something i thought about since i couldn't sleep in camp. ridiculously early sleep times that's why. some tiger trail marathon event that made this week more lepak i guess. i felt like making a mahjong guide cos i have tried new styles and put much more thought into it recently, and it has made the game so much more fun to me.
firstly, let me try to explain why ppl play richii mahjong. i can assure u it has more depth than any luck based game i have ever played, and it IS a game u need to think, where skill actually matters. and contrary to popular belief, i don't feel in anyway that such a game is harmful, no u don't bet money, cos there's a point system. and yes it is damn bloody addictive, that's why we meet quite often to play at someone's house. but imo its a good activity to do during army. lets u enjoy a pretty intense game, but catchup with friends at the same time haha.
anyway, this is a mahjong guide assuming ur somewhat ok and know basic jap mahjong theory, how to win fast or what hands are usually easier. its for no one in mind particularly, but i realise there is no guide out there past basic theory, its abit hard to learn other than playing. its mainly for myself, but google might just bring u here (wow), if ur enthu enough and had the right timing.
the first important thing about intermediate mahjong is ur hand is nvr fixed from the start, u can draw any tile even after ishanten (two tiles from winning). upgrading hand values can just occur accidentally, but if u are decisive, anything is possible. nvr throw or decide until u draw ur next tiles. terminals and honours are not useless, they can bring u a quick richii trap that may save u more than 5 rounds, its just up to u to consider the possibilities. shanpon (two dbls), tanki(single wait to form a dbl), even 13 or 79 waits can be very tricky and huge if u ippatsu or tsumo.
secondly, always try to aim for dora. think of this, any tile near a dora means that u may just save so much effort in making ur hand big. always consider what to do if u draw a dora, unless it really cant fit there (eg hon tiles). many games i aim to dbl wait just to attempt getting a dora, only to end up drawing multiple. do not restrict ur hand whenever it comes to dora. in fact it can be so unpleasant to block u (terminal doras, dead walls), that ppl are more likely to feed in ur substantial hands. this kind of hand easily > 3900. a dama can really catch off guard and hurt. just dont make it too obvious unless u have no choice. big hands do not require many wins to deal huge impacts on ur game.
thirdly, ur not the only player in the game, dont just look at ur own hand. observe and learn how to read ppl's throws, what kinds of hands they are building, whether they might have a dora bomb, and even the issues they might face in that hand. a honitsu player that throws a dora could have a high threat hand, or is in tenpai, whereas there are cases where dora is sacrificed for tanyao, and u can tell its a cheapass hand and be braver. u might just get lucky and reverse eff them.
this leads to the fourth important skill. learn how to trap ppl. this is largely dependent on ur own understanding, especially ppl u know. it is possible to predict priorities of certain patterns. easy ones are honitsu and tanyao, followed by dora or yakuhai, whether concealed or not may display peculiar patterns. it is up to u to empathize with those players by ur own knowledge of how to win those hands fast, and what tiles are thrown key phrase just before tenpai. a trap can work either by fast non similar suits or terminals that other hands usually discard, while a slow and big trap could be a dora or yakuhai of a certain inconvenience. learn how to mark certain ppl when u want to improve ur own speed and value. dare to challenge a bad richii and u might just win big.
the fifth skill is also relevant to the previous one. learning to adapt ur hand to another. the most common thing is when ppl play honitsu, or if dora tiles are in the middle, u can expect ppl to aim towards certain targets to build deadly hands. u need to modify ur hand in two ways. consider that they are hogging all ur tiles, honitsu means u are unlikely to get middle tiles of a suit, so it maybe wise to get rid of deadweight as well as risky lategame throws. also look out for open hands, they really are quite limited in style. the second thing is learning how to bail these hands. bailing is not easy, a good bailer is ready 3 turns before anyone dangerous can tenpai, so they lose so much less. sometimes u got to learn how to fk care bail, if u know u cant tenpai, however it is also perfectly logical to drop ur tenpai hands value by half in order to avoid dangerous threats and set up good traps.
the sixth skill (so many already), nvr underestimate dealers, they can play either damn fast or very cunningly. either way, its very dangerous to challenge a dealer, only unless u can read his hand perfectly by the circumstances that has occurred (thrown tiles, furiten like discards). dealers like to use yakuhai, but u shud nvr forget to consider a good dama or shanpon. heck even richiis may not make sense, and u do not want to feed in a dealer tanki. always put more consideration into the threat a dealer poses.
the previous point was actually damn important even though i tried to rank by importance. anyway, the last point is a minor but also very good point. sometimes its important to just have faith. a richii can always have unexpected results. while good shape pushes u to pinfu, why cant u use any other kind of fked up wait? low chance but high reward works in low risk games. winning chance is important, but if u win ippatsu tsumos or aim kan ura dora, u can just turn ur whole game around. also just try yakumans and rare yakus. its more thrilling and makes the game more fun for everyone. going for unexpectedly fast hands may just work sometimes to keep ur dealer and break dangerous hands to get the whole table swearing at u haha. and being yolo may just work cos u dont play logically haha. feeding is not always bad if u had the potential to change ur whole game. some things are worth trying. just try to understand what risks u are taking whenever u take any move
most importantly, since i only roughly captured the essence of intermediate mahjong, just experiment and enjoy. its dumb to just play mahjong one way. learn from others as they just seem so good at certain things. i know i have emulated others but built my very own logically inclined style. trying new styles might make u lose more, but u pickup new tricks that will eventually make u more flexible. mahjong is abt luck yes, but deception, skill, and sheer blind faith might just make u proer than others haha. anyway, enjoy ~~ :)
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