Tombstone Mahjong Solitaire
About the Tombstone Layout
The Tombstone board is an upright rectangular slab with a softly rounded arch at the top, planted on a flat, wider base like a grave marker on its plot. The main body is a solid block of tiles, the arched crown rounds off the upper corners, and the base spreads out a little at the bottom to ground the whole shape. It is a stout, stable silhouette, more filled-in than the egg or the firecracker, with a real sense of weight to it.
This is a gentle 2 out of 5, but its character is different from the airier Holiday shapes. The solid rectangular body means tiles are more enclosed, so your free moves come mainly from the arched top and the two outer edges rather than from gaps in the middle. It rewards patient edge-work and a bit of foresight about the dense interior. Nothing here will defeat a careful player, and every deal is guaranteed solvable, but the slab asks you to open it deliberately rather than just sweeping across.
Difficulty: Medium (2/5) | Tiles: 100
How to Clear the Tombstone Layout
Begin with the arch. The rounded top is where the slab is least dense, its curved corners leave tiles overhanging and free, so clear the crown first to start cutting into the body from above. Opening the arch also exposes the top of the central column, which is the part of the board you most need to reach.
Work the two vertical edges down in tandem. The left and right sides of the rectangular body present free tiles all the way down, so strip both flanks together, keeping them even. This is the safe, steady way to thin a solid slab without burying anything, and it gradually opens the dense middle from both directions.
The crux is the interior of the rectangle. Unlike the open egg, this body has genuinely enclosed tiles that only free up once the arch above and the edges beside them are gone. Avoid greedily matching pairs that leave a lone tile boxed in on three sides, peel the surroundings first, then take the center pieces as they open.
The wide base is the endgame. Because it spreads beyond the body, its outer tiles are reachable, but the inner base tiles can be the last to surface. Save flower and season tiles as flexible wild-ish matches to break a logjam here, any flower pairs with any flower and any season with any season, and if the very last pieces still lock, a Shuffle re-deals them solvably.
The Story Behind the Tombstone Layout
The arched headstone is the classic marker shape, the rounded top a centuries-old form chosen so the stone shed rain and stood out against the sky, and it has become shorthand for spooky season everywhere. That blocky body with its single curved crown makes a satisfyingly solid Mahjong board, a denser, more deliberate puzzle than the open silhouettes, with the arch giving you a natural place to begin.
There is a wry charm to dismantling a tombstone tile by tile, and the firm, grounded shape stands out among the lighter Holiday layouts as the one with real heft.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the Tombstone feel a bit tougher than other easy boards?
Its solid rectangular body encloses more tiles than open shapes like the egg, so free moves come mainly from the arched top and the side edges. It is still rated 2 out of 5, but it rewards deliberate edge-work over fast sweeping.
Where is the best place to start on the Tombstone?
The rounded arch at the top. It is the least dense area, its curved corners free tiles right away, and clearing it opens the top of the central column you will need to reach later.
How do I keep from boxing tiles into the slab's middle?
Strip both vertical edges down evenly and clear the arch above before reaching for central pieces. Do not take a pair if it leaves a single tile trapped on three sides, open the surrounding tiles first.
What about the wide base at the bottom?
Its outer tiles are easy to reach, but the inner base tiles often surface last. Hold flower and season tiles as flexible matches to break a jam there, and use Shuffle if the final pieces lock each other.
See more Holiday Mahjong boards, or browse all layouts.
