Melds Guide

Complete guide to melds (Chi, Pon, Kan) in Riichi Mahjong

What are Melds?

A meld (mentsu) is a set of tiles that forms part of a winning hand. Melds can be concealed (formed from your draws) or called (formed by claiming discards).

Concealed melds — Hand remains closed, can declare Riichi

Called melds — Hand becomes open, some yaku reduced or unavailable

Call Types

Calls (naki) allow you to claim discarded tiles to form melds. Calling opens your hand.

Chi (Sequence)

Opens hand

Tiles: 3

Source: Left player only

Call a discarded tile from the player on your left to complete a sequence of three consecutive tiles in the same suit.

Example:

(3m called from left)

Pon (Triplet)

Opens hand

Tiles: 3

Source: Any player

Call a discarded tile from any player to complete a triplet of three identical tiles.

Example:

Sideways tile indicates caller:

From left (Kamicha)

From across (Toimen)

From right (Shimocha)

Kan Types

Kan is a special meld of four identical tiles. After declaring kan, you draw a replacement tile and a new kan-dora is revealed.

Ankan (Closed Kan)

Stays closed

Tiles: 4

Source: Self (drawn)

Declare a quad using four tiles drawn entirely from your hand. Your hand stays closed, and you can still declare Riichi.

Example:

Outer tiles face-down to indicate concealed

Daiminkan (Open Kan)

Opens hand

Tiles: 4

Source: Any player

Call a discarded tile when you hold three identical tiles to form a quad. Opens your hand.

Example:

All tiles face-up, sideways tile shows caller

Shouminkan (Added Kan)

Opens hand

Tiles: 4

Source: Self (drawn)

Add a fourth tile to an existing open pon to upgrade it to a kan. Vulnerable to Chankan (robbing the kan).

Example:

Original pon + drawn tile becomes kan

Kan Mechanics

All kan types share these special mechanics:

Dead Wall Draw

After declaring kan, draw a replacement tile from the dead wall (rinshan-hai).

Kan-Dora

A new dora indicator is flipped, adding potential bonus tiles for all players.

Chankan Risk

When adding to a pon (shouminkan), opponents can win by robbing the kan if waiting on that tile.

Fu Values

Melds contribute to fu (minipoints) based on tile type and whether concealed:

Meld Type	Simple (2-8)	Terminal/Honor
Sequence	0 fu	-
Open Triplet	2 fu	4 fu
Closed Triplet	4 fu	8 fu
Open Kan	8 fu	16 fu
Closed Kan	16 fu	32 fu

Simple tiles are 2-8 of any suit. Terminal/Honor includes 1, 9, and all honor tiles.

Related Yaku

Several yaku relate directly to melds and kan declarations:

Yaku	Han	Condition
Toitoi	2	All four groups are triplets
Sanankou	2	Three concealed triplets
Sankantsu	2	Three kans (any type)
Rinshan	1	Win on dead wall draw after kan
Chankan	1	Win by robbing an added kan
Suuankou	Yakuman	Four concealed triplets
Suukantsu	Yakuman	Four kans

Call Priority

When multiple players want to call the same tile, priority is determined by call type:

1
RonWin takes highest priority
2
Open Kan / PonTriplet/Quad calls take priority over sequence
3
ChiSequence call has lowest priority