Deashi (Early Progress) - Starting Hand Development Speed

What is Deashi?

Deashi refers to how quickly and smoothly your hand develops in the early game. Used as “good deashi” or “bad deashi,” it describes hand progress from the starting deal through the first several turns.

Good deashi leads to faster wins, while bad deashi requires patience and adjustment. The first few turns often determine the hand’s fate, making deashi assessment an important skill.

Judging Deashi

Good vs Bad Deashi

Factor	Good Deashi	Bad Deashi
Starting hand	Many pairs/sequences	Scattered
Shanten	Iishanten or better	Sanshanten+
Useful tiles	Many (10+ types)	Few (5 or less)
Draws	Getting needed tiles	Only useless
Yaku	Confirmed or likely	None visible

Turn-by-Turn Ideal

Starting: Ryanshanten
Turn 3: Iishanten
Turn 6: Tenpai
→ Good deashi

Starting: Sanshanten+
Turn 6: Still ryanshanten
→ Bad deashi

Factors Affecting Deashi

Starting Hand Quality

Hand State	Rating	Deashi Impact
2+ completed melds	Excellent	Very good
3+ taatsu	Good	Good
3+ pairs	Fair	Depends
All isolated	Poor	Bad

Early Draws

Draw useful tiles
- Hand progresses
- Deashi improves
Only useless tiles
- Stagnation
- Deashi worsens
Draw dora
- Sudden acceleration
- Deashi jumps

Strategy by Deashi

With Good Deashi

Speed priority
- Aim for quick win
- Pressure opponents
Can aim for value
- Room to maneuver
- Consider higher hands
Riichi priority
- Go for ippatsu/ura
- Maximize points

With Bad Deashi

Approach	Method	Goal
Wide shape	Consider calls	Speed to tenpai
Secure yaku	Yakuhai etc.	Win priority
Defense prep	Keep safe tiles	Avoid deal-in
Recovery	Build patiently	Mid-game push

Psychological Impact

Effect on Players

Good deashi
- Builds confidence
- Become aggressive
- Game is fun
Bad deashi
- Creates anxiety
- Become passive
- Mistakes increase

Effect on Opponents

Fast discards → Good deashi → They're cautious
Slow discards → Bad deashi → They target you

Typical Deashi Patterns

Good Deashi Examples

Sequence type:

Starting: 234m 567p 45s EE SS 6s
→ Iishanten, pinfu confirmed

Pair type:

Starting: 11m 44p 77p 99s EE HH 5
→ Chiitoitsu iishanten

Bad Deashi Examples

Scattered:

Starting: 147m 258p 369s ESWN
→ All isolated, no yaku

Terminal-heavy:

Starting: 1199m 19p 19s ESWNHH
→ Hard-to-use tiles only

Average Progress Stats

Starting Shanten	Avg Tenpai Turn	Deashi Rating
Iishanten	Turns 3-4	Best
Ryanshanten	Turns 6-7	Good
Sanshanten	Turns 9-10	Normal
Suushanten	Turns 12-13	Poor

Reading Opponent Deashi

From Discards

Middle tiles on turn 1
- Hand is ready
- Likely good deashi
Rapid honor discards
- Hand is progressing
- Be cautious
Terminals in order
- Tanyao direction
- Watch middle tiles

Round Impact

East 1 Deashi

Good deashi start
→ Gain momentum
→ Overall favorable

Bad deashi start
→ Creates anxiety
→ Need recovery

South 4 (Final) Deashi

Comeback chance
Key to escape
Race against time
All-or-nothing

Common Mistakes

Judging only by deashi
- Mid-game can reverse
- Nothing’s decided yet
Panicking
- Desperate calls
- Rushing cheap hands
Giving up too early
- Recovery possible
- Patience matters
Overconfidence
- Don’t let guard down
- Caution still needed

Haipai: Starting hand
Shanten: Distance from tenpai
Yuukou-hai: Useful tiles
Joban: Early game

Summary

Deashi describes how well your hand develops in the early game. Based on starting hand quality, early draws, and useful tile count, it affects subsequent strategy. Beginners should watch “progress in turns 3-6” - play aggressively with good deashi, cautiously with bad. Even with poor deashi, don’t give up - patient building can create comeback chances.