The Mah Jongg Table

I remember playing mah jongg  with a woman who claimed to be 90, but she could snag a dropped tile with her bare foot, transfer it to her hand, look at it (!), and return it to you in less time than it took to read this sentence *. Why did this have to happen? We were using the wrong table. I learned to play Mah Jongg on a 30" round cocktail table. Why is round so bad? No corners! We dropped so many tiles.   But we persevered and I lived to tell the tale.
So now you've got that picture in your mind, let's imagine the perfect table. A 34-38" width is just about right in my experience, and make that baby square! Rectangular has its own problems, as you might imagine.

Now let's move on to texture: smooth. I was recently teaching at a place with good sized tables. Each had a nice felt cover. The the actual tabletop was rustic, you know, with the planks kinda sticking up here and there. As a design feature, it was cool, but it caught the racks when pushing out the garden wall.
I also recommend a cloth cover: tables tend to "grab" the tiles while a cover, whether a simple piece of felt or a nice fitted corduroy  allow the tiles to move more freely. (Caution: vinyl will probably just stick.) I found this card table cover from one of our suppliers and liked it so much that I ordered extra for Game Empire. It's quilted, so the tiles just seem to float across the table. I kinda wish it wasn't white, but I could get creative with dyes.

So, to summarize:

• Size: 34-38"
• Shape: square
• Texture: smooth
• Cover: cloth, fluffy if possible

*  I later saw great-granny kicking up a storm on the dance floor. No wonder she was so nimble!

Joker's Wild!

 One of the challenges of Western Mah Jongg is learning the ins and outs of Jokers. These little guys can cause more grief than any other tile in the game! The question I hear most often is, "Where can you use 'em?" *
Answer: Jokers can only be used in sets of 3, 4, 5, or more. ** 
But what, I hear you ask, defines a set? Simple:

 a set is all tiles exactly the same. 

For example:

Example sets:
3 Nine Dots
4 Flowers (I know they look different, but they're the same. Trust me.)
4 Souths

 On the right, you see the same sets, but with jokers included.

 Without jokers, Quints (sets of five) are simply impossible!







Do I need to have a representative tile in a set? What? Can I have an all-joker set to represent, say, 3 Nine Dots?
All-joker sets are just fine and dandy. Except your opponents may turn plaid with envy.

No-go Country for Jokers
Can Jokers be used in a pair? NO! To quote the Official Standard Hands and Rules (AKA the Card): "Joker or Jokers can NEVER be used for single tile or pair." No place for a joker.

Not in the 2012 (year) groupings either. See? There's no place for the Joker.  Sad, sad joker. And sad, sad player who calls "Mah Jongg" with that in their hand.

See us at Game Empire San Diego on Sundays at 3 for Mah Jongg. Beginners welcome!
 *  Sometimes this question is expressed a bit more colorfully, but I have cleaned up the language for clarity.
**  Yes, sometimes there are sets requiring 6--yes, 6--duplicate tiles. Crazy, yet, but it's been known to happen.