Small Three Dragons (小三元)
3 faan
Two dragon pungs plus a pair of the third dragon. One step down from Great Three Dragons.
Example winning hand
Winning tile: 7z (discard)
How Small Three Dragons (小三元) works
A hand containing two pungs (or kongs) of dragons plus a pair of the third dragon.
Two of the three dragons are completed as triplets while the remaining dragon forms the hand's pair. It is the lesser counterpart to Big Three Dragons, which requires all three dragons as pungs. The pattern itself is worth 3 faan, and each of the two dragon pungs still earns its own 1 faan on top, so the dragon tiles contribute 5 faan in total.
Good to know
- •The third dragon must be the pair, not a chow or a numbered-tile pair.
- •Promoting that pair into a third dragon pung upgrades the hand to Big Three Dragons.
- •The two dragon pungs each earn their separate 1-faan dragon-pung credit on top of the 3-faan pattern, for 5 faan from the dragons in total.
Small Three Dragons (小三元) — FAQ
What separates Small from Big Three Dragons?
Small has two dragon pungs and the third dragon as the pair; Big has all three dragons as pungs.
Can the pair be a non-dragon tile?
No. The defining pair must be the third dragon; otherwise the hand has only dragon pungs and not this pattern.
Other 3-faan patterns