Melds guide

Complete guide to melds (Chi, Pon, Kan) in Riichi Mahjong

What are melds?

A meld (mentsu) is a set of tiles that forms part of a winning hand. Melds can be concealed (formed from your draws) or called (formed by claiming discards).

Concealed melds—your hand stays closed, and you can still declare riichi

Called melds—your hand becomes open; some yaku lose 1 han or become unavailable

Call types

Calls (naki) allow you to claim discarded tiles to form melds. Calling opens your hand.

Chi (sequence)

Opens hand

Tiles: 3

Source: Left player only

Call a discarded tile from the player on your left to complete a sequence of three consecutive tiles in the same suit.

Example:

(3-man called from the left)

Pon (triplet)

Opens hand

Tiles: 3

Source: Any player

Call a discarded tile from any player to complete a triplet of three identical tiles.

Example:

The sideways tile shows where the called tile came from:

From left (Kamicha)

From across (Toimen)

From right (Shimocha)

Kan types

Kan is a special meld of four identical tiles. After declaring kan, you draw a replacement tile and a new Kan-Dora indicator is revealed (not used in JPML).

Ankan (closed kan)

Stays closed

Tiles: 4

Source: Self (drawn)

Declare a quad using four identical tiles you drew yourself. Your hand stays closed, and you can still declare riichi.

Example:

The two outer tiles are face-down to show the kan is concealed

Daiminkan (open kan)

Opens hand

Tiles: 4

Source: Any player

Call a discarded tile when you hold three identical tiles to form a quad. Opens your hand.

Example:

All tiles face-up; the sideways tile shows who discarded it

Shouminkan (added kan)

Opens hand

Tiles: 4

Source: Self (drawn)

Add a fourth tile to an existing open pon to upgrade it to a kan. Vulnerable to Chankan (robbing the kan).

Example:

The drawn tile is laid sideways on top of the pon's called tile

Kan mechanics

Declaring a kan comes with these mechanics:

Dead wall draw

After declaring kan, draw a replacement tile from the dead wall (rinshan-hai).

Kan-Dora

A new dora indicator is flipped, adding potential bonus tiles for all players (not used in JPML).

Chankan risk

Only an added kan (shouminkan) can be robbed: a player waiting on that tile can win by ron (Chankan). In Mahjong Soul, Kokushi Musou can also rob a closed kan.

Fu values

Melds contribute to fu (minipoints) based on tile type and whether concealed:

Meld type	Simple (2-8)	Terminal/honor
Sequence	0 fu	0 fu
Open triplet	2 fu	4 fu
Closed triplet	4 fu	8 fu
Open kan	8 fu	16 fu
Closed kan	16 fu	32 fu

Simple tiles are 2-8 of any suit. Terminal/honor includes 1, 9, and all honor tiles.

Related yaku

Several yaku relate directly to melds and kan declarations:

Yaku	Han	Condition
Toitoi	2	All four groups are triplets
Sanankou	2	Three concealed triplets
Sankantsu	2	Three kans (any type)
Rinshan	1	Win on dead wall draw after kan
Chankan	1	Win by robbing an added kan
Suuankou	Yakuman	Four concealed triplets
Suukantsu	Yakuman	Four kans

Call priority

When multiple players want to call the same tile, priority is determined by call type:

1
RonRon takes the highest priority
2
Open kan / PonTriplet/quad calls take priority over sequence calls
3
ChiChi has the lowest priority