Category:Ninjutsu

Buff Ninjutsu

Buff Ninjutsu, specifically the Utsusemis and Migawari, is arguably the most powerful and useful of the Ninjutsus.

Utsusemi and Migawari are both very powerful forms of damage negation. Utsusemi allows the user to avoid taking damage from physical attacks and single-target magic spells as long as they can keep the Copy Image (Status) active, and Migawari negates the next severely damaging attack that you take. Though Migawari has few common uses, it is invaluable in some situations and allows skilled Ninja to solo monsters that could normally kill an alliance.

Ninjutsu also provides access to alternate forms of Sneak and Invisible, which are always useful for getting around, though for many years it did not provide access to Sneak.

Debuff Ninjutsu

In Experience Points parties or when solo, debuff Ninjutsu is very helpful at crippling your enemy and improving your survivability. Some of the Ninjutsu, specifically the Kurayami line, is also fairly good for Volatile Enmity gain when tanking.

Unlike Enfeebling Magic, which depend on dStat, Ninjutsu debuffs all have a static potency as long as they land. The higher tier spell always has greater potency and casts faster. Therefore, it's best to simply stack as much magical accuracy and Ninjutsu Skill as possible when trying to land them, and to always use the highest tier spell available to you.

Elemental Ninjutsu

There are three tiers of elemental Ninjutsu currently in the game, Ichi (1), Ni (2), and San (3). The first two types are available at level 15 and 40, respectively, but the "San" line is only available at or after level 75 through the merit system.

Although many Ninja opt not to use them, these spells have some potential strategic importance in the mid levels of a Ninja's career, where the Ni-based line of Ninjustu can play an important role as an effective way for Ninja to do damage. Melee output may be somewhat lacking prior to acquiring Blade: Jin depending upon the target monster, so turning to magic damage does sometimes make sense. Some Ninjas will "spin the wheel", a euphemism for casting, in order, ninjutsu spells in a never-ending cycle until the target is dead. To the right, you can see this "elemental wheel." Starting from the top and moving clockwise: Fire (Katon), Water (Suiton), Thunder (Raiton), Earth (Doton), Wind (Huton), Ice (Hyoton).

After obtaining Blade: Jin, typically Ninjas rely on their melee damage to hold hate. At this point most elemental ninjutsu casting is limited to using the elemental damage-dealing spells Raiton and Huton that weaken the target for a follow-up cast of one (or more) of the three debuffs: Hojo, Kurayami, and Jubaku.

Still, there is something to be said for having a potential source of magic damage on physically resistant enemies, and the developers have been attempting to encourage Ninjas to use these spells more by giving them a skill-dependent bonus. Each spell from the different lines has the same magical damage, which are outlined here along with the skill-damage relationship: