10th Class fics are all over the place, some good, some bad. So I figured, what the hey, I'll throw my hat into the ring. You may see some fandom cliché's in the concept here, but I'm trying my best to put an original spin on them.
I don't own the rights to TF2, but I still play it and I will play it until the servers shut down. And even then, I will find some fan servers to play on.
Meet the Ninja
Basics-
Bio: Hailing from an unknown region of Japan and having made a name for herself across the country, the Ninja is a master of stealth, acrobatics, confusion and killing. She's always on the lookout for a new challenge, and has taken the conflict between RED and BLU to be her greatest yet. Don't be fooled by her slender frame or you'll be six feet under before you can blink- she's deadly at any range.
Description: The Ninja is a slender, athletically built woman in a stereotypical ninja bodysuit and mask that leaves only her eyes exposed (although many of her hats show off her face and hair in full.) When her hair is exposed, she wears it in a short ponytail. She's about as tall as the Scout, though her somewhat crouched posture brings her head a little lower than his.
Role in gameplay/basic mechanics: A Ninja's role is about hit-and-run, but instead of dealing huge bursts of damage and quickly taking an objective like a Scout or instant killing and sabotaging Engineers like a Spy, Ninja is meant to inflict debuffs and statuses to her foes, such as slowing them down, obscuring their vision, or causing bleed/mini-crits, then either taking advantage of that to finish an important target off or retreating and letting her teammates do it instead. In movement terms, she's faster than Medic but slower than Scout, about as fast as a Demoman with 3 heads on the Eyelander. She can jump about as high as Scout, but lacks his double jump or the height that comes from it. Instead, she has the ability to wall run along horizontal surfaces, and is still able to fire her weapons while doing so. Ninja's outfit is slightly darker than her teammates' outfits, making her a bit harder to spot on some maps, or allowing her to slip through a crowd of her brighter teammates potentially unnoticed. Similar to Spy or a Solemn Vow Medic, Ninja also has the ability to see enemy health, allowing her to easily pick her targets. Unlike them, she can also see if any other status, like bleed, has already been inflicted. However, Ninja is rather frail- she has 130 health- more than Scout, but still not enough to survive a fully charged bodyshot, meaning she still has to keep an eye out for Snipers, and while she may be able to get away from some situations that Scout couldn't, that 5 health increase won't help much against other situations. She pairs well with Demos, Soldiers, Heavies, and any other class that can draw enemy attention away so she can strike easier. That doesn't mean she's totally helpless in direct combat, though.
Voice Actress: Tara Strong
Weapons-
Default primary: Dart Launcher
This wrist-mounted repeater crossbow looks like something right out of Monster Hunter, folding up when not in use and unfolding when drawn. It has a rate of fire similar to the Grenade Launcher and an eight-shot clip, with the ability to hold 32 shots total. Each shot deals a base 55 damage and has a range similar to the Crusader's Crossbow, though it does begin to suffer damage falloff after 1200 hammer units (the same range when the Ambassador no longer headshots) But the launcher's main threat is what it does after striking. It inflicts poison, a status condition similar to bleed, but unlike bleed or afterburn, it doesn't wear off unless removed by death, a respawn locker, health kit, lunchbox item, or Medic. To compensate for this, it does half as much damage as bleed- 2 HP a tick instead of 4, and causes a light purple tint on the screen. This is her main weapon for a reason- get in, shoot someone, and then either flee or try and finish them off with another shot or one of her other weapons is her main purpose in the game.
Darts can crit, but the poison damage itself cannot. Poison damage can deal Mini-Crits if the Ninja is under the effect of the Buff Banner or if the target has been marked for death or soaked in Jarate. Be extra careful around an enemy Ninja if this is the case.
Default secondary: Ninja Art of Flame
The Ninja's secondary weapons are all Naruto references in that they are all elemental attacks that deal damage and have some other effects (It's TF2, don't question it). When the weapon is selected, the Ninja goes through a few hand seals, which fill up a bar at the bottom of the screen. It takes her about three seconds to finish the seals (Though some unlockable seals take longer or shorter to prepare in exchange for damage and/or better effects). Once the bar fills, she can unleash her current Ninja Art to fire a projectile that does comparable damage to a rocket, splash damage and all, but with an additional effect. The default one sets enemies on fire and causes them to take afterburn for about as long as a charged Cow Mangler shot. Unless they have been doused by the Gas Passer, this weapon cannot set Pyros on fire. If Ninja switches away from the Art, she will lose a small portion of her charge, though it will only take about a second to regain the lost fraction. Fired Ninja Arts can be reflected by Pyros, but there's a catch. The reflected Art becomes neutral instead of changing alignment, meaning it will hurt both teams, so the Pyro must be careful about where the reflected blast will go, or they may not change much. The Ninja will occasionally say a voice response when the art is ready or fired.
Default Extra weapon: Smoke Bomb
The Smoke Bomb is one of Ninja's best escape and disorientation tools. She tosses it a short distance away, creating a thick smoke cloud about as wide as the 2Fort sewer tunnels that only her teammates or enemy Ninjas can see through, and any non-Ninja class on the other team that passes through it will be slowed and make coughing noises. To compare it to something already in the game, it's like the smoke left behind after a Sentry Buster explodes, but thicker and longer-lasting, and to compare it to something else Valve made, think of the smoke left behind when a Smoker dies in Left 4 Dead, just with a slowdown effect. She can use this to obscure exactly who or what is in a push from the enemy team or throw off an enemy's aim. It's also a good tool for messing with Snipers, since it blocks their scope too. Allied Spies can use the distraction to slip through while enemy ones will still cough, giving them away. A Sentry Gun that hasn't locked on yet won't be able to see through it, forcing the Engineer to either shoot at Ninja himself or use the Wrangler, but one that's already locked on will not lose its sight of Ninja. It will be unable to lock onto anyone new behind the smokescreen until the smoke fades, though. The smoke lasts for about ten seconds, giving Ninja more than enough time to strike or flee. A Pyro can airblast the smoke to reduce the amount of time it has left by half, but only once. A Smoke Bomb relies on a charge rather than an ammo count (to keep Ninja from spamming them). It takes 15 seconds for a Smoke Bomb to recharge.
Default melee: Ninjato
A straight short sword that does about 40 damage per swipe and inflicts bleeding on an opponent. Ninjas can swing this weapon very quickly, though obviously not to the extent of a Scout's swing speed. The bleed effect is there so the Ninja can still do her job of status infliction in Medieval Mode and have an attack on standby faster than her Ninja Arts, as her Dart Launcher is not present in that mode (It's clearly mechanical in nature- Engineer built it). It also serves as a last resort if she's outnumbered and out of ammo.
Matchups-
Ninja excels against against low-health classes, and is capable of deathmatching Scouts relatively well due to similar movement. Her darts can finish a Scout off in three direct hits without factoring for poison damage taken in between hits, and if he uses Bonk! Atomic Punch to try and outlast her poison, it will only buy him a short amount of time, as well as causing a very lengthy slowdown period for him once it wears off. However, Scout can easily finish her off with a close-range Scattergun blast or two and knock her off a wall with a well-placed Pistol shot, so she and Scout are relatively equal.
Her speed allows her to stay out of Spy's backstab range and dodge his Revolver shots, and he has little choice to avoid her poisons. The Dead Ringer will remove the poison, but if she manages to shoot him again quickly he will probably die from poison before he can charge the watch again. A Spy's best chance against a Ninja who isn't distracted is to either use the Ambassador to try and two or three-shot her or attempt to trickstab her, both of which are tricky to pull off.
Sniper hates Ninja due to her poison forcing him to leave his post to go find health, possibly making him miss a target, and her Dart Launcher's range being able to hit him on many of his perches doesn't help. Her speed and posture also makes it tougher for him to get a bead on her head than most other classes. At close range, Sniper cannot usually outdamage Ninja short of an extremely lucky quickscope, Huntsman shot, or some good tracking with his SMG. She appreciates being hit with Jarate about as well as any other class, though (As in, not at all)
Medic fears Ninja, as his self-healing cannot ultimately outpace her poison. It takes him longer to die of poison than other classes, but the poison will eventually finish him off if he's not quick to retreat. If he cannot retreat to find health, a Medic's only real method of stopping poison on his own is to pop his UberCharge, which may be a waste if he uses it too early. Any charge type except the Kritzkrieg will remove poison from the Medic and the patient, though the Kritzkreig and Amputator's healing taunts will allow the Medic to restore himself as well. However, these require him to stop helping his patient and stand still for a few seconds- more than enough time for Ninja to finish him off herself or for one of her teammates to take advantage of the situation.
Demomen can give Ninja problems, but she's about on equal footing with them. Her speed may get her past a sticky trap if the Demo is distracted, and her Ninja Arts can blast the stickies around with the knockback. A Demo needs good aim to hit her with his regular grenades, but if he does, she goes down in 2-3 hits. Her speed and ability to suddenly jump to a wall and slip past him, as well as her swing speed and bleed effect, make her one of the few classes capable of taking on a Demoknight in melee combat, though a few sword swings or a successful crit will finish her off as easy as any other class.
Ninja and Soldier matchups basically depend on who strikes first. If Ninja can poison Soldier or hit him with a Ninja Art by surprise, then she shouldn't have much trouble taking him out. If Soldier strikes first, though, he can use his rockets to throw Ninja off and juggle her in the air, since she cannot double jump away like Scout. Soldier can also knock Ninja off a wall with a single well-placed rocket by her feet. If the Soldier has the Concheror, the self-healing cannot outpace Ninja's poison, but activating the Concheror will remove the poison from Soldier and anyone else in the initial range. Anyone not immediately affected by the effect or is poisoned after the activation will not be cured. A Trolldier has little hope against a Ninja who knows how to dodge him, and in fact, a wall-running Ninja could get in the way of a rocket jump and throw him off before he has a chance to pull or swing the Market Gardener.
Engineer is no match for Ninja head-on, but she relies primarily on her teammates or a very well-placed Smoke Bomb to get past a Sentry Gun. Her Ninja Arts can deal damage to both the Sentry and the Engineer at the same time if she catches the Engie in the blast, but she cannot charge them fast enough to feasibly destroy a Sentry on her own unless the Engineer is dead or too far across the map to make it in time. Even with an Ubercharge, her Dart Launcher has too low of a firing rate and too little damage to destroy a level 3 Sentry while the Engineer is still there before the Uber runs out.
Ninja's biggest counters in direct combat are Pyro and Heavy. Heavy can last long enough under her poison to kill her in return, even if she gets another dart in him, and then get rid of it on the spot by eating his Sandvich. If he doesn't have one, he's probably still got a Medic behind him who can cure the poison quickly. A Heavy who is good at tracking is a Ninja's worst nightmare, and will force her to either use her Smoke Bomb or die. Pyro is more vulnerable than Heavy, since they have no way of removing poison themselves, but being set on fire ensures Ninja will probably die quickly, and while she can outrun Pyro, she can't outrun the Flamethrower's range if she's being chased. Also, a burning Ninja or any burning teammates of hers can be glimpsed through her Smoke Bomb (though Sentries that haven't locked on still won't until the smoke clears), as the fire effects will show through the smoke, similarly to a cloaked Spy who's on fire.
Role in MVM
In MVM, Ninja is meant to fill Scout's role of money collection while also spreading her usual debuffs to the robots. Her poison is faster-acting against robots than players and she can upgrade it to deal more damage per second or mark an affected robot for death. Her Smoke Bomb can be upgraded to increase its range and slow any robot caught in it to a near standstill- even Giant Scouts or Tanks. Her Arts can be upgraded to hold more than one shot at a time (up to four max) and to charge faster or do more damage.
Domination quotes:
Ninja dominates-
Scout:
"Swift like the wind, but not swift enough to escape me!"
"Is that enough of a hint that I'm not interested? (muttered) Bakayarou…" ["Bakayarou" means "stupid" or "moron" in Japanese.]
"Seems your mouth runs faster than you. Maybe now you'll keep it shut."
Soldier:
"Sorry, little boy, but you lose." [Little Boy was the name of one of the nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki]
"You just got your ass kicked by a girl, Soldier! Believe it!"
"Dominated, you dishonorable deadbeat!"
Pyro:
"Your flames burn hot, but mine burn hotter!"
"You compare yourself to a dragon? HA!"
(solemnly) "I've seen true fire. All you are spewing is mere embers." [This is meant to imply Ninja witnessed the bombings of Hiroshima and/or Nagasaki, but was far away enough to not be affected by fallout, merely close enough to see the blast.]
Demoman:
(only if the Demoman has a sword or shield equipped) "You call that swordplay? You may as well be waving a stick around!"
"Your explosives are powerful, but what good is that if they cannot strike me?!"
"You killed the Loch Ness Monster, but I've slain dragons!"
Heavy:
"You're too slow to even present a minor challenge."
"All the money you spent to fire that thing… wasted fighting a shadow."
"Is Sasha compensating for something?"
Engineer:
"Your toys cannot protect you from me, Conagher!"
"Your machines have fallen, and you've been dominated!"
"Upgrade all you'd like, I will still overcome you!"
Medic:
"My toxic touch will end you, you twisted Teutonic terror!"
"A fancy ray cannot make your patients or yourself any less pathetic, doctor!"
"Your charge only lasts so long, doctor, and I can wait…"
Sniper:
"Hope you got a good look, 'cause it's the last you'll ever get!"
"I could be wearing bright orange and you'd still miss me!"
"Next time, stand a little closer and you may actually hit me!"
Spy:
"Quit relying on that watch and learn to really disappear next time!"
"Your invisiblity trick cannot hide you from me!"
"Traitorous trash like you will be thrashed by a toxic assault!"
Another Ninja:
"You disgrace the art of ninjutsu!"
"You have lost your honor. Come and challenge me if you want it back!"
"Keep coming at me, faker- I'll cut you down each time!"
Dominated By-
Scout:
"Sorry, sweetcheeks, but youuuuuuuuuuuu're out!"
"So…. Whatcha doin after da match, huh?"
"Not bad, sistah, but no one out-jumps or outruns me!
Soldier:
"You just got dominated, missy!"
(reused from Medic) "America wins again!"
(mockingly) "Ary-gat-a-ooo for the DOMINATION!" (Soldier mangled "Arigato", Japanese for "thank you")
Demoman:
"Aye, yer a tough lass, just not tough enough!"
"If ye want te see real swords, stop by me family's castle. Seriously, we got too many of 'em."
"That ain't a sword yer carryin'- It's a butter knife!"
Engineer:
(reused from Pyro) Sorry ma'am.
"Dominated, little lady."
"Nice try hidin', but ya can't dodge my machines."
Sniper:
"Take that, ya sneaky Sheila!"
"I've been bitten by spiders with deadlier venom!"
"Toxins ain't worth spit against a good bullet!"
Spy:
"I am the master of stealth here!"
"A shame you were on the wrong side…"
"Oooh, what happened to your precious honor? Oh wait, you never had any! HAHAHAHA!"
(Pyro doesn't have Domination lines, while Heavy and Medic don't have class-specific ones)
Revenge quotes:
"Knock me out and I'll just come back stronger!"
"You sure talk tough, but you could use more training."
"I have restored my honor."
"Still think I'm just a pretty face? HUH?!"
"I'm back- believe it!"
"Maybe now you'll learn to stay down!"
Unlockable weapons (2 for each category):
Berserker Ballista: A Dart Launcher that fires rapidly, about on par with the Quickiebomb Launcher rather than the Crusader's Crossbow, but does 10% less damage and only inflicts bleed instead of poison. Used for faster DPS overall and Medieval Mode.
Tokyo Toxin: A Dart Launcher that does 30% less damage with the dart, but the poison does double damage. Used for focusing solely on the "run" part of hit-and-run or for simply pressuring the enemy Snipers and Medics.
Ninja Art of Water: This Art takes 15% longer to charge, but it does similar damage to a mini-crit rocket and can extinguish allies. It also makes enemies who survive the hit vulnerable to the effects of the Neon Annihilator for 10 seconds (the same length as being covered in Jarate)
Ninja Art of Thunder: This art charges 15% faster, but does less damage (Think of it like the Ninja Art equivalent of the Liberty Launcher) If it strikes, it does extra damage to wet foes. A direct hit will overload an enemy Sentry Gun, causing it to temporarily be disabled (the same thing that happens if the Engineer switches away from the Wrangler.) The splash damage will not trigger this effect, though, so the Engineer can potentially body block the blow to keep his Sentry active (He'll need to promptly move away before the gun locks onto Ninja, though.)
EMP Bomb: A Smoke Bomb replacement that does not obscure vision, but instead can screw with enemy equipment. Any Engineer building, not just Sentries, will be disabled for 5 seconds if caught in the blast. A cloaked Spy will be forced to decloak, though his Disguise will hold. The EMP field last for 5 seconds before fading. Ninja can charge a new EMP Bomb in 20 seconds.
Flashbang: This Smoke Bomb equivalent will cause enemy screens to turn white for about four seconds and cause the classes affected to scream about their eyes being hurt. However, the flash doesn't last long, and is useless against Sentry Guns. However, the Flashbang also causes a flat 20 damage to any enemy who is caught in its blast, softening them up for Ninja and any teammates she has.
Half-Zatoichi: Yup, Ninja gets this too. It functions the same for her as it does for Demo and Soldier, just with a faster swing speed.
Killer's Kusarigama: This weapon is not a sword, but a sickle on a chain. It swings slower than Ninja's other melee weapons, but does much more damage on top of the bleed it still inflicts. It also has extended range, due to Ninja swinging it out on the chain with each attack. In fact, it has twice the Eyelander's range.
So… what did you think? Leave a review and let me know. And while you're at it, come up with more Domination quotes, unlockables, nerfs, buffs, and share them! I'd love to hear them.
Also, for the followers of my other stories, Mizao's coming back soon, I promise! I've just been sidetracked with graduation and job hunting and other writing projects… I swear I'll get her next chapter out soon.
Ciao!
