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Foretold Prophecy: The Real Value of Shippuden

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO, Trading Tips posted on August 31st, 2010 by JR

The Foretold Prophecy starter decks that are being released in conjunction with the Naruto Shippuden CCG series have been accused of offering too much power for professed starter decks. This is largely in relation to some of the rule changes that the Shippuden game has brought. As with any changes, there are some changes that certain players won’t accept.

With the introduction of the still relatively new card series came two new dynamics to the game. Mastery and Surge have both fundamentally altered the way in which rounds are fought. However, Surge isn’t nearly as over-powered as it was originally thought to be. There are a number of ways to combat it, and while one of these is to have one’s own set of surge-powered Shinobi, it’s not by far the only one.

The ‘arms race’ that might have occurred to gather up a large number of these cards has certainly been avoided. However, that’s also not to say that the Foretold Prophecy decks are in any way underpowered. After all, there are 178 cards in the series, and with so many cards, there is certainly a good mix.

In all of this discussion there’s one point that’s heavily missed: namely, the Naruto Shippuden Will of Fire starter decks. Generally sold at a lower price than the Foretold Prophecy decks, there are still 150 different cards when the dust settles. Therefore, it’s probably not too difficult to amass a few and trade up for specific cards.

Actually, trading is probably one of the best avenues for Shippuden players right now. There are certainly some interesting aspects of the trading market to be explored, since Naruto Shippuden doesn’t have the massive over saturation that the original game does. Therefore, some people might be more willing to part with a little more material to ensure that they get the card they need.

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More Information About Jutsu in the Naruto CCG

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO posted on August 20th, 2010 by JR

Though I often mention Naruto jutsu cards, I suppose that there’s always plenty to say on the topic. I’ve been reading a number of forum posts and such from people who’d like to know more about how jutsu powers work. Since they’re one of the most important parts of the game, it may be useful to better understand what they are.

In the Naruto storyline, there are a number of links between the process of creating chakra and performing jutsu attacks. Moreover, the entire concept is a parallel for traditional oriental medicine and philosophy. In fact, it sometimes seems that Kishimoto wanted to go out of his way to avoid saying the words Chi or Ki.

Without being too card specific, Kishimoto defined ranks for the various jutsu being used. E-Rank jutsu are general skills, D-Rank justu are Genin-level, C-Rank jutsu are for Jounin ninja and A-Rank jutsu include both Jounin and some forbidden techniques. The rank of a ninja is usually easily discovered above the information area on a card.

Technically, there is a further rank of jutsu. S-Rank jutsu are secret, as the name might suggest, and usually are only known by a single ninja. Of course, these divisions do not take into account the elements that these jutsu are further divided into. The water, fire, wind, earth and lighting elements are well known by every player of the Naruto game. In fact, the bias of the card makers to various jutsu is a source of much contention, depending on where individual players believe that bias lies!

Of course, it isn’t completely necessary to understand a lot of this information for a casual play-through of the game. However, having a working knowledge of these concepts can certainly add a lot to the game as a whole. Therefore, it can really be worth checking out.

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Economizing Naruto Decks: Why Some Cards Just Don’t Fit

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO posted on August 14th, 2010 by JR

In some cases, you may find a card from the Naruto collectible card game that has no real special ability. On cards such as these, the area that would define an effect is left blank. That is not, of course, to say they’re useless. However, it’s usually a good idea to try to make each card serve some sort of dual purpose.

For instance, a player made need a particularly strong stat-laden card. If that card also has some kind of special ability that gives it a purpose beyond simply being a brute, it becomes more valuable in the deck. Since they are only a limited number of cards that can be in a deck at any time, this sort of economy might become important.

Just for the sake of an example, let’s use the Raido Namiashi (N-099) card. It’s a very early card, but it serves to illustrate this concept very well. Namiashi has no effect; he simply acts as a Shinobi in place. His 4/2 3/1 stats aren’t necessarily bad, but he has no special effect beyond being defined as a special jonin.

As an interesting aside, the Naruto CCG wiki points out that Namiashi can translate as “walking peace.” Likewise, Raido can mean “following blindly.”

Since the stats of a card might be so great that the card is an absolute necessity, it’s not a good idea to simply eliminate a card based on the lack of a special ability. Likewise, a certain card might possess an attribute, as opposed to an ability, that’s useful.

Otherwise though, it may be useful to ‘economize’ a deck. In fact, this way of thinking can be applied to other aspects of deck building. Because some abilities aren’t compatible with certain decks, ninja that possess them might be put to better use elsewhere.

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Cheesecake: The Funny Side of the Naruto CCG

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO posted on August 11th, 2010 by JR

The Naruto Lineage of the Legends series has some pretty funny card names, but where do I even start with Cheesecake (J-316)? That certainly has to be the silliest jutsu card name ever. However, that’s not even the extent of it. The Cheesecake Jutsu is exactly what you might think it is. The creators of the Naruto CCG didn’t pull any punches with this one, and the artwork for the card even features a character in a nurse’s costume.

The effect neutralizes male ninja based on the flip of a coin by way of attractive imagery, as the name suggests. If the coin lands heads, the power factor is reduced to 0/0. Should it land tails for a specific Shinobi, then that ninja reverts to injured status. This in and of itself is oftentimes a useful form of attack, especially if a Shinboi team vastly outweighs your own. Of course, you need to have a squad in play that is from the leaf village to use this card.

Despite the inherent humor, the card is really quite useful. The actual cost to trade for it or purchase it isn’t very high either, making it an easy addition to those who would like to play it. That is, if you can get over the fact of what the card is.

To be honest, the connection to Naruto’s centerfold jutsu maneuvers might actually increase the appeal of this card for some collectors. Likewise, the fact that it’s a useful lighting card has probably also raised it’s demand. However, to be honest, I’ve always felt a bit odd about playing cards like this.

Think about the after party. When it comes to discussing your awesome tactics, who’s going to get more respect: the player that says something like “I used a killer Shadow Possession Jutsu move!” or the player that says “Ehh…I won with cheesecake”? Then again, I’d certainly hate to be on the loosing side of that latter transaction!

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The Price of the Disaster of the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO posted on August 8th, 2010 by JR

I recently saw an article that brought up the Disaster of the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit (M-005) super rare card, and how it does relatively little for a card that is worth as much as it is. At its going rate of over $40, one can hardly say it’s usually worth it. To its credit though, Disaster of the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit does have some very nice artwork.

The fact that it targets every ninja and doles out a single damage point might gear it towards what is often called an Area of Effect attack strategy. That is, to say that it causes damage over multiple targets. However, this is paid for by the fact that the damage being done is so paltry. This doesn’t mean it’s useless by any means. In fact, it can fit into properly constructed strategies quite well. However, it is hard to build one as such.


I remember an older computer game called “Stars!” that allowed a player to create various starships for use in battle. One of the various weapons that could be attached wreaked havoc all over the place and cost very little to produce, but only ever dealt out one tick of damage. Therefore, it fit well into mass production tactics very well. A more expensive fleet could have been overrun with them.

The Disaster of the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit card would do very well in such a scenario. In fact, multiples would dominate in many scenarios. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to get more than one of these cards when you consider their super rare status. Therefore, it may be best to reserve this one for the collector’s display. I think just about everyone can admit that they have a few cards that are largely for display. Perhaps that’s one of the most of the most enjoyable parts about collecting.

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The Naruto CCG Shonen Jump Championships

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO, News posted on August 7th, 2010 by JR

Bandai and Viz joined forces for this year’s Naruto Collectible Card Game Shonen Jump championship tournaments. Today, August 7th, saw the pinnacle event occur at GenCon 2010. Interestingly enough, the events that lead up to today’s finals also carried a number of exhibitions. These tables allowed people to enjoy the Naruto game without being forced into an uncomfortable competition.

With ten different events, the tournament was certainly one of the longer ones in Naruto history. Perhaps this indicates that the game is starting to carry some of the prestige that it’s other esteemed colleagues in the world of collector card games already do.

That’s not to say, of course, that Naruto will ever be Magic the Gathering. However, hosting tournaments at Anime Expo in Los Angeles, Heroes & Fantasies in San Antonio, Coliseum of Comics in Orlando and Superstars Game Center in San Jose certainly speaks volumes about how many more people are now enjoying the game. The large number of prizes that were available also seems to suggest that there is a much larger fan base today.

Though most of the prizes near the bottom ranks were booster packs and the like, the promoters actually defined prize classifications through 64th place. This would suggest that a large number of contestants entered the tournament in the first place. For the first place winner there actually was a Shonen Jump themed trophy specifically made for the festivities. Through fourth place, players received a one-year subscription to Viz Media’s Shonen Jump magazine.

The original press release can be read at the TCG Player webpage. Perhaps most importantly, it mentions the fact that thousands of local tournaments are held at hobby shops across the country. Many of the best players of any trading card game can be found right on the local level.

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Hacking .hack: The Undiscovered Trading Card Game

Huzzah! An article about News, Trading Tips posted on July 28th, 2010 by JR

Though I usually cover Naruto, I’ve been seeing quite a few references to the .hack//Enemy and .hack//G.U.The Card Battle collectible card games as of late. These two aren’t exactly among the easiest to find, however. In fact, despite the fact that I’m an avid reader of the .hack manga, I had no idea they existed.

Of course everyone knows that many anime series have collectible card game tie-ins. Bleach, Naruto, Pokemon and InuYasha can be found just about anywhere on the web. Even cards for use with the Bakugan Battle Brawlers series are relatively common. However, I hadn’t realized that there were any card games that went with the .hack series.

Dot Hack
Having a look around, it didn’t seem that booster packs for the games were too expensive, though I haven’t seen too many show up on trading forums just yet. Nevertheless, I’ve been hearing quite a bit of chatter about the games. Ironically enough, .hack//Enemy wasn’t developed by the original creators of .hack. In fact, it wasn’t even developed in Japan. Apparently, Mike Reynolds and Chuck Kallenbach of Decipher developed it. Many of you will know Decipher Inc. for its Star Trek card games.

Perhaps the fact that .hack//Enemy was discontinued about five years ago has lead to it’s collectible nature. However, .hack//G.U.The Card Battle can perhaps attribute any popularity it has to the fact that it was actually developed as part of the regular .hack project. No outside service, like Decipher, was called in. The team that was behind .hack//G.U. was also behind this game, so it may have some closer ties to the actual series.

Regardless, collectors have been somewhat clamoring for them, and yet, I haven’t ever seen anyone play the game. What’s probably the most interesting aspect of it to me is that the game itself revolves around a game. The .hack continuity all exists inside a computer game, and a card game was developed around that model.

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Bandai’s New Releases: Hiruko and the Puppet Master Jutsu

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO, News posted on July 26th, 2010 by JR

Bandai continues to roll out new Naruto Trading Card previews, and Friday saw the release of Hiruko (N-945) and Puppet Master Jutsu (J-738). Both of these cards come from the new “Fangs of the Snake” Set 18 series that Bandai has been trying to develop some hype for, and they actually both look like they’re going to be rather successful.

It seems that all of these new cards have exciting artwork, and these two cards are no different. The Puppet Master Jutsu artwork looks as though it’s taken directly from the Naruto anime, while the Hiruko art looks to be an interesting throw back to some of the earliest days of the game. In either case, they’ll be welcome additions to discerning collectors of game pieces.

Of course, I haven’t had the honor of play testing either card. However, it seems that Puppet Master Jutsu is going to be a card to fulfill the increasingly wide gap of mid-range ability pieces. It’s entrance cost of four or more places it at neither extreme of the entrance spectrum. It seems to be a balanced card that will be at home in a number of scenarios.

This is in sharp contrast to Hiroku, however. As a Jonin Akatsuki ninja, Hiroku is a surge card that will be used to transfer another card back into an opponent’s hand. Perhaps the most interesting thing, however, is the fact that it was designed for use with the Puppet Master Jutsu card. Hiroku is a puppet master, and his seemingly reckless style stands in conflict with the balanced card-drawing techniques that the new jutsu encourages you to use.

This sort of difference should certainly lead to an interesting playing style. Perhaps the disparity between them will create a certain amount of confusion in your opponent’s game, and then they can be taken out with an easy surge.

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Sasuke Uchiha Strikes Back!

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO, News posted on July 22nd, 2010 by JR

Bandai announced another of its Naruto Target 6 card previews, and this time the card features Sasuke Uchiha (PR-055). This new Sasuke car features him as a Sound ninja, which many players probably won’t have a large volume of in their current collections as it is. Some fans will probably love it just for the fact that it features Uchiha in his rogue ninja period, but the fact that he possesses the Sharingan Eye should certainly add to the appeal.

However, any deck that fits this card will have to be one that leans towards Chidori enabled shinobi. The card has the capability to draw out any other card you find that includes Chidori in its name, and therefore, it can certainly be used to feed a team of like ninja. This certainly makes it appear like a purpose built card, though one or two Chidori cards stacked into an otherwise normal deck would work equally as well.

This could make it useful as a card to sit into a sideboard. Being having it in the sideboard with two or three Chidori cards and another Chidori shinobi, a player could have a decent team for fighting certain opponents. Of course, it can then easily be removed when facing other opponents that are known to have ways of taking down these sorts of shinobi. I’ve certainly seen some interesting ways of tearing through teams, even when armed with the Sharigan Eye.

You can see previews for many of Bandai’s other new cards, including the previous Saskura Haruno (PR-057) card at the Naruto Featured Card forum on their website. Interestingly enough, it actually seems like Bandai is using facebook to preview some of its new sets. For instance, the other new Sasuke Uchiha card had a preview allegedly taken from that social networking site.

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Bandai’s New Release: Sakura Haruno

Huzzah! An article about NARUTO, News posted on July 20th, 2010 by JR

Yesterday, Bandai announced the third card from the new Naruto Target exclusive pack. This new Sakura Haruno card has the kunoichi acting as a medical ninja, thus reflecting her role in the Naruto: Shippuden saga. With a strong growth attribute, the card could probably be used in a number of playing styles, but seemingly would lend itself to expansionist tactics. With the right playing combination, a set like this could be able to take on even the strongest shinobi.

An expansion player might be able to link this new Sakura card to a number of others in their deck. Since so many medical ninja tactics involve having one team used for offense, and another for healing, it seems that a cagey player could develop a team around Sakura. Though the card seems relatively strong, it may actually be advantageous to place her in a team with stronger ninja.

Since she’s a growth card, she may take a turn or two to become developed. Therefore, she may need a guardian card to protect her during this growth phase. However, once Sakura is fully built up, she’ll probably be able to restore whole teams of shinobi. This can create a conveyor belt of ninja stopping to be healed before rushing back into battle, creating a no-win situation for an opponent.

Unfortunately, it’s impossible to play test these tactics at the moment. Until the card is released, I’m only able to speculate on how it might work. I generally think those are pretty decent assumptions on the card, but one can never be too certain without having tried them out in a game.

Bandai is expected to release more views of preview cards by Wednesday, July 21st. Perhaps these next cards will be fitting with the Sakura Haruno one, and maybe able to act as her escorts.

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