So this is my ninjustu control deck thus far. The goal is to constantly disrupt my opponents' momentum while establishing card advantage and board control via my creatures abilities. My creatures can be classified as either ninjutsu enablers (evasive and cheap creatures to use ninjutsu on) or ninjutsu users.
My number one ninjutsu enabler is Ornithopter. At zero mana it can be bounced and replayed the same turn easily, and as a flyer with two toughness it can both evade early game threats and defend against them. Since it can be played turn 1 it allows for either Mistblade Shinobi or Ninja of the Deep Hours to ninjutsu in on turn 2 for a nice early game advantage (bouncing mana dorks or card advantage).
Cloud of Faeries is another key enabler that serves various functions. As a 2 drop it unfortunately means I have to wait until turn 3 to attack but it does provide the advantage of leaving mana open the turn it is played, allowing me to use counter spells/removal or flash in a Spellstutter Sprite. Its mana tapping abilities can be used to use a swamp twice if I'm short by one to cast Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni, and its cycle ability helps to search for a ninja. Lastly, its creature type is faerie meaning it makes Spellstutter Sprite more potent.
Spellstutter Sprite provides a potential counter spell effect every time it enters the battlefield, an ability made even more powerful with Cloud of Faeries or a
Faerie Conclave
. The card has fantastic synergy with ninjas as it allows me to flash it in as my opponent cast a spell, potentially counter it, then swing in to ninjutsu a ninja and bounce it back to my hand. The way it alters the momentum of the early/mid game can be devastating.
Perhaps the most important ninja in the deck is Ninja of the Deep Hours. Able to ninjustu in on turn 2 then function as a 2/2 body or
Shuriken
user helps chip away at my opponents life and gain card advantage.
Mistblade Shinobi provides a cheap bounce and yet another solid
Shuriken
user when grounded.
Higure, the Still Wind is the all star of the deck, coming in as one of my most powerful attackers, generating card advantage via tutoring ninjas, and helping my creatures slip in late game to deliver the final blow to my opponent. With a Minamo, School at Water's Edge it can untap as well making it the perfect
Shuriken
user.
And lastly, Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni functions as a win con, dealing the most damage, regenerating, and reanimating an enemies' creature to capitalize on my decks' strong removal and counter game. It can also can be tapped and untapped by Minamo to either spam
Shuriken
or have pseudo vigilance. I have had some issues with Ink-Eyes being mainly a 'win more' card however, I may replace one with a
Throat Slitter
.
In terms of other spells,
Shuriken
provide extra creature removal and make ninjas stuck on the battlefield more threatening.
Ronin Warclub
provides some extra damage output for my creatures thanks to its ability to equip freely whenever a creature enters the battlefield under my control (which is very often thanks to the way ninjustu bounces my enablers). It works especially well against aggro decks as after say ninjutsuing a Mistblade Shinobi on an unblocked Ornithopter would have the warclub equip to Mistblade as it attacks, then equip as I recast Ornithopter during my second main phase to defend. Flash warclub Spellstutter Sprite is also very effective as a combat trick.
Mana Leak is here because it is a strong, affordable, and reliable counter spell. I have experimented with Familiar's Ruse for its greater power and beneficial self bounce, but I found there were too many situations where I didn't have a target for it or that it cost me as much momentum as my opponent.
Daze is an incredible early game counter spell that allows me to counter a spell even with my all mana tapped out. Unfortunately it can feel like a dead weight mid/late game but the early game momentum often allows my ninjas and faeries to take on the brunt of the controlling anyways.
Go for the Throat is the ultimate 2cmc removal spell in my metagame and deals with almost any creature that slips onto the battlefield. I've considered running Echoing Truth in its place but bouncing just isn't as effective in most scenarios.
Land wise Minamo, School at Water's Edge is here because it fits the theme and works well with my legendary creatures.
Faerie Conclave
can be used as an extra attacker when I either have tons of mana to spare or need an extra faerie/enabler. The rest of the land base allows me to consistently cast all my blue spells while ensuring I can reliably cast Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni and Go for the Throat when I need to.
Notable mentions for enablers that didn't make the cut are:
Thalakos Seer
, Augury Owl,
Zephyr Sprite
, and
Dimir Infiltrator
.
Notable mentions for ninjas are:
Throat Slitter
, Sakashima's Student. Walker of the Secret Way, and
Okiba-Gang Shinobi
.
