Welcome, and kudos for finding your way here!  If you’ve seen the new cards in Order of Chaos, you already know that Ninjas have really upped their game in the world of Dueling.  But a lot of their cards are more powerful than you may realize.  Take a step into the shadows today, and learn a few elite tricks no doubt held in high regard by the Ninja grandmasters!

By now, you may know that Upstart Golden Ninja pairs really well with Ninja Grandmaster Hanzo, calling him from the Deck so that he can add another Ninja to your hand.  Most Duelists will use that combo to Summon a deadly Blade Armor Ninja, attacking for as much as 4400 Battle Damage.  For the cost of just one Trap Card, it is a pretty great move, but it’s just the beginning!  The Upstarts work just as well with each other as they do with Hanzo.  If you have enough Trap Cards in hand, you can use one Upstart Golden Ninja to Summon  another.  Have that second Ninja Summon Hanzo, and they can combine to unleash Number 10: Illumiknight.  Illumiknight is the perfect way to draw more cards and load up for Pot of Avarice, helping you find just the right card to fool your foes.

Even better – if you have a clear path to your opponent (and three Trap Cards with which to buy the Upstarts’ services), you can Summon a trio of Golden Ninjas before bringing Hanzo into the fray.  From there, you can use all four monsters to crush your opponent with two Blade Armor Ninjas.  The cost is high, but you can end your enemy in one turn!

The White Dragon Ninja’s power can best any other Ninja’s: her 2700 Attack Points let her win almost any battle, and her ability to protect your Spell and Trap Card Zone is huge.  But sometimes, a Ninja’s strength lies in deception, and feigned retreat.  The Ninjitsu Art of Duplication is one of the most perplexing ploys in the Ninja arsenal: combine it with the Dragon Ninja and it can reshape the whole Duel.  When your opponent believes he faces a single threat, and attempts to defeat White Dragon Ninja with Dimensional Prison or Bottomless Trap Hole, Duplication will let her split into two different Ninjas from your Deck.  You can send Hanzo to the field face-up to do battle, alongside Karakuri Ninja mdl 339 “Sazank” in face-down Defense Position.  Hanzo’s effect will let him muster reinforcements to your hand, while Sazank lies in wait to send a monster to the gGraveyard.

Finally, some of the strongest Ninja schemes are deceptively simple.  Many of your opponents will activate destruction effects to try and clear away your back row.  If they target your face-down Ninjitsu Art of Super-Transformation while they control a monster, you can Chain the Art to Special Summon White Dragon Ninja and prevent the destruction of Super-Transformation.  Some opponents may wait for you to activate Super-Transformation first, then Chain a Dust Tornado or Mystical Space Typhoon to keep it from resolving, so don’t let them turn the tables on you.  Remember: if you have a second Super-Transformation to Chain, you can Chain it in turn to beat your opponent’s destruction effect.

These time-honored techniques are just the beginning of your Ninja training.  Now that you know a bit more about the power Ninja Duelists command, go demonstrate your newfound knowledge to your rivals!