Chinese Official Mahjong · 32 pt

Four Pure Shifted Chows in Chinese Official Mahjong (MCR): Points, Examples and Odds

In Chinese Official Mahjong, Four Pure Shifted Chows (一色四步高) is worth 32 points: four chows in the same suit, each starting one rank higher than the one before (123, 234, 345, 456 characters) or each two ranks higher (123, 345, 567, 789 characters). The four chows take 12 of your 14 tiles, leaving just the pair.

The rules

• Four chows in one suit
• Starting ranks go up by one each time (e.g. starting 1, 2, 3, 4) or by two each time (only one pattern: 123, 345, 567, 789)
• Step-of-one has four versions: starting at 1–4, 2–5, 3–6 or 4–7
• Claimed chows count: it doesn't need to be concealed
• The pair can be anything; a pair in the same suit makes it Full Flush, an honor pair makes it Half Flush

What it does not combine with

• Pure Shifted Chows (16 points): four shifted chows always contain three, so it isn't counted
• Short Straight, Two Terminal Chows, Pure Double Chow (1 point each) among the four chows aren't counted either: the four are already scored together, and this site's engine doesn't pair them up again (123 and 456 would otherwise be a Short Straight)

Everything else still stacks: Half Flush, Full Flush, All Chows, Concealed Hand, Single Wait.

Scoring examples

Every hand below is scored live by this site's scoring engine — the same code as the game — including the fan left out by the non-repeat rules.

Common combinations:

How it relates to other fan

• Pure Shifted Chows: the three-chow version, 16 points. If the fourth chow fits on, it upgrades.
• Quadruple Chow: four identical chows (48 points); Four Pure Shifted Pungs: four stepped pungs (48 points).
• Pure Straight: steps of three (123, 456, 789), 16 points. The step-of-two version also contains 123 and 789 (Two Terminal Chows), but that isn't counted separately.
• Full Flush, Half Flush: make the pair the same suit or an honor and the score jumps.

Odds

Four chows in one suit need at least 12 tiles of that suit. Only about 1.6% of 13-tile opening hands have 8 or more tiles of one suit, and 0.25% have 9 or more, so this hand is nearly always built from later draws and chows.

In 4,000 games of normal play by this site's AI, Four Pure Shifted Chows appeared only 0 times in 3,849 wins — far too few to give a rate. The three-chow Pure Shifted Chows appeared in 5.7% of wins.

How to build it

• Grow it from Pure Shifted Chows: if you already have three and more tiles of that suit, keep them for the fourth chow.
• Step-of-one is easier: overlapping chows like 234 and 345 appear naturally once you hold many tiles of one suit; step-of-two has only one pattern.
• Chow freely: claiming the tile you need doesn't cost points.
• Don't forget Full Flush: with 12 tiles in one suit already, keep the pair in that suit for another 24 points.

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 Four Pure Shifted Chows?

32 points in Chinese Official Mahjong. Pure Shifted Chows isn't counted, and neither are Short Straight or Two Terminal Chows among the four chows.

Can I claim chows for it?

Yes. Claimed chows count; the hand doesn't need to be concealed.

What is 123, 345, 567, 789 in one suit?

The step-of-two Four Pure Shifted Chows, 32 points; the 123 + 789 inside it (Two Terminal Chows) isn't counted separately.

Related fan

Pure Shifted Chows 16 pt Three chows of one suit stepping up by one or two — 16 points. How to spot it, what it stacks with, and how it differs from the mixed version. Full Flush 24 pt Every tile from a single suit for 24 points. Examples, the non-repeat rules, Half Flush vs Full Flush, and how many suited tiles you need. Short Straight 1 pt Two same-suit chows forming a run of six (1–6, 4–9…) for 1 point — and not counted once it becomes a Pure Straight.