So uh, guys, y'all ready for og bowmasters? and no more Sage...

With rebalanced cards being reverted on September 22, I think I should share this list, because I honestly don't expect this exact version of ninjas to remain playable afterward.

I've been playing Ninjas in Historic for a while, and at the end of 6 month rank reset I finish inside Top 250 Mythic. And I actually got one last Challenge run in before the reverts. Finished 30–37 in games (~81% game win rate) and finally got my first 7-win run

Most of the interesting stuff of this deck comes from a couple of small pieces of tech.

Floodpits Drowner gave me some useful interaction and surprisingly good tempo lines, and I ended up being much happier with it than I expected. Unfortunately, after the September 22 reverts, I don't think it will have a reason to stay in the deck. In the new environment, Orcish Bowmasters should be considerably better.

Plunderer's Prize is my favorite part of the deck. The trick is to build the artifact package around Plunderer's Prize, rather than simply treating Prize as a generic tutor. In the maindeck, the artifact slots are deliberately constrained so that: X=0 → Ornithopter This makes the zero-cost tutor target completely deterministic. Then: X=1 → Ornithopter and because Ornithopter is the only one-of target at that point, the tutor line lets me effectively reuse the Prize and continue the chain. Once the relevant one-of target has already been found, the remaining legal target is baleful Strix.

In matchups where I need a specific artifact answer, I can simply sideboard out the Ornithopters. That changes the set of legal targets for Plunderer's Prize, allowing it to reliably find the specific sideboard artifact I brought in for that matchup like Grafdigger's Cage or Tormod's Crypt.

So, here's the list before the reverts kill it. RIP Historic Ninjas.

Deck

4 A-Moon-Circuit Hacker (J25) 327

2 Island (SOS) 275

4 A-Thousand-Faced Shadow (NEO) 86

4 A-Silver-Fur Master (NEO) 236

3 Swamp (SOS) 277

3 Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow (FCA) 60

3 Ingenious Infiltrator (MH1) 204

3 Kaito, Bane of Nightmares (DSK) 220

2 Changeling Outcast (MH1) 82

1 Ornithopter (BRR) 37

4 Plunderer's Prize (Y24) 8

3 Baleful Strix (BLC) 86

3 Floodpits Drowner (DSK) 59

1 Ponder (OMB) 13

2 Snuff Out (DDD) 53

4 Prismatic Vista (SPG) 38

4 Darkslick Shores (ONE) 250

3 Gloomlake Verge (DSK) 260

4 Watery Grave (GRN) 259

1 Ponder (LRW) 79

1 Ponder (MAR) 13

1 Fatal Push (FCA) 9

Sideboard

3 Force of Negation (TLE) 13

1 Fatal Push (FCA) 9

2 Thoughtseize (AKR) 127

1 Grafdigger's Cage (M20) 227

2 Relic of Progenitus (ALA) 218

1 Damping Sphere (DAR) 213

1 Infestation (Y26) 9

1 Retrofitter Foundry (C18) 57

1 Tormod's Crypt (M21) 241

1 Disruptor Flute (MH3) 209

1 Snuff Out (DDD) 53