Stats:
No. of players: 2-4
Amount of time to play: 45-90 min
Age requirements: 10+
Set-up time: 5 min

In Ninja All-Stars you are competing in The Moonlight Tournament to determine the most respected clan in the land.

Ninja All-Stars Rules Description:

Ninja All-Stars can be played several ways. The different modes present different challenges and ways to score victory points (VPs). All the clans have the same unit types, but each clan’s units have different stats and abilities. Each player chooses a clan and takes its associated miniatures and stat card.

To start a round you play Jankan (rock, paper, scissors) to determine the first player. Then, in clockwise order, you take turns activating one unit. After all units on the board have activated the round ends.

On its activation a model may move and then perform one action. Usually that action is to attack. But you may also go into stealth or search for someone in stealth. Units in stealth cannot be targeted, but leave stealth if they take a non-stealthy action (like attacking or using a special ability). You can search for units in stealth with an affinity check. For an affinity check you roll three dice and succeed if there is one result that matches your faction’s symbol.

Combat is resolved by the attacker rolling d6 equal to their attack stat and the defender doing the same but using their defense stat. The dice have six different symbols on them and you compare the attacker’s results with the defender’s results. Each symbol cancels one other symbol and the player with the most remaining dice chooses the result from their remaining dice. If both players have the same number of dice remaining the attacker chooses one of their results. You can gain extra combat dice for attacking from stealth, attacking a unit’s back or having friendly units adjacent to the attacker or defender.

You also start the game with three cards from the Moon Deck. These cards grant you bonus dice, special abilities or let you bend the rules of the game. The symbols on these cards correspond to those on the Moon Tracker. When you play a card that matches the current phase of the moon it has additional, more powerful effects.

The board is made up of dots that you center your miniature on as you move. Some of the dots have symbols that represent their terrain. Terrain can effect movement and line of sight for ranged attacks. Lanterns, shrines and crates are terrain represented by tokens that may be placed on top of other terrain. Lanterns can expose units in stealth. Shrines grant bonuses or penalties to units within one space of them. And crates are used in certain game modes to score VPs.

After you move facing matters and determines who you can attack. Moving adjacent to enemy figures and then away forces you to dodge. Failing to dodge stuns your character and ends its activation.

There are eight different game modes with different setups, special rules and unique victory conditions. There are rules for league play that include unit advancement too.

A Quick Review of Ninja All-Stars:

Ninja All-Stars is a beautiful, medium-weight, miniatures skirmish game. The rules are not overly complex and it has a variety of ways to play it.

The components for this game are great. Everything looks fantastic from the chibi miniatures to the art on the board and in the rule book. The presentation is very well done. The rulebook is disorganized. And while the rules aren’t overly complex, they would be easier to learn if the book was structured better. Make sure you read them a couple times before playing and check out the FAQ here.

I like all the ways you can play Ninja All-Stars right out of the box. The eight different game modes give this game extra replay value and keep it fresh. You’ll also want to play each clan until you determine the one that best suits your play style.

The Moon Deck is a nice way you can surprise your opponent(s) and pull off some fun moves. It is best when your card matches the symbol on the Moon Tracker. But you can still do some fun things when it doesn’t.

I have read and heard mixed things about the combat system. And while it is not my favorite, it is not that bad either. You need to concentrate on positioning and dice advantage to consistently win this game.

I do think the board can get cluttered with all the little tokens. But my bigger issue is playing with more than two players. The game works with three or four, but it takes too long for what it is.

Ninja All-Stars feels like a mix between a sports game and skirmish game. It is fun and offers some fun and different ways you can play it. If you are looking for a fun two-player board game that looks fantastic, try it out.

Score and synopsis: (Click here for an explanation of these review categories.)
Strategy 4 out of 6
Luck 5 out of 6
Player Interaction 5 out of 6
Replay Value 5 out of 6
Complexity 4 out of 6
Fun 4 out of 6
Overall 4 out of 6