The most important Mahjong Island strategy for beginners is to pick 2 or 3 hands to chase and judge every tile against them. A tile none of those hands uses is your easiest pass or discard.
In Mahjong Island, you win by completing one hand on the Island Card. That hand is 14 tiles that match one line on the card. The Island Card 2027 has 45 hands in 9 sections, so there is always more than one path to try.
Each hand on the card is written as groups of identical tiles. A Pair is 2 identical tiles, a Set is 3, and a Quad is 4. If these words are new, start with the beginner's guide to playing Mahjong Island.
Each player is dealt 13 tiles, and the dealer gets a 14th. On each turn, you draw a tile from the Draw Pile. Then you discard 1 tile. The habits below make each of those choices easier.
Why pick 2 or 3 hands to chase?
Picking 2 or 3 hands gives every tile a clear job. Without a target, every tile looks useful, and you hold on to too much. With a short list, you can see which tiles matter and which do not.
Say your tiles hold several Dots and a few matching Winds. Look down the Island Card for the lines that use those tiles. Keep the 2 or 3 that need the most of what you already hold. Tiles that fit none of them can go first.
Keep your short list open early, then narrow it to one hand as tiles arrive. To see what the card asks for, read Mahjong Island winning hands, with examples.
How should you pass in the Charleston?
In the Charleston, pass the tiles your best hands need least. The Charleston comes before play. Everyone passes 3 tiles right, then 3 across, then 3 left.
A second Charleston and a courtesy pass may follow. Each one is another chance to pass tiles you do not need.
For example, if none of your 2 or 3 hands uses Bam tiles, your Bams are the first to pass. Tiles that several of your hands share are the last to go.
How does counting copies help?
Counting copies tells you whether the tile you need can still arrive. Every tile has 4 copies. Tiles you can see in the Discards and in Open Groups (Groups players have placed face up) are gone. If 3 copies are showing, only 1 is left to draw.
Say you hold a Pair of Green Dragons and want a Set. If the other two copies are in the Discards, only a Joker can turn your Pair into a Set. Count what is gone before you count on it.
Why keep your Jokers?
Jokers are the most flexible tiles you can hold. A Joker is wild: it stands in for a tile in a Set, Quad, Quint, or Sextet. It can never fill a Single or a Pair.
Every Mahjong Island game deals 8 Jokers, each a different kind. Jokers are never passed in the Charleston, so every Joker you are dealt stays with you. A discarded Joker can never be taken by another player. Learn more in the guide to Mahjong Island Jokers.
When should you take a discard?
Take a discard when it wins, or when it finishes a Group your hand still needs. With Take Tile, you claim another player's discard. You may take it only to Win, or to make an Open Group of 3 to 6 identical tiles that a hand on the card still allows.
Taking has a cost. The Group goes face up as an Open Group, and you discard right away without drawing. The table can see which hand you are chasing. Your hand can no longer score Fully Concealed, the +3 Mult for winning without taking a discard into a Group.
So if a Group is close anyway, waiting to draw can pay off. When you are one tile away, any player's discard of that tile can win.
Mult is the multiplier on a winning score. The guide to Mahjong Island scoring shows how it adds up.
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