Ninja Camp Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Objective
• Components
• Setup
• Game Play
• Game End
• Important Rules
• Skill Cards
• Other Cards
• Ninja Clan Cards

Objective

Claim the skill cards with the highest total point value. Points are located on the coin symbol in the top right corner of skill cards.

Components

• 8 starting skill cards (four sets of two cards)
• 56 skill cards
• 5 Trap cards
• 3 Wall cards
• 8 Ninja Clan cards
• 12 wooden ninja meeples, "ninjeeples" (in four colors)

Setup

Give each player two starting cards (one Sprint and one Evade, which each has an "S" on them) and three ninja meeples of the same color. Return to the box any remaining cards with an "S" and the leftover ninjas.

Shuffle all the skill, wall, and trap cards together. Randomly place the shuffled cards faceup in a grid. For a two-player game, place 49 skill cards in a 7x7 grid. For a three- or four-player game, place 56 cards in a 7x8 grid. Each player should have enough room for a discard pile and their Ninja Clan card.

Deal one Ninja Clan card to each player. They should place this card in front of them with the side that is in color faceup. Return the remaining skill and Ninja Clan cards to the box. The player to have most recently visited a summer camp is first player.

Beginning with the first player, in counter-clockwise order, each player will take turns placing one of his or her ninjas on a skill card in the grid until each player has placed three ninjas. Only one ninja can ever be on a skill card. Players must place their ninjas on three different types of skill cards. For example, you cannot start the game on three copies of Sprint or two copies of Sprint and one Ambush. The last player to place a ninja starts the game.

Each player has a spot for their discard pile (faceup) and their Ninja Clan card.

Game Play

Players take turns in clockwise order. On each turn, the active player takes the following three steps in order:

1. Play a card from your hand to the discard pile, use your Ninja Clan ability, or pass. Choose one of the following:
   • Choose one skill card from your hand, and play it to your discard pile.
   • Flip over your Ninja Clan card and activate the ability. Ninja Clan cards can only be used once per game.
   • If you cannot play a card or use your Ninja Clan ability, you must pass. You may choose to pass even if you can play a card. Once you pass, you are out for the rest of the game.
2. Move a ninja: You must move one of your ninjas as indicated by the skill or Ninja Clan card played in the previous step. The movement of the card must be followed in its entirety and all ninjas must end the turn on a card. You must be able to fully execute the text of the card in order to play it. If you cannot fully execute the text, you cannot play the card. Unless indicated on the card you played, you cannot:
   • Move diagonally
   • Move through another ninja
   • Move over empty spaces
   • Return to the space you started on
   • Move over the same space twice on a single turn
3. Claim a card: Place the skill card that your ninja started the turn on into your hand. This will create an empty space in the training grounds.

The player sitting clockwise from the active player now takes his or her turn following the same three steps. As the game proceeds, the training grounds will have fewer and fewer spaces for ninjas to go. Play continues in this manner until the game ends. If a player has passed, his or her turn is skipped for the remainder of the game, but his or her ninjas are left in place until the end of the game.

Game End

The game ends once all players have passed. When this happens, every player claims the skill cards currently occupied by each of his or her ninjas and places them in his or her discard pile.

Each player then tallies the points for all of the skill cards in his or her hand and discard pile. But watch out! Each trap card will subtract 1 point from your score.

The player with the most points is the winner and has earned the coveted apprenticeship with Sensei Saru! If there is a tie, the tied player who took the last turn wins.

Important Rules

• Movement does not have to be in a straight line unless stated on the card. In other words, you can move one direction and then turn and go another direction, but you can never move over the same space twice.
• Only one ninja can ever be on a space at a time and you can never move through any ninja.
• Movement and adjacency never include diagonal spaces.
• Text on a Ninja Clan card or a skill card takes precedent over these rules.

Skill Cards

Ambush - Move in a straight line into a space with an opponent's ninja. Move the opponent's ninja 1 space in the same direction you moved. The ninja cannot be moved into an empty space or off the edge. You cannot play Ambush if there is no space to move the opponent's ninja. (5 pts)

Evade - Move exactly 3 spaces. (4 pts)

Dodge - Move 1 or 2 spaces (including diagonally). (1 pt)

Leap - Move in a straight line over any number of empty spaces. You may only move over empty spaces. You cannot move over cards that are still on the training grounds. (3 pts)

Shadow - Move as if you played the last skill card that was played by an opponent. If the last card played by an opponent was another Shadow card, then move as if you played the skill card prior to that. Shadow does not allow you to move as though you played an opponent's Ninja Clan card. (3 pts)

Sprint - Move in a straight line until coming to the edge of the grid, an empty space, a Wall, or another ninja. (2 pts)

Stealth - Move exactly 2 spaces. Claim the first card you pass over in addition to the card you claim in the Claim a Card step. (0 pts)

Other Cards

Trap - This card cannot be played. You may move freely over Trap cards. You may place this at the bottom of your discard pile if you claim it since you cannot play it. (-1 pt)

Wall - Ninjas cannot move onto, over, or through this card, and it cannot be claimed.

Ninja Clan Cards

Armadillo Clan – Move in a straight line to an edge space, ignoring any ninjas, empty spaces, or Walls along the way.

Camel Clan – Move to any card that is not adjacent to another ninja anywhere on the training grounds.

Chameleon Clan - Move a ninja to a copy of the skill card that the ninja is currently on.

Flying Squirrel Clan - Move 1 space (not onto a trap) and then trade places with any ninja on the training grounds.

Goat Clan – Move in a straight line into a space with an opponent's ninja. Move that opponent's ninja to any adjacent (including those on the diagonal) non-trap space.

Hamster Clan - Move 1 or 2 spaces (including diagonally). You may move through other ninjas.

Platypus Clan – Move 1 or 2 of your ninjas 1 space each (including diagonally) and then claim 1 of the cards you left.

Sloth Clan - Instead of moving a ninja, claim an unoccupied card that is adjacent (including those on the diagonal) to one of your ninjas.