How do jokers work in American mahjong?
A joker can stand in for any tile in a group of three or more matching tiles. It can never be used as a single tile or as part of a pair. There are eight jokers in an American set, and they are the most valuable tiles in the game.
New players see a joker and think wild card. That is close, with one big catch. Jokers only work in groups.
Where a joker can go
Any pung (three of a kind), kong (four of a kind), quint (five) or sextet (six). If your hand needs four 7 dots, you can hold two real 7 dots and two jokers.
Where a joker cannot go
Singles and pairs. Lots of hands on the card include a lone tile or a pair, like a single flower or a pair of 2s. Those have to be the real tiles.
Hands from the Singles and Pairs section of the card can never use jokers at all, because every group in them is a single or a pair.
The joker swap
Say another player has exposed three 5 bams and one of them is a joker. On your turn, if you hold a real 5 bam, you can trade it for that joker. You can do this with anyone's exposed groups, including your own. The one exception is a player whose hand has been called dead.
You can only swap on your own turn, after you draw or after you take a discard. Then you discard as usual.
A discarded joker is dead
If someone throws a joker, nobody can call it. That is why experienced players almost never discard one. Throwing a joker hands nothing to anyone, but it also gives up your best tile.
A couple of habits that help
- Before you expose a group with jokers in it, check whether anyone at the table might be holding the real tile. They can take your joker.
- When choosing between two hands, favor the one with more groups of three or more. More of those means more places your jokers can work.
Jokers get a full lesson on day three in Sparrow, and the practice table flags it when you try to use one where it does not belong.
Quick answers
Can a joker be used in a pair in American mahjong?
No. Jokers can only be used in groups of three or more identical tiles.
How many jokers are in an American mahjong set?
Eight.
Can you call a discarded joker?
No. A discarded joker cannot be called by anyone.
When can I swap for an exposed joker?
On your own turn, if you hold the real tile the joker is standing in for.
Sparrow teaches American mahjong to total beginners in seven short days, with unlimited practice hands. See how it works.