> waiting on 2/4)
-- Nobetan (1234 -> waiting on 1/4) only when no pair
-- Shanpon (1122 -> waiting on 1/2)
-- Sanmenchan (23456 -> waiting on 1/4/7)
- Pair Efficiency
- Types of iishanten (1 away from tenpai (ready hand))
-- Perfect iishanten (123m 789m 444s 223s + 88p -> waiting on 124 and 8)
-- Kutsuki iishanten (123m 789m 444s 99s 3p 7p -> waiting on 123456789p)
-- Headless iishanten (123m 789m 234s 78s 23p -> waiting on 6789s 1234p)
- Anpai (Safe tile) (1234m 99m 234s 78p 23p -> draw north -> cut 1m keep north safe tile if north has already been discarded)
- Yakus: Pinfu, Honitsu, Chinitsu, Sanshoku, Chiitoi
- Understand that toitoi, chanta, junchan all basically suck

Gold Room

Gold:
- Defence Techniques
-- Kabe (if you see all the 3s, then 12 is kabe making them safer if you see any more of them)
-- One chance (if you see 3x3s then 12 is one chance making them safer if you see any more of them)
-- Matagi Suji (the tiles around the riichi tile is dangerous -> riichi 4m -> 2/5m 3/6m is matagi suji)
-- Ura Suji (the suji tiles around the riichi tile is dangerous -> riichi 4m -> 5/8m is ura suji)
- Learn to Read honitsu/chinitsu
- Learn the rest of the Yakus
- Stat tracking (https://amae-koromo.sapk.ch/)
- AI Reviewers (https://mjai.ekyu.moe/)

Jade Room

Master
- Defence Techniques
-- Sotogawa (early discards tiles on the outside of them are potentially safe -> early 8s discard makes 9s safer)
-- Aida Yon Ken (tiles with a 5 spacing makes the suji in between them more dangerous)
-- Suji Counting (how many suji tiles have been tested is roughly the deal in rate for a musuji tile)
-- Tedashi/Tsumogiri Tracking (did they cut the tile from their draw or from their hand)
-- Kuinobashi - When someone chis and cuts a suji/long suji to the chi tile, the ura suji tile to the cut tile is worse. (chi 3p -> discard 6p or 9p example hand: 45679p -> chi 3p -> 345p + 67p -> cut 9p, gives 5/8p wait | example hand: 12346p -> chi 3p -> 123p + 34p -> cut 6p gives 2/5p wait)
- Sakigiri (discard tiles while they are safe even if it affects efficiency for safety reasons)
- 6 Block Theory
- Advanced Shapes (All the other shapes, theres a link on reddit for this: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K4NuE2UZgeqhSR-WsYWyQlRiEERh5VQo/view)
- Scoring (how to score hands)
- Advanced Efficiency (https://sagisawa.0am.jp/akochandaaaaa/?)

Misc

Some hints:

Toitoi sucks as a yaku unless you have a confirmed ankou in your hand already and the rest of your pairs are easy to pon (1289 and honours)
Chiitoi sucks as a yaku its used to fold not to push or used to force value
Don't click chi/pon/kan unless you know your yaku
On average you should be ready to win between turn 6 to 9 if it takes later then that on average you are taking too long and your efficiency is still bad
If you don't know what to discard review why you don't know why, theres almost always a correct decision
if you are a stats person goto: https://pathofhouou.blogspot.com/

7 Comments

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IcyPhoenix [author] 19 Jun @ 6:08pm

editing guides on steam is next to impossible - i'll try to remove the brackets.

@verboxe - the terms are there so you know what to google - this isn't really suppose to be a guide more things to learn / google

Verboxe 19 Jun @ 9:28am

It would be a nice guide if not for an ocean of fancy terms and theories. Learn the basics. Figure out the rest with common sense and trust your guts. Come back for the remaining 5-10% you missed on the way.

TheRussianTanker 29 Apr @ 11:21am

If able, please remove (brackets) from links. Steam keeps sayin' it's a some scam link 'cuz of that

shadramelk 22 Feb @ 3:30am

I'd add that in mid-late gold you also have to learn riichi/dama judgements (to prevent either unnecessary risk or undervaluing) and orasu/place play tactics

IcyPhoenix [author] 19 Jan @ 11:08pm

Biggest problem with learning too many things at once is you can't practice them and actually become proficient at them, the things I listed is what you should practice and master at that rank not just read up on it and then move on.

Biggest example of the above is efficiency lots of people will claim they understand efficiency, but majority of hands are auto pilot and don't require much thinking, its the ones that aren't that trips them up because they think they know it well enough that they don't need to work on it anymore.

A really simple way to test the above is: https://mahjong-trainer.netlify.app/ can you figure out the waits of a chinitsu hand in 5 seconds, cause if you can't do that you can't figure out the upgrades of the hand when you aren't tenpai and you'll fail efficiency, of course this is the most extreme example but its to highlight how much each topic really covers.

ImNoob 19 Jan @ 8:22am

Still at adept 3 as of comment, silver room and playing 4 player hanchan (south games).

While it is basic to learn the techniques fitting the rank that you play (for me is still silver room), it doesn't hurt to learn the techniques of a higher rank games, especially the different yakus and the folding techniques, as you continue progressing through the ranks.

There are many expert rank players continuing to play in silver rooms and it helps a lot to know how and when to fold against them, and the different yakus you could be pushing. When I am going to eventually reach gold room, I will be better prepared to go up against the gold room players.

The most important part about the guide is that you should always continue learning, and not stop at whichever room you are in. Having more knowledge is better than none, just don't sacrifice learning the basics and developing bad habits.

Waterplouf 20 Oct, 2024 @ 1:04pm

Thank you, as someone who is trying to improve (currently at adept 1) beyond just knowing the basics, I have recently started learning the basics of folding and I can see my games improving small steps by small steps already. It's very helpful to have one place with a dedicated step by step to learning richii mahjong more indepth.

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