Guide to ranking up on tenhou
Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2015 12:33 pm
As you know might know, I play mahjong on tenhou and I would just like to give you a guide on tenhou.
Popular beliefs are that tenhou is heavily based on 'avoiding last'. It is true that avoiding fourth place is important but isn't it important anyway? and you actually don't need to think about avoiding last too much until you are 6th dan or above in my opnion.
There are four separate level 'taku' or table
ippan-taku - this is where you start out and as long as you play enough, you can evetually reach the next level table
jyou-taku - this is where some beginners or even long time players are held back. If you cannot reach the next level taku, and out of experience of playing here, I felt that players at this table lack these skills (in order of importance.)
1) betaori skills - when someone riichis, bail from the safest tile unless you are tenpai ( genbutsu->suji->onechance/kabe/tile that you have that are pairs or triplets) Very simple principle yet hard to get used to if you are used to pushing all hands.
2) riichi - people in this table i feel do not like to riichi too often, it is a sin!!! to not riichi pinfu dora 1 or 2. It has also been proven by data that pinfu only is better to riichi as well. The major one and major difference between advanced players and players at this table is that they tend to not riichi, hands that are kanchan waits or 'bad wait' (shanpon/tanki). hands with at least one dora and are less than mangan in value, you must riichi except for very particular circumstances.
What I tell myself is that you have to find a reason not to riichi and not a reason to riichi.
3) tile efficiency - this is a problem for many users advanced or beginners but this is something you have to learn out of experience from playing or reading sites that teach you this stuff. I might do a post on tile effeicency and the different strategies out there but that is all I can say for this. there is no easy way to improve tile efficiency.
4) naki (chi or pon)- people in this table like menzen a bit too much. naki skills are very difficult to improve because it is a balance between defense and speed + attack but there is a certain set of skill that you have to master in terms of naki which is atozuke back. I show you some examples
(dora )
From this hand it is essential that you can chi- if it is discarded by you kamicha. another example is this
(edited*) (dora )
similarly you have to be able to chi- but pon also . It is without saying that you must pon from the first tile at all times and not the second.
The general principle is that if you can get rid or a gukei (bad wait) whether it is a kanchan or a third pair, if you have a yaku, you should do it. this is one of the main principles in modern mahjong.
actual game example east 4 http://tenhou.net/0/?log=2015041112gm-0 ... 6db27&tw=0
tokujyou-taku - this is where some advanced users are stuck. The 6dan slope as they call is very hard to climb in terms of points to get to 7th dan. if you can reach 5th -6th dan and stay there, you are a good player.
Things that players in this table are lacking are usually oshihiki(when to push and when to bail). in jyoutaku, you can win consistently or markedly improve your results by following the principle of betaori unless your tenpai but in this taku, similar principles apply but you have to also know when to push or bail when you are tenpai or iishanten. This is very hard to master and differs from player to player so there is no single correct answer. From this point on you must improve and try to perfect the categories in jyou-taku as well as oshihiki. Another important category is tezukuri or making your hand. It is important to be able to construct a hand that when tenpai is either a high scoring hand or has a good wait as much as possible. When I said you should riichi even with a bad wait when tenpai most of the time, advanced user avoid this problem constructing a hand in such a way to maximize the chance of getting a good wait when tenpai. Avanced strategies such as tenpai-hazushi or not taking tenpai can be useful but should only be used in particular circumstances.
houou-taku- the highest level table in internet mahjong, I have reached it and I've yet to really play in it so I can't comment on what it's like yet but if you can get here, you can call your self a solid player( I think)
Popular beliefs are that tenhou is heavily based on 'avoiding last'. It is true that avoiding fourth place is important but isn't it important anyway? and you actually don't need to think about avoiding last too much until you are 6th dan or above in my opnion.
There are four separate level 'taku' or table
ippan-taku - this is where you start out and as long as you play enough, you can evetually reach the next level table
jyou-taku - this is where some beginners or even long time players are held back. If you cannot reach the next level taku, and out of experience of playing here, I felt that players at this table lack these skills (in order of importance.)
1) betaori skills - when someone riichis, bail from the safest tile unless you are tenpai ( genbutsu->suji->onechance/kabe/tile that you have that are pairs or triplets) Very simple principle yet hard to get used to if you are used to pushing all hands.
2) riichi - people in this table i feel do not like to riichi too often, it is a sin!!! to not riichi pinfu dora 1 or 2. It has also been proven by data that pinfu only is better to riichi as well. The major one and major difference between advanced players and players at this table is that they tend to not riichi, hands that are kanchan waits or 'bad wait' (shanpon/tanki). hands with at least one dora and are less than mangan in value, you must riichi except for very particular circumstances.
What I tell myself is that you have to find a reason not to riichi and not a reason to riichi.
3) tile efficiency - this is a problem for many users advanced or beginners but this is something you have to learn out of experience from playing or reading sites that teach you this stuff. I might do a post on tile effeicency and the different strategies out there but that is all I can say for this. there is no easy way to improve tile efficiency.
4) naki (chi or pon)- people in this table like menzen a bit too much. naki skills are very difficult to improve because it is a balance between defense and speed + attack but there is a certain set of skill that you have to master in terms of naki which is atozuke back. I show you some examples
(dora )
From this hand it is essential that you can chi- if it is discarded by you kamicha. another example is this
(edited*) (dora )
similarly you have to be able to chi- but pon also . It is without saying that you must pon from the first tile at all times and not the second.
The general principle is that if you can get rid or a gukei (bad wait) whether it is a kanchan or a third pair, if you have a yaku, you should do it. this is one of the main principles in modern mahjong.
actual game example east 4 http://tenhou.net/0/?log=2015041112gm-0 ... 6db27&tw=0
tokujyou-taku - this is where some advanced users are stuck. The 6dan slope as they call is very hard to climb in terms of points to get to 7th dan. if you can reach 5th -6th dan and stay there, you are a good player.
Things that players in this table are lacking are usually oshihiki(when to push and when to bail). in jyoutaku, you can win consistently or markedly improve your results by following the principle of betaori unless your tenpai but in this taku, similar principles apply but you have to also know when to push or bail when you are tenpai or iishanten. This is very hard to master and differs from player to player so there is no single correct answer. From this point on you must improve and try to perfect the categories in jyou-taku as well as oshihiki. Another important category is tezukuri or making your hand. It is important to be able to construct a hand that when tenpai is either a high scoring hand or has a good wait as much as possible. When I said you should riichi even with a bad wait when tenpai most of the time, advanced user avoid this problem constructing a hand in such a way to maximize the chance of getting a good wait when tenpai. Avanced strategies such as tenpai-hazushi or not taking tenpai can be useful but should only be used in particular circumstances.
houou-taku- the highest level table in internet mahjong, I have reached it and I've yet to really play in it so I can't comment on what it's like yet but if you can get here, you can call your self a solid player( I think)