01The wall, dead wall & dora
Riichi uses 136 tiles — the three suits, winds and dragons, no jokers — often with red fives mixed in.
After the deal, 14 tiles are set aside as the dead wall. One tile on it is flipped as the dora indicator: the tile after the indicator (in sequence) becomes dora, a bonus tile worth extra at scoring. Everyone draws and discards from the live wall until someone wins or the wall is exhausted.
02A turn & the calls — open vs closed
On your turn you draw and discard, holding 13 tiles. You may claim discards to complete sets, but each call opens your hand:
Chi
Run, from your left only.
Kan
Quad — flips a new dora.
!An open hand can't declare riichi and loses access to many yaku (and pinfu). Staying closed is usually the stronger — and simpler — path.
03Declaring riichi
When your closed hand reaches tenpai (one tile from winning) and at least four tiles remain in the wall, you may declare "Riichi!", lay a 1,000-point stick, and rotate your discard sideways. From then on your hand is locked — you must discard every tile you draw unless it completes your hand. In return you gain the riichi yaku, reveal uradora if you win, and pressure the table.
04Furiten — the rule that bites beginners
Furiten means you may not win by ron (claiming a discard) if any of your winning tiles already sits in your own discard pile. You can still win by tsumo (self-draw). Furiten comes in two flavours:
- Permanent: one of your waits is in your discards — you're furiten until your wait changes.
- Temporary: you passed on a winning discard this go-around — furiten lifts on your next draw (permanent until then if you're in riichi).
!Always check your waits against your own discards before counting on a ron — furiten is the single most common beginner trap.
05Kans, rinshan & extra dora
There are three kinds of kan — concealed (ankan), called (minkan) and added-to-a-pon (shouminkan). Declaring a kan draws a replacement tile from the dead wall (winning on it is the rinshan yaku) and flips an additional dora indicator, which can swing the score sharply. A few rare cases (robbing a kan, four kans) have their own handling.
06Ending a hand: draws & penalties
If the wall is exhausted with no winner, it's an exhaustive draw: players in tenpai collect from players who are not (the noten penalty), totalling 3,000 points split by how many are ready. A handful of abortive draws (e.g. all four players declaring riichi, four kans by different players, a hand of nine terminals/honors on the first turn) end the hand immediately with no score.
07Frequently asked questions
What is furiten? +
If any tile you can win on is already in your own discards, you can't win by claiming a discard (ron) — only by self-draw (tsumo). It's the most common beginner trap.
When can I declare riichi? +
When your hand is closed (no calls), in tenpai (one tile away), and at least four tiles remain in the wall. You bet a 1,000-point stick and your hand locks.
Should I keep my hand open or closed? +
Usually closed. Calling opens your hand and locks you out of riichi, pinfu and many yaku. See
Riichi scoring for why yaku matter so much.
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