Start with these ideas
- Use all six suited terminal types and all seven honour types, with one of the thirteen types repeated as the pair. That is 14 tiles.
- HKMA lists it as a 10-faan limit hand. Our game uses an 8-faan limit and adds no ordinary Concealed Hand, self-draw or flower bonuses.
Reference values below follow the Hong Kong Mahjong Association (HKMA) rules. Worked calculator examples use our browser game’s house rules; check the differences before comparing results.
Which tiles make Thirteen Orphans?
Use 1 and 9 of Characters, Dots and Bamboo, all four winds, and Red, Green and White Dragons. These are thirteen different tile types. Add one more tile of any of those types to form the pair: the complete hand has 14 tiles.
This is a special structure, not four sets and a pair. It does not use called Chows, Pungs or declared Kongs. The example below contains each required type and a second East.
10 or 8 faan? Name the ruleset first
The HKMA reference lists Thirteen Orphans among its 10-faan limit hands. Our browser game scores it as an 8-faan limit. This is a ruleset difference, not a missing bonus in the hand.
The linked calculator uses our game’s rules. It returns 8 and does not add ordinary Concealed Hand, self-draw or flower faan to this limit hand. The name “Thirteen Orphans” describes thirteen required tile types; it does not establish a universal 13-faan value.
Counterexample: a pair cannot replace a missing type
Two Easts do not compensate for a missing White Dragon. All thirteen required types must be present. A collection containing an extra middle-number tile, such as 5 Dots, also fails this structure.
Exactly thirteen different required tiles are a ready hand, not a complete win. You still need the fourteenth tile to make a pair. A claimed Pung commits tiles to a meld and prevents this special concealed shape.
Thirteen-sided wait versus a single missing tile
Remove the duplicate East from the example. With one of each required type, any of those thirteen types can complete the pair: this is the thirteen-sided wait. It does not guarantee that copies remain available in the wall.
If you already have a pair but are missing one required type, only that missing type completes the hand. Our calculator checks a completed hand; it does not calculate waits or live tile availability. Add the intended winning tile before calculating.
Sources
A hand to try
Win: discard · Seat: East · Round: East · Minimum: 3. Declared melds and special draw context are loaded with the hand.
With the saved win method, seat wind and round wind, this example is expected to score 8 final faan under sc_hk13_v1_2. The calculator also shows every contributing pattern and whether the hand reaches the selected minimum.
Try this in the calculatorCheck your understanding
Which statement matches our house rules?
Choose a statement to see the explanation.
A few things to know
Does a thirteen-sided wait score extra in this calculator?
No. The calculator evaluates the completed Thirteen Orphans shape at the same 8-faan house limit. It does not award a separate wait bonus. A different table must state its own scoring convention.