Sanma

Cross-comparison

corroborated — two or more independent sources agree on the facts that define this variant

• [2] names sanma as the three-player counterpart to yonma and says there is a well-established modified version of the rules for it, but treats it as an accommodation for when four players are not available rather than a separate lineage. The same page also describes two-player and five-player variations, which the chart does not carry
• [3] Sloperama's catalogue has no separate Sanma entry, so no tile count or hand size is attributed to the name
• [4] three-player variants are described in the Wikipedia article on Japanese mahjong
• [1] states the three-player game is not a mere adaptation of the four-player game but has its own rules: chows cannot be melded from a discard, discards are placed in front of the player, and a player cannot win on a discard they themselves previously discarded, the sacred discard

Reading it

Now properly sourced. Wikipedia gives the exact tile reduction and three rules of its own, and states explicitly that the three-player game is not a mere adaptation but has its own idiosyncrasies, which strengthens the chart's decision to give it a node. That cuts against riichi.wiki's framing of three-player play as an accommodation for a missing fourth. Both are describing real practice; the chart's node is better supported than the previous pass concluded.

Sources

1. Wikipedia. "Three-player mahjong." cross-check checked 2026-09-18

   The Korean and Japanese three-player game in detail: which tiles are removed, the prohibition on melding chows from a discard, and the sacred-discard rule.

   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-player_mahjong

   Also cited on: Korean traditional · bibliography #56

2. Japanese Mahjong Wiki. "Japanese Mahjong." riichi.wiki. cross-check checked 2026-09-18

   Arrival in Japan in 1909; the post-1969 popularity surge; Tenhou.net in 2007.

   https://riichi.wiki/index.php?title=Japanese_mahjong

   Also cited on: Japanese classical / arushiiaru, Houchi rules, Modern riichi / yonma · bibliography #11

3. Sloper, Tom. "FAQ 2b: Identifying a Mah-Jongg Variant." Sloperama. supporting checked 2026-09-18

   Tile counts, hand sizes, flower handling and scoring for roughly 50 named variants. Primary source for most leaf nodes in this chart.

   https://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq/mjfaq02b.html

   Also cited on: Chinese archaic, Chinese pre-classical, Chinese classical, Shanghai / Hong Kong new style, Hong Kong old style, Modern HKOS and 43 more · bibliography #1

4. Wikipedia. "Japanese Mahjong." canonical checked 2026-09-18

   The riichi declaration, dora, furiten and ordered discards.

   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_mahjong

   Also cited on: Japanese classical / arushiiaru, Modern riichi / yonma · bibliography #12