Allstar Mahjong

Introduction

Introduction

Welcome to allstarmahjong.com where you can play and interact with other Mahjong players all over the world

Download free software
First you need to download our free software. Visit the download page for more information.

Play for fun or real
When you have downloaded the free software, installed and logged in to AllStar Mahjong you will be able to choose to play for fun or for real money.

If playing for real money you will need to deposit funds into your account.

You can choose to play at our single hand tables with 2, 3 or 4 players, Full Games or multi table tournaments. Join a table or tournament with the denomination that suits you best.

We offer Chinese Classic, International and Riichi rules. You can play either with real money or for fun.

We offer the following types of Games:

*Single Hand*	A Single Hand Game is a quick one-hand game where the monetary settlement is done at the end of each hand. A single hand of Mahjong is played without having to consider the traditional point calculations; the player that declares Mahjong wins the combined table wager. This option can be played by 2, 3 or 4 players. Players pay their bet if the win is on self-draw. In case of a win on discard, the discarding player pays double and the other players pay half.
*Full Game*	A *Full Game* is divided into a number of rounds (two for riichi, and four for classic and competition rules). In each round every player will play at least once in each wind (in riichi and classic games, the play will repeat in case of washout). These games are not regularly scheduled; they simply begin when all four seats are filled. The winner wins all the money in the pot (less rake).
*East Only*	*East Only* is our new faster four player game where all players plays one round as the east wind. East Only is essentially a variation of the full game but it takes less time to play – about 15 minutes.
*Multi-table tournament*	*Multi-table tournaments* are announced with a set start time. You can register for a tournament by paying the buy-in and the entrance fee. When the tournament starts, you will automatically be placed at the initial table. A tournament consists of a series of games which is time limited, using the same rules as in a Full Game. Each game ends after a set amount of time. The normal table point distribution is 1st Place: 4 points, 2nd: 2p, 3rd: 1p, 4th: 0p. The player with the largest total of table points wins the tournament and the money is distributed according to the payout structure that is presented in the tournament info.

Mahjong Guidelines and Game Policy

General Lobby Rules

All chat at the tables must be in English, unless otherwise stated in the lobby. In some case there will be regional tournaments where it’s ok to speak other languages this will be clearly stated on the tables or tournaments.
Players should respect the other participants and chat in a way that is appropriate. Threatening or insulting any player, visitor, or employee, using obscene language or profanity or racist or anti-religious remarks is strictly forbidden and will lead to the player being banned from the chat.
Players may not use the chat to advertise products or services. Doing so will lead to chat ban and/or (non-refundable) closing of the player account. Spamming in the chat will lead to similar consequences.
Players may not use words or characters that makes it hard for the other players to understand.
Any play that is deemed unethical, such as team play will result in the player(s) being disqualified from the tournament and the account(s) being frozen
Players may not discuss their tiles with other players, doing so may lead to the player being banned from the site.
In case of disputes, AllStar Mahjong management decisions will be final.

Commission to the Operator (Rake)
AllStar Mahjong is a Mahjong room, not a casino. That means that you play against other players over the Internet, not against the house. We receive compensation by taking a "commission", which is a small amount of money defined as a fixed fee or a percentage of the gross win depending on game type.

Single hand		10% of gross win/pot*
Full Game		15% of gross win/pot*
Multi table tournament:		Fee for each tournament, which is 10% of the buy-in up to a buy-in of $500, after which it becomes a fixed fee.

*Gross win/pot example= If there are 4 players and each player put in $1 into the pot then the total pot will be $4, the commission will be $0.4 for a single hand and $0.6 for a full game.

Single Hand

This game mode is a quick one-hand game where the monetary settlement is done at the end of each hand. Single hand games can be played by 2, 3 or 4 players. In single hand games, the goal is to form a valid mahjong hand as quickly as possible. The value of the hand has no influence on who wins.
To play a single hand game, you pay the fee for the table, which will let you join the table and start the first hand. The player that declares mahjong first wins the amount paid by the other players, and a new hand begins. For each new hand, the fee for the table is paid again to form a new pot.
Some rules that are only sensible for complete games of mahjong, are not used for single hand games. These differences are:

Prevailing wind is not used.
The deal is always rotated regardless of how the previous hand ended.
No riichi or counter sticks are left on the table between hands (only applicable for riichi rules). The values of the sticks go back to their owners.

The player that declares Mahjong wins the combined table wager. Players pay their bet if the win is on self-draw. In case of a win on discard, the discarding player pays double and the other players pay half.

Disconnection and Inactivity
If the player gets disconnected or fails to take any action for two consecutive rounds the player will automatically be deactivated. This means that you will sit out as long as you are disconnected. When a disconnected player’s connection is reinstated the player can continue to play.

Cancellation
If a game is cancelled or freezes we refund each player his bet.

Full Game

In this mode a full game of mahjong, which stretches over several hands, is played. The game is divided into a number of rounds. (Two for riichi, and four for classical and competition rules.) During a round, the winds are rotated from player to player, until all players have played in all winds. This signifies that the round has come to an end.

Each round has a prevailing wind. The first round is the east round, and the following is the south round. For riichi, there are only these two rounds, while the classical and the international competition rules also have a west and a north round.

To play in a full game, you pay the bet for the table, which will let you join the table with a set amount of points. After all players have been seated, the game starts with the first of a series of hands, and at the end of each hand points are settled between the players.

When the game has ended the player with the most points receives the pot that is paid by the other players, minus the commission (rake).

Cancellation
If a game is cancelled or freezes we refund each player his bet.

East Only

East only is our new four player fast game where all players plays one round as the east wind. East Only is essentially a variation of the full game but it takes less time to play – about 15 minutes.

Multi Table Tournaments

In a multi-table tournament, a large number of players sign up and play against each other in a series of games. A game in a multi table tournament is as many hands as the participants can play in a predefined amount of time, so the game may end in mid-hand. After each game, the player receives table points according to their positions in the game, and the totals of these points are used to determine the winner of the tournament.

To participate in a multi-table tournament you click on Register to sign up for the tournament. The tournament fee is withdrawn from your account when a sufficiently large number of players have signed up to the tournament. Some time before the tournament starts, the registration will close, and beyond that point, no further registration will be accepted.

When the tournament starts, you will automatically be placed at your first table, and the game will begin. It is important that you are logged in when the tournament starts, otherwise you will lose your place in the tournament and your entrance fee will be lost. After the time allocated for a game is over there is a short pause, and then you will automatically be seated at your next table, where you will meet new opponents in the following game.

This process continues until the pre-determined numbers of games have been played, and the tournament ends. After the tournament has finished, the final placements are shown in the tournament information tab.

Table Points
After each game in a tournament, a total of 7 table points are distributed among the players according to their placement in the game. When the tournament ends, the players that have managed to accumulate the highest total number of points will receive the tournament prizes according to their positions. In case of a tie in table points, the total number of regular points accumulated during all the games is the tie-breaker.

The table point distribution is done the following manner: the high scorer receives 4 table points; the second highest scorer receives 2 table points; the third highest receives 1 table point; and the fourth player receives 0 table points.

If two players' scores are equal, they split table points between them. In case of a tie for highest score, both players receive 3 table points each, and the third and fourth player 1 and 0 table points respectively. In case of a tie for second-highest score, the first player receives 4 points, the tied players 1,5 points each, and the fourth player 0 points. In case of a tie for third-highest score, the first player receives 4,5 points, the second 2,5 points, and the tied players 0 points each and so on in logical fashion, for the remaining possible cases.

The rules used in multi-table tournaments are the same as is used in a Full Game with the only exception being how a game is finished. A multi-table tournament game ends after a set amount of time, regardless of how many hands have been played, and what round the game is in. The last, interrupted hand of the game is ignored and is not included in the final scoring of the game.

Multi table tournament rules

All tournaments will begin at the scheduled time stated in the tournament lobby.
For optimal fairness in tournaments, the number of participating players must be a multiple of four (4). Excess registered players are dropped from the tournament and any entry fees and buy-ins are refunded.
Players are assigned seats randomly and are not allowed to choose or change their seats. Player can cancel their tournament registration as long as the registration time has not run out (fee and buy-in is refunded to player)
The tournament ends when the time period ends.
The player with most table points wins the tournament. If two players have the same table points the player with most points wins. If players end up on the same points then the pot is split.
Any chat or action to help another player is unethical and is prohibited.
All prizes will be distributed according to the specific details of each individual tournament. All details concerning a tournament may be found in the tournament lobby.
Players, whether in the hand or not, may not discuss the hands until the action is complete.
A player may play on only one account during a tournament. Violation of this rule may result in disqualification from the tournament as well as both/all accounts being frozen.
Any play that is deemed unethical, such as team play will result in a player(s) being disqualified from the tournament and the account(s) being frozen.
In the event of a server interruption or tournament crash, players will be compensated according to our interrupted tournament pay-out (roll forward) policy.
Country restricted tournaments: The tournament is only open to citizens of that country using an IP address registered to that country
All decisions made by AllStar Mahjong regarding any aspects of a tournament are regarded as final.

Multi Tournament Disconnection and Inactivity
If the player gets disconnected or fails to take any action for two consecutive rounds the player will automatically be deactivated. This means that you will sit out as long as you are disconnected. When a disconnected player’s connection is reinstated the player can continue to play.

Tournament Cancellation Policy
If there is a cancellation of a tournament for any reason, we make a concerted effort to compensate players in the fairest and best way possible.

Rollback
If a tournament is "rolled back" (meaning that the tournament has not started yet), any players that had already registered for the tournament will be refunded any fees and buy-ins.

Roll Forward (Tournament has started)
If a tournament is cancelled after it has started it is called a "roll forward". In such cases each player his is refunded his entry fee. The prize pool is distributed according to the following formula:

50% of the award pool is distributed evenly among all players
50% of the award pool is distributed proportionally according to the table points.

If you have any questions or feedback regarding our cancelation policy please contact us at support@allstarmahjong.com.

Payout structure
The payout structure in a tournament depends on the number of players. The larger the overall pool of money available for splitting, the more opportunities will exist for finishing “in the money” (i.e. with profit). The tournament is settled after finishing the tournament and the money will be paid out to each player. The payout structure can be seen in the tournament lobby in the client.