Chinese Official Mahjong · 24 pt

Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles in Chinese Official Mahjong (MCR): Points, Examples and Odds

In Chinese Official Mahjong, Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles (七星不靠) is worth 24 points: one each of East, South, West, North, Red, Green and White (the "seven stars"), plus seven suited tiles all from one knitted pattern (147, 258, 369 across three suits), 14 tiles all different. It's the upgraded Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles, at double the points.

The rules

• One of each of the seven honors: all four winds and all three dragons
• Seven more suited tiles, all different, from one knitted pattern (e.g. characters 147, dots 258, bamboo 369; any assignment of suits)
• No pairs and no sets, so always concealed
• Seven suited tiles cover only seven of the pattern's nine kinds, so it never includes a Knitted Straight

What it does not combine with

Under the non-repeat principle these are not counted:

• Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles (12 points): this hand already is one
• All Types (6 points)
• Concealed Hand (2 points) and Fully Concealed Hand (4 points): if you self-draw, Self-Drawn (1 point) still counts
• Single Wait (1 point)

How it waits

At tenpai you are in one of two spots:

• All seven honors in, one suited tile short: any of the three pattern tiles you don't have yet wins the Greater hand
• Seven suited tiles in, one honor short: that honor wins the Greater hand; the two remaining pattern tiles also win, but only as the Lesser hand

So collect the honors early: everyone discards them, and once they're complete the suited side waits on three kinds.

Scoring examples

Both hands are scored live by this site's scoring engine — the same code as the game — including the fan left out by the non-repeat rules.

How it relates to other fan

• Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles: only five or six honors, 12 points; all seven makes it Greater.
• Knitted Straight: with only seven suited tiles there's no complete knitted straight, so they never stack; the Lesser version can.
• Thirteen Orphans: also one of each honor, but with terminals and a pair, 88 points.

Odds

Draw 14 random tiles from 136 and the chance they form Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles is about 1 in 73,000,000 (the Lesser version about 1 in 31,000,000). How many different tiles of one knitted pattern plus honors you start with tells you how far away both hands are:

Source: 1,000,000 random 13-tile deals (flowers already replaced).

Plenty of honors is the precondition: about 9.8% of 13-tile opening hands hold 5 or more honor tiles, 2.7% hold 6 or more.

This site's MCR AI plays the knitted route, and collecting all seven honors turns it Greater. In 4,000 games of normal play, Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles appeared in 2.2% of all wins, averaging 26.4 points.

When to go for it

• Five or six lone honors in the opening hand: play for the Lesser hand and upgrade when the missing honors arrive.
• Don't keep honor pairs: you need just one of each.
• Don't hold out for the seventh honor: the Lesser hand is already 12 points and enough to win; if the last honor won't come, take the smaller win.

Try it at a real table — play Chinese Official Mahjong online against the AI, with every point counted for you.

FAQ

How many points is Greater Honors and Knitted Tiles?

24 points in Chinese Official Mahjong, not combined with Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles, All Types, Concealed Hand, Fully Concealed Hand or Single Wait.

What's the difference from Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles?

All seven honors makes it Greater (24 points); five or six honors is Lesser (12 points).

Can it add Knitted Straight?

No. It has only seven suited tiles, too few for the nine-tile knitted straight.

Related fan

Lesser Honors and Knitted Tiles 12 pt Fourteen unconnected tiles for 12 points: the knitted tiles plus honors, how it waits, how it stacks with Knitted Straight, how often it shows up. Knitted Straight 12 pt 147, 258 and 369 across three suits for 12 points: as three sets in a normal hand, stacked with the knitted honors hand, the All Chows question, how often it shows up. Thirteen Orphans 88 pt One of each terminal and honor plus a pair for 88 points: the 13-sided wait, what it doesn't combine with, and how many orphans you need at the start.