Updates to the 2023 Visual Companion Guide for American Mah Jongg
Thank you for your purchase of the 2023 Visual Companion Guide for American Mah Jongg. On this page, we will continue to add any updates here based on any new rules from the NMJL.
Teachers and Game Organizers: Please contact us at ModernMahjong@gmail.com for discounts on purchases of eight or more guides.
Several players have asked for autographed copies: We are working on this and will update with information soon.
Page 17 has been updated and the new orders will include this information. We had the information in other pages of the Guide and added more details for this FAQ.
Miscellaneous Questions:
19. Can I change my exposure before discarding? After claiming a Discard, a player may add or take away from their current exposure during their turn if they have not yet initiated a Joker Exchange or discarded. NOTE: The change to an exposure is only allowed for tiles from the sloping part of their rack, they may not return a Discard to the table once placed on their rack. See Page 27 regarding the proper order for calling a Discard, making an exposure, and exchanging a Joker.
Pages 36 and 37 regarding Dead Hands:
- In a phone call to the NMJL on September 22, 2023, the NMJL confirmed:
- A player can’t avoid the consequences of challenging a dead hand by wording it differently. If you know the hand is dead, state your challenge definitively.
- If Player A can prove that Player B’s hand is unwinnable based on tiles seen by all players (in exposures and Discards), Player B’s hand is dead and Player B stops picking and discarding.
- We posted this four part panel on Facebook.com/groups/MahjongCommunity to share these updates.
Update: What happens if a player claims a discard and displays Mah Jongg in Error? Can another player claim that tile?
Mah Jongg Made Easy provides: If a tile is called and exposed resulting in Mah Jongg in error, the called tile must remain with the hand, even though another player wants to call the tile for an exposure. The tile becomes “dead” along with the rest of the hand. However, if another player wants that same tile for Mah Jongg, it may be called and used to complete the player’s hand for Mah Jongg.