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beginner Lucky Rare

Haitei

海底摸月 | haitei raoyue

Win by self-drawing the very last tile from the wall before the hand ends in a draw.

By Kenji Tanaka · Updated

Overview

Haitei, in full haitei raoyue (sweeping the moon from the sea bottom), is a 1-han yaku for winning on the very last tile drawn from the live wall. Because it is the final draw of the hand, haitei must be a tsumo (self-draw); winning on the final discard instead is the companion yaku houtei. It is a luck-based bonus that cannot be planned, simply rewarding the player who completes their hand on the last possible draw, and it stacks on top of whatever other yaku the hand already has, including riichi and tanyao. Since only one player draws the last tile each hand, haitei is uncommon. Late in a hand, awareness that the wall is nearly empty can affect whether you push for that final draw, but haitei itself arrives by chance rather than design. Its discard-side twin, houtei, covers the equivalent win on the very last thrown tile.

Han Value
1 han (closed) / 1 han (open)

Example Hand

2m 3m 4m 6m 7m 8m 1p 2p 3p 5s 5s 7s 8s 9s

Conditions

  • You must win by self-draw (tsumo) on the very last drawable tile from the wall
  • The last tile is the final tile before the dead wall (the 14 tiles reserved for kan replacement draws and dora indicators)
  • Your hand can be open or closed
  • You cannot declare a kan on the last draw — if you draw the last tile, you must either win with it or discard it

Strategy Tips

  • Haitei is almost entirely luck-based — you can’t control whether you’ll draw the last tile, let alone whether it completes your hand. However, being tenpai in the late game gives you a chance at this bonus.
  • In the final few draws of a hand, if you’re tenpai, stay tenpai. Even if your wait seems hopeless, the haitei bonus could land in your lap. Don’t give up on a hand just because the wall is running low.
  • If you’re playing defensively and not tenpai, the good news is that only one player can draw the haitei tile. The main thing to watch is that the player drawing last might have extra motivation to stay tenpai for this chance.