2014 Anime Central Mahjong Tournament

2014 Anime Central Mahjong Tournament

Location	Rosemont, IL
Host	C.A.M.P.
Date	May 17, 2014
Type	Anime convention event
Player count	20 players
Finalists
Champion	Taka
Runner up	Aaron
Third	Erik
Fourth	Adam

This is the 2014 edition of the Anime Central Mahjong Tournament, which is a mahjong competition held within the anime convention, Anime Central. The convention itself is held at Rosemont, Illinois near Chicago. The tournament is hosted by the Chicago Area Mahjong Players.

Rules

ACEN tournament room

These are rules planned for the 2014 edition. The rules primarily emulate Tenhou.net, with some slight modifications due to time.

• Japanese Mahjong: 136 tiles. Pinzu, Manzu, Souzu, Kazehai, Sangenpai. Four of each.
• Akadora: 1-per Pinzu, Manzu, Souzu. One 5 replaced in each suit for a red dora.
• Start score: 25,000. Minimum score to win: 30,000. (Barring the time limit)
• Uma: Standard (+20, +10, -10, -20)
• Atozuke (ari)

Yakuless hand gains yaku on winning discard.

• Agari tenpai (ari)

No wind rotation when dealer is tenpai.

• Kuikae (nashi)

Discarding a tile from an existing tile group (e.g. discarding 1 from 123, after calling on 4).

• Kuitan (ari)

Open tanyao.

• Double ron(ari)

Two players winning off of one discard.

Riichi sticks awarded to player closest to the discarder clockwise.

• Sanchahou(ari)

For triple ron, then abortive draw is invoked.

• Furiten riichi (ari)

Riichi while furiten is neither subject to chombo or noten payment.

• Kan dora

Immediate flip with ankan (closed kan).

Flip after discard with other kans (open kan).

• Yakuman pao(ari)

Half of yakuman payment if player upgrades opponent hand to apparent yakuman (daisangen, shousuushii, or daisuushii).

Full of yakuman payment in the event of yakumantsumo.

• Daiminkan pao(nashi)

Pao rule not applied to rinshankaihou acquired by daiminkan. Rinshan tsumo operates like any other tsumo.

• Karaten tenpai (ari)

Karaten does not imply noten at ryuukyoku.

• Renhou(yaku set to mangan default)

Renhou is set to mangan regardless.

• Kokushi chankan via ankan (nashi)

Cannot ron off an ankan (closed kan).

• Chombo(post game)

The penalized pays 3000 to each player, at the end of the game. If the dealer commits chombo, wind rotates.

• Time limit cap (90 minutes): Time limit of 90 minutes is imposed.

Game clock begins at judge’s call, where the judge will ensure that all games start simultaneously.

Time stalling is discouraged and may warrant point penalties if necessary.

Soft Cap: Near 85 min mark, one more hand may be played after the current hand.

Hard Cap: Current hand when past 90 minutes is the last hand.

• Shaakyoku(nashi)

No West Round.

Game ends after wind rotation at oorasu, regardless of point standing, if the game ends before 90 minutes.

• Agari yame(ari)

Last dealer may have the option to end game prematurely after one hand in oorasu, with or without the lead.

Otherwise, the last dealer may call for additional hands, if time allowed.

Rotation system

Sixteen Players		Twenty Players
Table 1	Table A	Table 1	Table A
Table 2	Table B	Table 2	Table B
Table 3	Table C	Table 3	Table C
Table 4	Table D	Table 4	Table D
		Table 5	Table E

Given the time allotted, the tournament itself will feature two hanchan "preliminary" plus a single hanchan for a final. For now, the number of entrants will be slated to either 16-players or 20-players. Players will be randomly assigned to the tables in the first hanchan. For the second hanchan, player results from the first hanchan will decide table designations.

Rotation after the first hanchan (Sixteen):

• First -> Remains at the current Table
• Second -> Table to the Right
• Third -> Table across
• Fourth -> Table to the Left

Rotation after the first hanchan (Twenty):

• First -> Remains at the current Table
• Second -> Table to the Right
• Third -> Table across Right
• Fourth -> Table to the Left

Full results

Tournament final
Rank	Player	Town	Club	+/-	Score
1st	Taka	Elk Grove, IL	CAMP	67	56500
2nd	Aaron	Detroit, MI	DDRMTU	25	44600
3rd	Erik	Palatine, IL	CAMP	-34	5800
4th	Adam	Tulsa, OK	n/a	-58	-6900
Hanchan 1 and 2 - Aggregate
Rank	Player	Town	Club	+/-	Score
Q	Taka	Elk Grove, IL	CAMP	121	100500
Q	Adam	Tulsa, OK	n/a	107	86400
Q	Erik	Palatine, IL	CAMP	107	86000
Q	Aaron	Detroit, MI	DDRMTU	106	85600
5	Jason	Arlington Heights, IL	CAMP	24	64500
6	Ben	Kirksville, MO	n/a	19	59400
7	Bim	Rockford, IL	NIU	16	55900
8	Tom	Ellisville, MO	n/a	9	49000
9	Kedama	Vernon, WI	DDRMTU	9	48100
10	Laura	Sarasota, FL	n/a	8	48500
11	Elle	Indianapolis, IN	n/a	-8	52200
12	Trotskey	Lakewood, OH	DDRMTU	-31	39700
14	Dustin	Wheaton, IL	NIU	-36	43400
13	Derek	Dekalb, IL	n/a	-38	42500
15	Troi	Chicago, IL	n/a	-45	35500
17	Nick	East Moline, IL	n/a	-57	33400
16	Kevin	Chesterfield, IL	n/a	-63	27200
18	Kenton	Hannibal, MO	n/a	-73	26800
19	Lance/JasonC *	Chicago, IL	n/a	-80	10000
20	Ryan	Murphysboro, IL	n/a	-95	5400

This year, instead of the raw score, the uma/oka, or +/- score, is used to determine final standing. Within the past year, I was able to figure out a fast short cut to determine +/- numbers, which allowed manual processing to be possible. Unfortunately, as much as we tried, it became apparent, that maintaining a running score using this spreadsheet was outright impossible. Therefore, the point stick scores had to be used to determine the +/- results during the tournament. That is despite the inaccuracy of point stick scores to begin with. Nevertheless, the tabulation results verify the outcome determined by the point stick scores. If any errors are found, please let me know.

A time limit was applied to ensure relative timeliness of the tournament's conclusion. Out of the ten hanchan prior to the final, only three have completed the full hanchan, all the way to the conclusion of oorasu (South 4). All the others had to be capped due to time. Until general player speed improves, it may be necessary to simply use tonpuusen (East only) for preliminary games. Overall, a total of 103 hands were played, averaging 9.4 hands a game. Chombo is significantly reduced. Only one instance of chombo occurred, which involved a ron declared while furiten. Last year, five instances of chombo occurred. So, this is a great improvement. Likewise, out of the twenty players, only one opted out of the tournament midway, requiring one substitute.

As far as the numbers go, all four finalists won both of their games, as they each had a combined +/- result greater than 100. As a result, this produces a large difference between the finalists and the rest of the field. In comparision, not a single player produced a +/- aggregate greater than 60. Ultimately, the finals feature the four strongest players of the field, that day. In total, twenty-two hands resulted in mangan or greater. Some of the notable ones include Jason's haneman on table 5, which included rinshan kaihou. Two in table 4 included a baiman that dropped Kevin to 1000 pts. However, he saved himself in oorasu with an open chiinitsu for mangan, which allowed him to gyakuten (surpass) and pull out of fourth into third. No sanbaiman nor yakuman were scored in the tournament.

Going into the final, neither Aaron nor Taka were subject to ron during their first two games. Eventually, Taka takes the championship without being subject to a single ron, as he ended Aaron's clean streak.

External links

• Anime Central
• 2014 rules