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Dead Hand
Wrong Number of Tiles
A hand must always contain the correct tile count for its position in the turn — 13 tiles between turns, 14 right after drawing or calling.
Miscounting is one of the most common ways a hand goes dead. It's worth double-checking your rack periodically, especially after a Charleston or a Joker exchange.
Example
If you accidentally keep 14 tiles after discarding, your hand no longer matches any legal pattern and may be declared dead.