The game objective is to obtain as many points as possible while matching bones in pairs. There are pairs of the same bones (except for the last BONUSES set).
Not every bone can be collected from the table. Only the bone that is free on its left or right side can be taken off the table. Of course the bones that are covered fully or partially cannot be taken to the top.
BONE KINDS
A set of Mah-Jong bones consists of 144 pieces and includes:
- Colors - (containing "characters", "bamboos" and "circles"),
- Honors - (containing "winds" and "dragons") and
- Bonuses - (containing "seasons" and "flowers").
There are two kinds of sets in the game we offer: a TRADITIONAL one and a EUROPEAN one.
Traditional bones
Colors
contain three categories ("characters", "bamboos" and "circles", which are also called "balls" or "dots") and numbered from 1 to 9.
There are 4 bones of each kind in every category, which sums up to 108 bones in the set. The bones numbered 1 and 9 are called "the ends", and the bones numbered from 2 to 8 - "the ordinary ones".
CHARACTERS
BAMBOOS
CIRCLES
Honors
contain two categories: "dragons" and "winds". There are three kinds of dragons: a red one, a green one, and a white one, as well as 4 kinds of "winds" - east, south, west and north. Like in case of "characters" there are 4 bones of each kind. It sums up to 28 Honors.
DRAGONS
Green
Red
White
WINDS
East
South
West
North
Bonuses
contain 4 "flowers" and 4 "seasons". Both categories consist of one bone of each kind only, numbered from 1 to 4. Since there is only one bone of each kind in the set, BONUSES can be combined in pairs in any way - not only within a category but also within the whole BONUSES set. For example, SPRING can be combined in a pair with any bone within the FLOWERS category.
SEASONS
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter
FLOWERS
Plum
Orchid
Chryzantemum
Bamboo
SCORING
A player gets points for each pair taken off the table. They are calculated in the following way: the point value of each set (the chart below) is multiplied by the number of pairs still left on the table.
CHARACTERS
1
CIRCLES
2
BAMBOOS
3
WINDS
4
DRAGONS
5
FLOWERS
6
SEASONS
7
For example, when a game is started, there are 72 pairs of bones on the table. If a pair of bamboo bones is removed from the table, a player gets 3 (the set value) x 72 (pairs on the table) = 216 points. Another pair that is taken off the table is multiplied by 71 only. And so on, until all pairs are removed from the table. In case of a BONUSES set pair, the multiplier is the bone of the category that is scored higher. For example, a FLOWER + a SEASON collected in the first move is scored 7x72=504 points, while a FLOWER + a FLOWER will be scored 6x72=432 points.
Bones of European version
A European version set of bones is presented below. The rules of collecting and scoring are the same as in a traditional version.
Colors
contain three categories ("characters", "bamboos" and "circles", which are also called "balls" or "dots") and numbered from 1 to 9.
There are 4 bones of each kind in every category, which sums up to 108 bones in the set. The bones numbered 1 and 9 are called "the ends", and the bones numbered from 2 to 8 - "the ordinary ones".
CHARACTERS
BAMBOOS
CIRCLES
Honors
contain two categories: "dragons" and "winds". There are three kinds of dragons: a red one, a green one, and a white one, as well as 4 kinds of "winds" - east, south, west and north. Like in case of "characters" there are 4 bones of each kind. It sums up to 28 Honors.
DRAGONS
Green
Red
White
WINDS
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter
Bonuses
contain 4 "flowers" and 4 "seasons". Both categories consist of one bone of each kind only, numbered from 1 to 4. Since there is only one bone of each kind in the set, BONUSES can be combined in pairs in any way - not only within a category but also within the whole BONUSES set. For example, SPRING can be combined in a pair with any bone within the FLOWERS category.
