Section 4: Gameplay
Taking a Turn
On a turn, a player who has not yet completed an initial meld may place a qualifying meld from their rack. After that player has completed the requirement, later turns may include any combination of the following actions:
- Place a new group or run from the rack.
- Add one or more rack tiles to combinations already in play.
- Rearrange, split, combine, or extend table combinations.
- Replace and reuse a joker as described below.
If a player cannot or chooses not to play, that player draws one tile from the pool and ends the turn. The drawn tile goes onto the rack and is normally unavailable for play until the player’s next turn.
Rearranging the Table
Once a player has made an initial meld on an earlier turn, all exposed combinations are available for rearrangement. Tiles may move between combinations, and a long run may be split if the resulting pieces remain valid. A fourth tile may be removed from a four-tile group and used elsewhere because the three tiles left behind still form a valid group.
For example, if the table contains red 4-5-6-7-8, a player holding red 3 may create red 3-4-5 and leave red 6-7-8. If the table contains blue 9, red 9, black 9, and orange 9, one 9 may be moved into another combination while the remaining three stay together.
A player may perform several connected rearrangements during one turn, but the final layout is what matters. At the end of the turn, every exposed tile must belong to a valid group or run containing at least three tiles. No loose tile, duplicate color within a group, gap within a run, or two-tile combination may remain.
Commitment and Failed Rearrangements
Players should plan complex moves before disturbing the table. If a player cannot complete a legal arrangement, restore the table to its condition at the start of the turn. For relaxed play, the player then draws one tile and ends the turn. If restoration is impossible, the group should reconstruct the last agreed layout before continuing.
Using Jokers
A joker may represent any numbered tile needed to complete a valid group or run. Its identity is determined by its position. In a blue 6, joker, blue 8 run, the joker represents blue 7. In a group containing red 12, black 12, and a joker, it represents a 12 in an unused color.
A joker may be moved through a legal table rearrangement, but it may never be left loose. To retrieve a joker directly, replace it with the exact tile needed in its current combination. In a group, the replacement must have the group’s number and an available color; in a run, it must have the required number and color. The replacement comes from the active player’s rack.
A retrieved joker must be used during the same turn in a new or rearranged valid combination. It does not return to the player’s rack and cannot be saved for later. A combination containing a joker may otherwise be split or rearranged only when all resulting combinations remain legal.
Table Etiquette
- Keep combinations aligned and leave visible space between them.
- Announce complicated changes as they are made so opponents can follow the move.
- Do not touch another player’s rack or inspect face-down tiles.
- Resolve an illegal layout before the next player begins.
- When the pool is nearly empty, keep it clearly separate from discarded or temporarily moved tiles.