PLACEMENT OF THE BROKEN WALL (Article 11)

Commentary: East rolls two dice to break their wall randomly, then dealing with the tiles begins with the tiles left of the break, and the tiles to the right of the break remain where they are. After dealing the tiles, some players will move the broken wall to the center of their rack or the far left, which can cause problems later in the game. For example, if the tiles are moved from their original place, players may think there are fewer tiles to pick, and they may break up their hands because the continuity of the wall is disrupted.

In a letter to a player asking about this, the league said, “The tiles that remain to the right of the break stay where they are. This is the back of the wall, the right side of East’s rack (not the middle, not the left side). This is reflected in the diagram in Mah Jongg Made Easy pages 10 & 11). We think of the wall as a continuous flow. If the tiles that remain on East’s rack are in the middle or to the left there would be a gap in the wall. This can cause problems, as we have seen cases where players do not realize there are remaining tiles, and think the game is over when it is not.”

Question from a Player: East rolls the dice and breaks the wall. Everyone takes their own tiles. Can East then slide the remainder of the wall toward the left of her rack or does it have to stay on the right?

Answer from the NMJL: After East rolls the dice to break the wall, the players take tiles in groups of four until they each have 12. Then East takes the top 1&3 and the other players take one each. At this point, there is a short wall left in front of East’s rack. The tiles are to be kept to the right so it connects easily to the end of the third wall. In other words, East should not move those tiles to the far left or to the center of their rack.

Source: Mah Jongg Made Easy (2024 page 9; illustration)

Another answer from the NMJL:

Though there is no rule in writing, we highly recommend that the tiles to the right of the break remain where they are. This is the back end of the wall. To move them to the left would be providing a break between the 3rd wall and the remainder of East’s wall. We have seen this lead to issues where players do not realize there are still tiles to be played. They think the game is over, and play their tiles as if this is the end of the game. Page 11 of Mah Jongg Made Easy shows a diagram where the remaining tiles stay to the right.

Source: Mah Jongg Made Easy (2020 pg 10; illustration); Letter to a player (2019)