Ninja? Ninja.
Ninjutsu is a lovely mechanic. The only drawback is the small number of cards that can run it (there are only 10 ninja). But, when you can cobble together a deck that works, it's always fun to play.
Let's start with the basics...Ninjutsu works by taking one of your unblocked attackers (this happens right after the declare blockers step and right before damage) and replacing it with another. This benefits you by not only possibly doing more damage but triggering abilities in your favour.
There are other more advanced ways to use ninjutsu. you can dodge targeted removal by playing another ninjutsu ability to bounce the ninja in danger back to your hand. Then you could even ninjutsu a THIRD time, if you have the mana, to continue with your original attack after dodging that Path to Exile.
Ornithopter, Invisible Stalker and/or
Thalakos Seer
serve as fuel for ninjutsu, to get the deck going. Mimic Vat or Rogue's Passage are alternatives in case things go south.
Walker of Secret Ways
is actually an underrated card, at least for ninja tribal. it lets you bounce your better ninja so that after you've attacked with them, they can come back next turn via ninjutsu and hit for their damage and trigger their abilities without risking getting blocked.
You can pull something similar all in one turn:
Let's say you attack. When your opponent has declared blockers, return those blocked to your hand with
Walker of Secret Ways
, then Ninjutsu them in using the attackers your opponent chose not to block.
She can also protect against instant speed removal on your turn.
Higure, the Still Wind
isn't quite a win con on his own, but he makes life much more difficult for your opponent. If he weren't legendary I might have run four. I put in an Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni for that reason. She's nice to have and possibly a win con, but not as reliable. She's also the most expensive card in the deck, and I wanted to keep spending to a minimum with this one.
You can use cards like
Words of Wind
,
Blood Clock
,
Sunken Hope
and
Umbilicus
to return your ninja to be ready for ninjutsu again next turn, at the same time bouncing your opponent's cards. With enough bounce, like activating or triggering one of these and then swinging with
Mistblade Shinobi
, you can really shutdown your opponent. This is a secondary win condition however, and so I only run one or two of these.
Let's look at one last thing; the equipment.
Shuriken
are an auto-include. they can kill your opponent's weaker creatures instantly. they can help with killing creatures that are blocking or attacking you, softening them up. they synergize very well with other equipment. haste lets you use them that turn, first strike with
Shuriken
can potentially let you kill a creature without risking one of your own (block, do first strike damage, then tap for
Shuriken
damage) vigilance lets you attack with a ninja equipped with them, and then tap that ninja for
Shuriken
.
Viridian Claw
is in here because first strike is very important.
No-Dachi
is a thing mostly because of ninjutsu, and
Viridian Claw
is basically a better
No-Dachi
. equip to an unblockable creature. first strike damage. ninjutsu someone else in. more damage + triggered effect. rinse and repeat. the lower equip cost is a lifesaver.
Sword of Vengeance is massive utility here, but expensive to equip repeatedly, so I'm only running one.
This deck can be made to be mono , or splash with Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni and the rest of the cards in the sideboard.
Cards marked A for alter are not alternate art. they can be used as a sideboard or as an option to make the deck Blue/Black.
