忍のがっこう (Shinobi no Gakkō) Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Actions
• How to Play Cards (カードの出し方)
• How to Collect Cards (カードの回収の仕方)
• Sealing (封印)
• Passing (パス)
• End of a Round (ラウンドの終了)
• End of the Game (ゲームの終了)

Components

• 65 Ninja cards (忍者カード), numbered 1 to 13, five of each number. Each card has a front (オモテ) and a back (ウラ).
• 5 Summary cards (サマリーカード), with a front and a back.
• 1 Seal token (封印コマ). Stick the sticker on the wooden token.
• 1 Shuriken token (手裏剣コマ). Stick the sticker on the wooden token.
• This rulebook (説明書).
• A QR code linking to videos and other material (動画などはこちら). It is not part of the rules.

Setup

1. 3-player game: remove the Ninja cards numbered 12 and 13 (10 cards in total) and return them to the box. 4-player and 5-player games: use all the Ninja cards. (From here on, Ninja cards are also called "cards".)

2. Shuffle the cards to be used, face down, and deal each player a hand (手札) of face-down cards:

   • 3 players: 15 cards each
   • 4 players: 13 cards each
   • 5 players: 11 cards each

3. Each player divides their hand into two piles of any size they choose:

   • Heaven cards (天の札): hold these in your hand or stand them in a card stand, hidden from the other players.
   • Earth cards (地の札): place these in front of you, face down (ウラ向き).

   When everyone has divided their hand, everyone turns their Earth cards face up (オモテ) at the same time.

4. Reveal 2 random cards from the cards that were not dealt, and lay them vertically in the field (場) where everyone can see them. If the two revealed cards show the same number, place them side by side as a set, and keep revealing cards until a different number appears. Whichever side has more cards is then in the sealed state (封印状態). Sealing is explained below.

5. Decide the start player by any method you like.

Initial setup example (初期配置例): the diagram labels the hidden Heaven cards (天の札, 非公開) and the face-up Earth cards (地の札, 公開). The revealed cards are laid out vertically in the field (場).

Actions

Starting with the start player and going clockwise, each player takes one action or passes for their Heaven cards (天の札) and, separately, one action or passes for their Earth cards (地の札).

• Action ①: Play a card to the field (場にカードを出す).
• Action ②: Collect a card from the field (場のカードを回収).

You may take the same action for both Heaven cards and Earth cards. You may take the action from either pile first.

Examples:

1. Collect with Earth cards, and play a card from Heaven cards (see the turn diagram below).
2. Collect with Heaven cards, and collect with Earth cards.
3. Play a card from Earth cards, and pass with Heaven cards.

Turn diagram (手番イメージ): the diagram shows a player choosing "2) Heaven card action: play a card" and "1) Earth card action: collect" from the field (場).

How to Play Cards (カードの出し方)

• Play cards by lining them up next to the outer number of the cards already in the field. The outer number is the number on the outermost card at either end of the line.
• The numbers do not need to be consecutive.
• You cannot play unless you play at least as many cards as the outermost card group has (the same number of cards or more).
• You cannot add to a card already in the field that shows the same number.

Diagram (translated from the printed labels): at the top end, cards with a number lower than 6 can be played if 2 or more are played. At the bottom end, cards with a number higher than 11 can be played if 2 or more are played. The example shows a play of 3 cards with a number higher than 11, which is allowed because it is 2 or more cards.

How to Collect Cards (カードの回収の仕方)

• Collect all the cards of the one number on the outermost position of the field. If there are several cards of that number, collect all of them.
• If the outermost number has 3 or more cards, those cards cannot be collected.
• If the field has only one kind of card (one number), you cannot collect.
• If collecting leaves only groups of several cards, you can afterwards play only if you play at least that many cards. For example, after 11 and 9 are collected, as in the right-hand diagram, the rule above applies to the cards that remain.

Diagram: the outermost pairs of cards are marked "collectable" (回収可能).

Sealing (封印)

• If the number of cards on the two outer ends differs, the side with more cards becomes sealed (封印状態). Cards cannot be played to a sealed side, and cards cannot be collected from it.
• Place the Seal token (封印コマ) on top of the cards on the sealed side.
• If the two ends again have the same number of cards, the seal is lifted and the Seal token is removed.
• If the unsealed side ends up with more cards, move the Seal token to that side, which becomes the sealed side.
• If the number of outer cards changes during your turn, the seal is applied or lifted each time that happens.

Diagram: the sealed side with 2 cards is marked "cannot place" (配置不可) and "cannot collect" (回収不可). The unsealed side with 1 card is marked "can place" (配置可能) and "can collect" (回収可能).

Passing (パス)

• You may pass on your own turn.
• You may pass on Heaven cards only or on Earth cards only.
• You may pass even when you could play or collect cards.
• Even after you have passed once, when your turn comes around again you may take an action (a soft pass).
• If every other player plays no card for a full circuit from the player who last played a card (they only collected or passed), all cards in the field are placed in the discard pile (捨て札). The player who last played a card then takes their normal Heaven and Earth actions, or passes. Because the field is now empty, they may place any card they like. The turn then passes to the next player.

Note (※): since it is easy to lose track of who last played a card, the Shuriken token (手裏剣コマ) is a convenient marker for this. Once you are used to the game, you can play without it.

End of a Round (ラウンドの終了)

• As soon as one player has played out all of their hand, the round ends. That player wins the round. Both Heaven cards and Earth cards must be played out.
• Calculate each player's points or penalty points, and each player records their own score.
  • Win: +5 points.
  • Loss: the score is the penalty total of the remaining Heaven and Earth cards. Calculate the penalty total of each pile, and take the larger penalty total as the score.

Penalty table for a group of same-number cards left in hand:

Group	Penalty
5 cards	-15 points
4 cards	-10 points
3 cards	-6 points
2 cards	-3 points
1 card	-1 point

Example: Heaven cards: a group of 3 (-6) and a single card (-1), total -7. Earth cards: two singles (-1 each) and a group of 2 (-3), total -5. The larger penalty, -7, is used.

• The winner becomes the start player for the next round, and the next round begins from setup step ②.

End of the Game (ゲームの終了)

• The game ends after 3 rounds. The player with the highest total score is the winner.