Card Colors
The color-coding system on the NMJL card that indicates which suit each tile belongs to: red for Crak, blue or green for Bam, and black for Dot.
How Colors Work on the Card
The NMJL card uses color-coded text to indicate which suit each tile belongs to. This is critical because the same number, like a 5, exists in all three suits, and the color tells you exactly which one you need.
The standard color coding is:
- Red text = Crak (also called "Characters")
- Blue or green text = Bam (also called "Bamboo")
- Black text = Dot (also called "Circles" or "Wheels")
When a hand shows 555 in red and 666 in blue, it means you need a pung of 5-Crak and a pung of 6-Bam. Mixing up the suit assignment, collecting 5-Bam instead of 5-Crak, means your hand will not match the card pattern and cannot win.
Flowers, Winds, and Dragons are not suit-specific in the same way, so their notation color does not indicate a suit.
Why Colors Matter
Misreading colors is one of the most common mistakes new players make. Two hands may look nearly identical in structure but differ only in which suits are assigned to which groups. Collecting the right numbers in the wrong suits results in a dead hand.
Tips for reading colors accurately:
- Good lighting, Red and black can look similar in dim lighting. Play under adequate light so colors are distinct.
- Compare to other hands, If you are unsure whether text is blue or green, compare it to a hand you know uses Bam.
- Mark your card, Some players lightly underline or circle the hands they are considering, noting the suit assignments in the margin.
- Large-print cards, The NMJL sells large-print versions of the card with easier-to-distinguish colors.
During hand selection, always confirm the suit assignment for your target hand before committing. Double-check the color coding each time you reference the card.