Junchan
純全帯幺九 | Jun Chantaiyaochuu
Every meld and the pair must contain a terminal tile (1 or 9), with no honor tiles in the hand.
By Kenji Tanaka · Updated
Overview
Junchan, the pure outside hand, is a yaku worth 3 han closed and 2 han open, requiring that every meld and the pair contain a terminal, meaning a 1 or a 9, with no honor tiles anywhere in the hand. This makes it the stricter, terminal-only cousin of chanta, which allows honors; removing honors raises the value by a han. Because each block must reach a 1 or 9, junchan hands lean on terminal sequences like 123 and 789 plus terminal triplets and pairs. It combines especially well with sanshoku doujun (the same terminal sequence in all three suits) and with ittsu, and a closed junchan with dora can reach haneman. The difficulty is that terminal-anchored shapes give narrower waits and fewer useful draws than middle-tile hands, so junchan is usually a goal you commit to only when your starting tiles already cluster around the ends of the suits.
Example Hand
123m 789m 123p 99s 789s
Conditions
- Every meld in the hand must include at least one terminal tile (1 or 9)
- The pair must also be a terminal tile (1 or 9)
- No honor tiles (winds or dragons) are allowed anywhere in the hand
- Valid sequences are limited to 1-2-3 and 7-8-9; valid triplets are 1-1-1 and 9-9-9
- Worth 3 han when the hand is closed, 2 han when open
- This is the pure version of chanta (which allows honors)
Strategy Tips
- Junchan is stricter than chanta because it forbids all honor tiles. Only pursue it when your hand is rich in terminals and edge sequences but has few or no honors.
- The hand often works well with sanshoku doujun if you can align 1-2-3 or 7-8-9 across all three suits, giving a significant han boost.
- Since valid melds are very limited (only 1-2-3 sequences, 7-8-9 sequences, and terminal triplets), your opponents can often read your hand. Prioritize completing the hand quickly over maximizing han value.