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Mahjong Solitaire layouts: Turtle, Dragon and more.
The shape of the board changes everything. Here are the 12 layouts in Instant Mahjong Solitaire, how hard each one really is, and which to try first.
A Mahjong Solitaire layout is the shape the tiles are stacked in, and it decides most of the difficulty. The classic is the 144-tile Turtle. Instant Mahjong Solitaire has 12 layouts from 60 to 144 tiles, from easy, open boards like Garden and Harmony to Expert-level Mountain, with difficulty measured by simulated play.
What is a Mahjong Solitaire layout?
A layout is the shape the tiles are stacked in before you start. It decides how many tiles there are, how high they stack and which tiles are free at the start, so it has more effect on difficulty than anything else. The classic layout is the Turtle: 144 tiles stacked in a shell shape, the default board since the earliest computer versions of the game.
The 12 layouts in Instant Mahjong Solitaire
Each name below opens that layout directly in the game.
| Harmony | 70 tiles, 3 layers, Easy. A balanced ring around a calm centre. |
|---|---|
| Garden | 64 tiles, 3 layers, Easy. Four little islands around a stone path. |
| Phoenix | 64 tiles, 3 layers, Easy. Wings spread wide above a sweeping tail. |
| Pyramid | 70 tiles, 4 layers, Medium. A stepped triangle, gentle and open. |
| Pagoda | 90 tiles, 4 layers, Medium. Tiered roofs climbing to a spire. |
| Crane | 60 tiles, 3 layers, Medium. A long-necked crane standing in the reeds. |
| Lotus | 104 tiles, 4 layers, Medium. Layered petals opening around a tall heart. |
| Butterfly | 124 tiles, 4 layers, Medium. Patterned wings around a towering body. |
| Dragon | 118 tiles, 3 layers, Hard. A winding dragon with a raised spine. |
| Turtle | 144 tiles, 5 layers, Hard. The classic: 144 tiles on a five-layer shell. |
| Bridge | 98 tiles, 4 layers, Hard. A high stone bridge on two strong pillars. |
| Mountain | 118 tiles, 5 layers, Expert. Twin peaks with deep, tall stacks. |
How we measured difficulty
Difficulty labels come from testing, not guesswork. For every layout we dealt 60 boards and let a computer player choose random legal pairs ten times per board, then counted how often it cleared the board. Easy layouts were cleared by random play at least 65% of the time; Mountain, the only Expert layout, about 20% of the time. A thoughtful player does much better than random, but the order holds.
What makes a layout harder?
- Height. Tall stacks hide tiles under several layers. Turtle and Mountain both reach five layers.
- Long rows. The middle of a long row is blocked on both sides until an end is cleared, as in Bridge and Dragon.
- Few free tiles at the start. Bridge starts with only 26 of its 98 tiles free.
- Tile count. More tiles mean more chances to trap a pair, which is why the 144-tile Turtle is Hard even though its shell is regular.
Which layout should you play?
New to the game? Start with Garden or Harmony. Want the classic? Try the Turtle. Looking for a real test? Mountain and Bridge reward careful planning.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most famous Mahjong Solitaire layout?
The Turtle, a 144-tile shell-shaped layout. It has been the default board since the early computer versions of the game.
Which Mahjong Solitaire layout is the easiest?
In Instant Mahjong Solitaire, Harmony, Garden and Phoenix are the easiest: they are low and open, with many free tiles from the start.
Which layout is the hardest?
Mountain, with deep five-layer stacks, followed by Bridge, whose long rows start with only 26 free tiles.
How many tiles does a layout have?
The full set is 144 tiles. Instant Mahjong Solitaire layouts range from 60 tiles (Crane) to 144 (Turtle).
Are all the layouts solvable?
Yes. Every deal in Instant Mahjong Solitaire is built from a winning sequence of moves and checked before you play it.
Sources
- Mahjong solitaire — Wikipedia, history and standard rules of the game.
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