Chinese Official Mahjong · 24 pt

Middle Tiles in Chinese Official Mahjong (MCR): Points, Examples and Odds

In Chinese Official Mahjong, Middle Tiles (全中) is worth 24 points: when you win, every tile — in hand and in exposed chows, pungs and kongs — is a 4, 5 or 6 of characters, dots or bamboo, with no honors at all.

The rules for Middle Tiles

• All 14 tiles are 4s, 5s or 6s
• No honors
• The only possible chow is 4-5-6; pungs are 444, 555 and 666
• Claiming is allowed, no concealed hand needed; Seven Pairs can be Middle Tiles too
• One suit has only 12 tiles from 4 to 6, so you need at least two suits; Middle Tiles is never a Full Flush

What Middle Tiles does not combine with

• All Simples (2 points): 4, 5 and 6 are never terminals
• No Honors (1 point)

Everything else still counts. In particular All Fives: when every set and the pair contain a 5 (4-5-6 chows, a 555 pung, a 55 pair), All Fives (16 points) scores together with Middle Tiles.

How Middle Tiles is scored

The points below are calculated live by this site's scoring engine — the same one the game uses — including the fans dropped under the non-repeat rule.

Common combinations:

Related fans

• All Simples: any hand without terminals or honors, 2 points; Middle Tiles is its strictest form, and with Middle Tiles you no longer count All Simples.
• All Fives: checks that every set contains a 5 — a different condition, so the two stack.
• Upper Tiles and Lower Tiles: the same idea with only 7-8-9 and only 1-2-3.
• Mixed Triple Chow: the only chow in Middle Tiles is 4-5-6; one in each suit is Mixed Triple Chow.
• All Even Pungs: four pungs of 4s and 6s with a 4 or 6 pair are Middle Tiles at the same time.

How often does Middle Tiles happen?

4, 5 and 6 make 36 tiles across the three suits, only about a quarter of the 136; an opening hand of nothing but 2s to 8s happens only 0.13% of the time, and nothing but 4s to 6s is rarer still. Middle Tiles is not one of the target patterns of this site's AI and only appears by accident: in 3,849 AI wins it appeared 0 times. The sample is too small for a rate; it is extremely rare.

When to go for Middle Tiles

• Your middle tiles cluster on 4, 5 and 6, with 4-5-6 shapes in all three suits.
• 4-5-6 in three suits: add Mixed Triple Chow.
• Keep a 5 in every set: add All Fives for another 16 points.
• No need to stay concealed: chow and pung 4s, 5s and 6s.

When to give up: you still hold several 3s or 7s. Step back to All Simples with All Chows, Mixed Triple Chow and the like, which is far more realistic. To try it yourself, play Chinese Official Mahjong online — the scoring is automatic.

FAQ

How many points is Middle Tiles?

Middle Tiles is worth 24 points in Chinese Official Mahjong. All Simples and No Honors are not counted on top.

Can I chow and pung for Middle Tiles?

Yes. Middle Tiles only looks at which tiles you use; no concealed hand is required.

Do Middle Tiles and All Fives stack?

Yes. Middle Tiles means "only 4, 5 and 6", All Fives means "a 5 in every set and the pair". If both hold you score 40 points.

Does Middle Tiles also score All Simples?

No. Middle Tiles already includes All Simples, so under the non-repeat rule it is not counted.

Related fan

All Simples 2 pt Only 2s to 8s, 2 points: rules, what it absorbs, which bigger fans absorb it, and how to use it to reach 8. Upper Tiles 24 pt A whole hand of 7s, 8s and 9s for 24 points: rules, the difference from Upper Four, what it stacks with. Lower Tiles 24 pt A whole hand of 1s, 2s and 3s for 24 points: rules, the difference from Lower Four, what it stacks with.