Topic: Intimidation / "flashy" play

Since I briefly mentioned my failed attempt at intimidation in the open play report, I've been thinking about it at length.  Most people who have seen, or been completely introduced to the game by, mahjong anime will see it come up often: Fresh meat barely aware of the rules sits down at the table and is bombarded with calls, concealed kans and "Didja know _____ happens when I _____? Special rule, sorry."  Naturally, this doesn't come up during digital play nearly as much, except in arcade games and, trust me, that scantily clad, big-breasted anime girl doesn't need intimidation to win, she's looking at your hand and can see every draw you're going to make. (Not that I'm speaking from personal experience or anything   ….) I suppose you can confuse your online adversary with calls, "manly" discards of the dora, etc…still, more often than not, an online player (particularly a Japanese one) will take a look at your rank and / or English user-I.D. and assume that you don't have the slightest idea what you're doing. As with most aspects of play, the situation is always different when sitting at a table with actual people.

Bearing all this in mind, has anyone ever attempted to employ flashy, unorthodox techniques at the mahjong table for the purposes of confusing / potentially intimidating your opponents, or simply because you enjoy doing it? When not playing in a tournament or for anything serious, I think the flashiness tends to add to the fun. Yes, everyone loves shouting "Riichi!" and "Ron!" in declamatory voices, but what about taking one player and stealing everything he discards (as long as you know your yaku, of course) or declaring kan at every opportunity? Arguably, these are not always the best strategic decisions and, yes, some people look at this as "bad manners", but I think it can add to the game on occasion. During one open play, the first dealer in the East round sat across from me and grew more and more annoyed as I called pon on their first three discards. I did not win the hand, but perhaps the irritation I inflicted contributed to their not keeping the position of dealer after the first round.  Nevertheless, I remember this game because it was FUN. Which is what this game is all about in the end isn't it? Unless, as I've said, you're playing in a tournament or there's cash on the table.

I've rambled on for a while, but what does everyone here think? Is the fun, for you, in the strategic, calculated attack or the wild, reckless "check out my open double riichi, you *@?&!!" style? Or is it a mixture of both?

I can't recall doing this in Mahjong

However…….

I do and have been playing Magic: The Gathering at a semi-pro level for a few years now. I do employ something along this line of strategy in that, especially in the early games of a really big tournament when you could be up against people of lesser experience who will be more predisposed to falling for it. The theory is this; MTG on a professional level involves skill of anticipating what your opponent has in hand to potentially nullify your threats. If you can make them believe that you are holding something you are not, you can guide the game into your own pace, and your own rules.

How often has this worked for me? Id say maybe 65 or 70% of my bluffs have resulted in me pulling out a win I normally would have fallen short on.



Curious if with time I would be able to bring this mentality over to the world of Mahjong…


Well its a bit off topic, but the spirit of the game is the same between Mahjong and MTG.

I don't think my behavior is "flashy" - e.g. I don't act like I don't care when I have to discard a dragon dora.

But sometimes I do make choices to try to scare or confuse other players. For instance, if I get a chance to go into Riichi early - I will often do it, even if the wait isn't very good, because I believe that the other players will start to play more cautiously and be less likely to win a big hand. Similarly, sometimes later in the game,I will go into Riichi on a poor wait, hoping that players with open hands (like someone who is trying for a called flush) may break their hands to play defensively.

I also try to discard out of my hand (instead of discarding the tile I just drew) whenever possible, so it looks like my hand is improving, and so people can't tell when I'm getting close to ready.