SSSSSSSSLIDE into the 2025 card!!

The year of the Snake will add layers of creativity and growth. The 2025 "wood snake" ushers in good fortune and consistent progress. The snake is intelligent, charming, but can also be secretive and cunning! Shedding 2024s hands provides players with myriad opportunities for new growth by conquering challenges and embracing greater versatility.

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Please note:

There is one printing error on each of the NMJL 2025 playing cards:

The NMJL will send all ordered cards and then they will be sending out replacement cards for all orders in late May into June.

Players - remember to read in the parentheses as these instructions will always override the color coding (or printing error) in the Hand. The errors are easy enough to overcome and to continue to use the card for play. The parenthetical directions for the two misprinted hands are correct.

The standard print card error:

2468 hand #4 -last LIKE pungs in any even number- the pungs should have been printed in two different ink colors- this is a 3 suit hand.

The Large print card error:

Cosecutive Run hand #3 (second hand of line)- After Kong of Flowers, the Kong Pair Kong of Any three Consec. Nos. should have been printed in three different ink colors- this is a 3 suit hand.

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Some Observations of the 2025 Playing Card:

There are four carryover hands from the 2024 playing card which include both hands of line #1 in Winds & Dragons and both hands in line #2 of the 3-6-9 category.

There are 71 hands as written on this card and 1002 playable hand variations. There is quite an abundance of patterns to make the 2025 card a ssssuper stimulating and dynamic card!

FLOWER PUNGS have returned and I am smiling! A Pung or Kong of Flowers may be exposed with Jokers that can then be exchanged. My students learn this as "shopping in an opponent's store" that displays a Joker or Jokers in the exposed block of tiles. The 2025 card does not offer a hand with a Quint of Flowers.

During the Charleston, avoid passing Flowers if you can. If not using Flowers in your hand, keep the unneeded or spare Flowers! Try to use the flower as joker bait during game play, but do not wait until end game to discard flower tiles as an opponent may be burning to CALL for a discarded Flower to complete a pair for Mah Jongg!

"Mathy Hands" wriggle along the 2025 card!

1-3-5-7-9 Hand #4 is pictured above. After the Kong of Flowers, this is a two suit hand using a kong of ( four Swans)1 Bams, a kong of 9 Bams (with two adorable Panda Jokers)...and the sum of 10 made with an opposite suit using a 1 Crak and a Soap as the zero. Soap is neutral when used a zero and can "go with" any number suit, Bams, Craks or Dots.

On the 2025 playing card, we have math-related hands in the following categories:

2-4-6-8, 1-3-5-7-9 and 3-6-9!! The hands must be played with the numbers as written, so no trying to sneak in a more creative or unique equation!

The National Mah Jongg League's creators of the card hands have a bit of fun when they create "mathy" hands. There is no tile in the set that represents the mathematical symbols of a plus (+), or equals (= )sign.

A Sssssssplendid 2025 hand:

~ The BIG Hand is the last concealed (c) Hand in the Singles & Pairs section with a value of .75. Please remember NO Jokers may be used in a 2025 grouping of tiles...NOT even for Mah Jongg.

~ Tiles of Twos and Fives in Bams, Craks, and Dots as well as Soaps (white dragon) create the tile grouping of 2025. These tiles will be required to create the four hands with their variations in the 2025 category as well as the sixth concealed hand in Singles & Pairs. Mindful passing during the Charleston will include avoiding passing TWOs, FIVESs and Soaps together in one pass. A player may inadvertently help their opponent toward a 2025 hand or a hand requiring the number 2 and 5 tiles.

~ Take a minute to double check your exposure when you CALL for a tile.

You can make changes to your exposure (ie. you exposed a PUNG but meant to expose a KONG) during your turn, but once you properly name and discard a tile to end your turn, you could be stuck with an incorrect exposure and must slither into another hand that uses your exposure(s) of tiles.

~ SINGLE TILES: Please note that there are a plethora of hands requiring single tiles! Single tiles are treated like PAIRS as you may NOT CALL for a single tile except for your final tile for Mah Jongg! There are single Dragon tiles in Any Like Numbers category, single tiles in 2-4-6-8 strung together without spacing. This tile grouping in 2-4-6-8 hand #4is NOT a Kong. A Kong is comprised of four identical tiles, for example EEEE (four East tiles) or 5555 all in Bams.

Discarding single tiles near end game can be chancy. Competent players read their opponents' exposures as well as the discards before throwing a risky tile or a tile that has not yet been discarded.

~ Always verify the winning Mah Jongg hand!

Players should not throw all their tiles in to begin a new game until the winner's Mah Jongg Hand is placed in Hand order on their rack and is verified as correct!

Be alert if choosing to play a concealed (c) hand! You may NOT call for any tiles during game play. When playing a closed hand, you may call for your last tile ONLY for your final tile for Mah Jongg.

Snakes have a keen sense of timing and strike when timing is maximized. If players can deduce from exposures that blocks of tiles can only be part of a concealed hand, they may call that player's hand "not viable."

PATTERNS on the 2025 Playing Card:

Snakes are naturally shy and solitary but can squeeze through cracks in rocks and burrow in soil as well as climb near vertical rock walls.

Like the curving serpent, strong players adapt to new structures and rhythms of hands. The card presents a surfeit of new hand patterns while single tiles glissade into the designs.

Pattern recognition helps to remind us of what blocks of tiles comprise each Hand. Players can think more clearly about what groupings of tiles must be finalized to complete their hand by relating to the rhythm of the Hand (ie. Pung Kong Pung Kong).

Concentration will be required when making exposures of tile groupings to help you to avoid making errors. When exposing tiles, take just a few moments to triple check what meld you mean to expose. You may change your exposure as long as you have not discarded a tile to end your turn.

Endeavoring to remember locations on the playing card of identical hand patterns is important, but unique hand patterns have into every category on the 2025 card.

The following are prevalent patterns on the 2025 card:

PUNG KONG PUNG KONG PAIR KONG KONG KONG

PAIR PUNG KONG PUNG PAIR (Bell-shaped curve rhythm)

(Luxe Mah Jong's "Country Club Line" tiles)

Single tiles of Dragons, numbers, and runs of single number tiles sneak into every category except the Quints. In the photo above are two of the plethora of options players can choose when constructing Consecutive Run hand #4. The three number run of single tiles is called a CHOW and is NOT a pung. A pung is three of the same tile such as three 8 craks (888), or three of the identical wind tiles (EEE), for example. In a pung, zero to three jokers may be used, however, a Joker may NEVER be used in a chow...not even for Mah Jongg! If you are only waiting for one of the single tiles in the chow to make Mah Jongg, you are permitted to CALL for the final tile in a chow to complete your hand and declare Mah Jongg.

HOW CAN I GET TO KNOW THE 2025 CARD?

If you are an Arizona local player and plan to attend one of the 2025 Playing Card Workshops with me, you will be provided this worksheet packet to complete at the workshop. The worksheets are included in the fee for the lesson.

The 2025 worksheet card packet is available on my SHOP page...click on the link below:

https://www.majbydaron.com/product-page/2025-mah-jongg-playing-card-worksheet-packet

Each April, I create a worksheet packet with questions for players to answer that will help to familiarize them with the current playing card.

Click on this link for the packet:

https://www.majbydaron.com/shop

Examples of the questions I have included on the worksheets are:

~ List the 9 matching and 5 opposite Dragon Hands on this year's card

~ Can you locate the hands with a "PAIR KONG KONG KONG" pattern?

~ How many hands have Flowers on the card

~ Find the Error - I have added new questions which ask your to determine hand error(s) I have intentionally made for you to uncover!

I provide a downloadable and printable worksheet packet that includes:

2025 card overview
worksheet on the playing card
worksheet on the patterns of hands
answer keys & explanations

The worksheets help players of all playing levels see the 2025 NMJL card from various perspectives. The worksheets are intended for ALL players, from Beginner to Advanced!

Familiarity with the hands on the card as well as an understanding of the patterns and rhythms of the hands leads to creativity of play.

Please click on the link below if you would like to purchase the 2025 Mah Jongg Worksheet Packet! Once purchased, you can download and print the worksheet packet which includes the 2025 card overview, worksheet pages, and answer keys. You will need your own 2025 National Mah Jongg League playing card to complete the worksheets. The 2025 NMJL playing card is NOT included with the worksheet packet.

If you are an Arizona local player and plan to attend one of the 2025 Playing Card Workshops with me, you will be provided this worksheet packet to complete at the workshop so you do not need to purchase the packet now. The worksheets are included in the fee for the lesson.

If you cannot attend an in-person workshop, this worksheet packet will definitely help you become very familiar with the new card. Learning and playing Hands from all of the categories on the card will render you a stronger, more flexible & strategic player.

I hope you learn from and enjoy these worksheets as much as I take pride and joy in creating them!!

In the Chinese culture, the 2025 year of the Snake will also promote calmness and clarity!

Completing the 2025 worksheet packet should promote a sense of confidence, proficiency and preparedness to tackle playing Mah Jongg with the new card in the year 2025!!