Japanese Classical
Posted: Mon May 20, 2013 8:55 pm
i am used to playing Riichi Mahjong, but when searching for a ruleset suitable for teaching new players i've stumbled on Japanese Classical rules and they are really appealing.
features i like:
- you don't need any yaku/fan to go out
- scoring is not the simplest possible, but you don't have to worry about that during the play
- similar to, yet simpler than Japanese Modern
- according to the previous link a weaker luck element than in Japanese Modern, though i don't dare to judge myself
but i've found a ruleset only at two places and these two sources (mahjong.wikidot.com and 4windsmj.com) have few differences. besides, i am influenced by Riichi, so at few places i consider substituing Classical rules with Modern ones:
- at 4winds pin fu earns one double, at wikidot it is not mentioned at all. i am with 4winds
- wikidot uses riichi, 4winds does not. as much as i'd miss it, i am again with 4winds. it seems a natural difference from Riichi Mahjong
- san an kou scores 1 double at 4winds, 2 doubles at wikidot. i prefer wikidot, as it is in line with 2 fans in Riichi (and it is a hard to get yaku)
- toi toi is unrestricted at 4winds and scores 1 double, at wikidot it requires 1 or 2 closed pons, but earns 2 doubles. i am inclined to have toi toi unrestricted and scoring 2 doubles, again adopting it from Riichi
- there is toi toi + san an kou combo in both sources, but it seems unnecessary and confusing, i'd remove it
- 4winds has a relaxed furiten, wikidot stricter. i like strict furiten, but at the same time it makes game more complicated for beginners and following opponent's discards makes for a good defensive play even without an explicit rule
i am a bit confused whether to score one or multiple yakus at 4winds. for example that toi toi + san an kou combo worth 2 doubles apparently scores another 1 double for toi toi, but not the other 1 for san an kou. but i think i can handle it.
do you know any good resource for Japanese Classical rules, ideally complete enough so i could adopt it whole without further comparisons with 4winds and wikidot? what do you think about my ideas mentioned here, which variants are better? or should i stop bothering and just take another complete ruleset?
features i like:
- you don't need any yaku/fan to go out
- scoring is not the simplest possible, but you don't have to worry about that during the play
- similar to, yet simpler than Japanese Modern
- according to the previous link a weaker luck element than in Japanese Modern, though i don't dare to judge myself
but i've found a ruleset only at two places and these two sources (mahjong.wikidot.com and 4windsmj.com) have few differences. besides, i am influenced by Riichi, so at few places i consider substituing Classical rules with Modern ones:
- at 4winds pin fu earns one double, at wikidot it is not mentioned at all. i am with 4winds
- wikidot uses riichi, 4winds does not. as much as i'd miss it, i am again with 4winds. it seems a natural difference from Riichi Mahjong
- san an kou scores 1 double at 4winds, 2 doubles at wikidot. i prefer wikidot, as it is in line with 2 fans in Riichi (and it is a hard to get yaku)
- toi toi is unrestricted at 4winds and scores 1 double, at wikidot it requires 1 or 2 closed pons, but earns 2 doubles. i am inclined to have toi toi unrestricted and scoring 2 doubles, again adopting it from Riichi
- there is toi toi + san an kou combo in both sources, but it seems unnecessary and confusing, i'd remove it
- 4winds has a relaxed furiten, wikidot stricter. i like strict furiten, but at the same time it makes game more complicated for beginners and following opponent's discards makes for a good defensive play even without an explicit rule
i am a bit confused whether to score one or multiple yakus at 4winds. for example that toi toi + san an kou combo worth 2 doubles apparently scores another 1 double for toi toi, but not the other 1 for san an kou. but i think i can handle it.
do you know any good resource for Japanese Classical rules, ideally complete enough so i could adopt it whole without further comparisons with 4winds and wikidot? what do you think about my ideas mentioned here, which variants are better? or should i stop bothering and just take another complete ruleset?