Chapter 15 Ninpo Management

The penultimate stage of the game is the toughest one on ninpo resources, as you want to start this level full on potions. But here's the thing : as you only have 3 ninpo potions in this stage most of the time, you have to rely on those shiny red drops to avoid lose critical amounts of time in a PB attempt. And I'm not even talking about fights RNG...

Here are the basic data :

- You have 3 ninpo points available. Maybe more with item dupes, we'll get to that later.
- You start the tower with full ninpo potions : 3 big for full recovery, 5 small for one point.
- There is a big ninpo potion on the top of the tower, before starting the demon gauntlet.
- You may still have your rebirth talisman at that point of the run, but want to save it for Fiend Murai. Trust me, that's a good plan.

If we do the math, you have a total of 20 ninpos to use if you burn your entire ninpo stock. With 5 ninpos for each dupe up to 2, that makes 30. You might do even more dupes, but large ninpo potions only give 5 points back at best.

With all that in mind, let's take a look of how much ninpo you actually need, and want, in a "max inazuma" scenario :

- Tower, 1st floor : 2 for each of the 3 waves of red demons, that makes 6.
- Tower, 2nd floor : same as 1st floor, we don't count the extra pill bugs.
- Tower, 3rd floor : 2 to snipe the armored imp.
- Tower, 4th floor : 4 to kill all 4 armored imps.
- Gauntlet, first imp fight : 3, one per imp wave.
- Gauntlet, second imp fight : 3, same as the first one.
- Marbus : 1 to get a full combo opener.
- Emperor, second phase : 2 fire wheels to protect from skulls.

Time for some math again : 6+6+2+4+3+3+1+2 = 27. That means you need 7 drops if you don't get any item dupes, 2 drops with one, and you get 3 extra with 2 dupes.

But after some training, I've made myself a "max economy scenario". The goal is avoid any superflous ninpo use, with only regard to extra risk taken, not potential time losses. Here it is :

- Tower, 1st floor (-2) : 2 for each of the 2 first waves of red demons, and finish the two last ones with UTs. A red demon hit at melee range with the inazuma will usually trigger its faster death animation, slammed on its back, giving you a good timing to finish the two last demons with UTs, one at a time, without burning all essences around at once.
- Tower, 2nd floor (-2) : same as 1st floor, 4 ninpos. There's only one final red demon and plenty of essences from pillbugs, rush onto him to UT is a good way to go.
- Tower, 3rd floor (-1) : One ninpo to weaken the armored imp, and pray to kill him with a very quick gleaming blade.
- Tower, 4th floor (-0) : You want 4 ninpos here, don't even try otherwise.
- Gauntlet, first imp fight (-3) : no ninpo necessary for trash mobs, but very time costly.
- Gauntlet, second imp fight (-3) : same as the first one.
- Marbus (-0) : no save possible.
- Emperor, second phase (-0) : same as Marbus.

Here is the final "eco" score : 4+4+1+4+0+0+1+2 = 16. Great news, we have extra ninpo even without item dupes. But relying on your sword only will be a time loss most of the time, especially on gauntlet trash fights. And I did not count potential missed hits from your inazumas. For red demons in floor 1 and 2, you can manage to keep a good pace with one inazuma and a good sword combo. The armored imp in 3rd floor can also bring you one floor down, but for me, it's a once in a lifetime event. Ominous premonitions, I know...

2021 EDIT : Judging from my extra experience from this level, I've made myself an "optimal" strategy to mix all variables the best I could. Resources and speed of course, but also the possibility a major enemy gets out of inazuma range. I'll use the same system as the "eco" scenario to explain it, minus the parts where you can't negate ninpo use.

- Tower, 1st floor (-2/-0?) : saving 2 ninpos in the same fight is a huge benefit, but depeding of how the second wave of demon dies (where you will use inazuma #3 and #4) and how the third and last one spawns, you may burn all essences in the room to kill the demon #7, leaving you the last one with no quick UT available. As using inazuma on a single demon is basically a no-go, you will have to train this fight to avoid wasting essences. Burning 2 ninpos for 2 demons is acceptable, but that most of the time mean I got at least 2 ninpo drops from the 6 previous enemies. Not impossible, but very unlikely.
- Tower, 2nd floor (-2) : same as 1st floor, 4 ninpos. As the fight usally ends with only one demon and one pillbug left, give the demon a good'ol UT and a 2 or 3 hit combo will deal with the pillbug. That being said, the pillbug can also try his leap attack on Ryu doing his UT, resulting in a final double kill and a faster door opening!
- Tower, 3rd floor (-0) : the plan is simple. Cast your first inazuma as soon as the armored imp and his 2 friends are in range, wait for the 2 adds to spawn and come to you (if the armored imp is far enough, wait for him to jump on you or cast his beam, that's a good hint), and repeat. I got rarely trolled doing that.
- Gauntlet, first imp fight (-0),second imp fight (-0) : Inazuma is deadly on imps, killing them instantly as they spawn if you time it correctly. But depending of how much ninpo you have left at this point of the level, these are also the fights where you will want to sacrifice time to save resources.

That makes an optimal score of 23. Not bad, but that's still 3 points more than what you start with, and as many red drops you'll need to clear the level. Then, how do I deal with the whole situation? Well, I have two methods.

First, to manage my whole ninpo stock during the level, my basic rule is "seven to save". Starting with the "optimal" strategy, I keep in mind the score from each ninpo I saved so far from not spamming inazumas, and the red drops I got from enemies. If that total reach seven, that mean I can finish the level with maximum ninpo consumption using all my potions, assuming I don't get any cheesy dodges from, let's say, 4TH FLOOR ARMORED IMPS GOING UNDERGROUND OR BEHIND A DAMN PILLAR? Sorry, dark memories coming back.

You may think about throwing away your rebirth to get the 3 ninpos you need back, but you need to remember : you'll usually reach ch15 after 90~100 minutes speedrunning earlier stages, and even if he's rather weak and cheesy, Fiend Murai will have no remorse giving you a cheap death and game over if you gambled your rebirth the level before. And you can lose up to 2 minutes on the last 2 stages, from bossfights RNG to skullfish grabs. Staying focused is vital here.

Then, I may have to rely on red drops from skullfishes to get enough ninpo. If so, I'll try to jump attack in front of the entry door of the upper floor, most of the time slaying 4 or 5 skullfishes, and use the door once their death animation is over with essences spawning around. As Ryu can gather essences while crossing doors in this place, I'll waste no time if there is extra ninpo to catch. I use instant jumps on stairs out of this : you really need some good timing to not get grabbed, but it's quite safe with proper training. You'll die quite a lot trying this, but that's worth the time invested.

That's all for this subject, hope those strategy tips help you getting some shiny PBs!

Emperor One Shot Tutorial

This is my guide to the updated version of the Emperor 2 one shot. Recently made easier by Phalsson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dtllN71Fe8&ab_channel=MajorRichy

Emulation Setup

[section=Required Files]

- [The site to download the Emulator](https://xemu.app/) It's recommended to use a version that was released during or after January 2023.
- Xbox dashboard Hard Disk xemu_ms_dash.qcow2
- MCPX Boot ROM mcpx_1.0.bin
- Flash ROM BIOS Complex_4627.bin

[section=Emulator Setup]

- Always load the *.xiso file instead of the iso.
- All the System configuration should be left at default settings

[section=Optimizing emulator performance]

Since emulator is very cpu intensive to run, you expect it to stutter even on high-end powerful systems.

Reduce CPU load by:
- Closing unnecessary software, especially web browsers.
- Using GPU accelerated encoding like NVENC.
- Lowering window size scaling.
- Trying a different setting in Config > Display > Display Method

[section=Optional Insignia setup]

This is mainly for [NG04 runners](https://www.speedrun.com/ninja_gaiden_2004) who are willing to run the Hurricane Pack. Follow this tutorial [Timestamped](https://youtu.be/KmGkCG90KtY?t=345) to learn how to install Insignia on Xemu.

Insignia is a free replacement for Microsoft's servers for the original Xbox console, allowing online functionality to be restored for the first time since 2010. Meaning you can access Master Ninja Tournament feature without using modified save files.

Please contact on discord if you need troubleshooting with your Xemu.

Item Dupe Tutorial

Life of the Gods locations - Master Ninja

I've made a list of all locations for Life of the God jewels for Master Ninja which can be found here:
http://www.ngrealm.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=1765

I tried to format it for speedrun.com however the spoiler tag doesn't work the same way as it does on the ngrealm forum.

Menu Optimization Guide (No Scarab Route)

I made the following document highlighting all the shopping and menuing I do in my route (aside from incidental spirit elixir usage). I put a good deal of thought into trying to optimize this so that you waste as little time in the menu as possible so feel free to use this. FYI this route collects no scarabs (which I definitely believe is the way to go), so if you collect scarabs in your route this will probably be very different from what you do.

Since routes can vary slightly between people, you may want to copy this doc to makes small adjustments to suit your need. The main thing here is to just plan your equips ahead of time so that you don't go into the menu extra times.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YRYqyZyB2hcXGYz5IATUJBaqDbVl4MBdT4DcAjvkDUM/edit?usp=sharing

Minor Optimizations

Minor movement optimizations and subtle strats that don't seem to save a lot of time can add up to a ton of time save over the course of an entire run. This WIP document is to record these minor optimizations for those wanting to improve their times in any way possible. It won't really go into high level routing concepts and the large time saves that can be easily picked up by just watching a run. It is more intended for the minor details that can be difficult to notice for those who have mastered the large time saves already.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OU8erLBAmi2gg750F3hPyFMlfTpSAO71GG9jAOH-63A/edit?usp=sharing

New Improved Worm1 fight - Tutorial!

I decided it was time to make a tutorial on how I do the Electric Worm fight different from everyone else, if anyone wants to do it.
At the moment this is the fastest the fight could go unless someone finds a faster one!
I hope you enjoy the tutorial.
Please feel free to leave some feedback on what I could improve on for tutorials in the future.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh6X1o09q6w

NGB: Basic Movement, Techniques, Weapons & Bosses Tutorials by JayTB

JayTB is a legend at this game and has created a series of tutorial videos. If you use them please be sure to subscribe to his youtube channel. 

Movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Goz5QD7E_dI

Ultimate Techniques
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4415ePnMiSk

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weapons
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dragon Sword
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIvfavFGH5I

Lunar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrFLiKpUvOc

Heavy Weapons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkaduQVqqOI

Nunchuku/Flails
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1IGyT3W7kE

Kitetsu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fat0QzefJSQ

Unlabored Flawlessness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF4n9PgC320

Projectiles + Ninpo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Goz5QD7E_dI
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bosses 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Do note that these are general boss mechanic guides, not necessarily speed strats. Still very much worth watching.

Murai
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-FmTtQO0rg

Masakado
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UVdvWLAk7s

Dynamo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTVQgiQfo3s

Hydracubus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ek5SLNP3deQ

Bone Dragon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPEoanhi1rw

Alma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l54EK-01OiQ

Tanks & Helicopter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSDtxkSKrGk

Electric Worm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6UyPZJBASo

Double Electric Worm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXIBk-kFPNI

Pazz Zuu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRTZsVclViE

Doku
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qat_Y6V_jG8

Yotunfrau
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls6hQgQG_zY

Flame Worm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuC12vWB5ds

Smaugan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0_bHtclqvE

Awakened Alma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UGwrr_jZq8

NGB: NewGame, Normal% - Beginner/Advanced Guides with TGD & DigitalT Updated

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beginner Guide
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part 1: https://youtu.be/EAjvb8PYoy0
Part 2: https://youtu.be/-ojjkiw3MDg
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advanced Guide
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 https://youtu.be/Wb1ZRFm_v7k

Normal % Guide

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hY7THaBfyiSruWgL2g-mO38dBYIa6FxleLL6kuUSRQo/edit?usp=sharing

Skip compilation

I figured I'd compile all the usable skips I know for NGB in place.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSZULrIncYEpGRATuV_E5VLDF7xNCTVua&disable_polymer=true

Chapter 2 River skip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GrZkG8ZsCs
Normal X then Y will give u the distance to over the river.
If the mage tries to melee you, just dodgeroll.  Attempting to use shurikens can make him teleport and immediately cast a spell.


Chapter 9 Warehouse safe skip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h__SG01u98k
Point Ryu to the left corner of the platform.
Jump and do a late X followed by shuriken+helmsplitter.


Chapter 9 Warehouse yolo skip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACcYyrsXLhg
This skip is very touchy on Ryu's angle into the wall.


Chapter 10 Yolo jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWPmZunY3lk
Press Y just as Ryu passes by the overhang and he'll hop onto the next platform.


Chapter 12 Stadium Kyoiri skip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z_YGfQZIEE
On the first jump, be sure to hit the middle of the first wall.  Do not jump until you nearly collide with the second wall.
On the second wall, do not jump until the final step of the wall run  animation.
Finally do a shuriken toss and after the second shuriken is tossed (peak height), press Y for helmsplitter.
Use a dodge roll to redirect Ryu safely without running off the platform.


Chapter 12 Shimmy skip up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YY7mN9H8w0
Just watch out for the steam.  Jump X then shuriken+helmsplitter.


Chapter 12 Lava wallrun to muramasa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaAANMUr-Z8
Need to be very close to the edge and aimed just after the the corner of the two walls.


Chapter 12 Lava double wallrun up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktDNTVETolY
Jump onto the middle of the first wall and do a walljump when you reach the second wall.
Mash A until the second jump executes and Ryu will clip up onto the platform.


Chapter 12 shimmy skip down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1S7o1-iJVc
Just watch out for the steam.  Jump X then shuriken+helmsplitter.


Chapter 12 Seesaw Trick
https://youtu.be/N4o6wG5N4o0
Saves about 2 seconds and eliminates the possibility of damage to the bats. What's the deal with Chapter 12 having all of these?


Chapter 16 Dark Dragon Blade jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaCqewMLdEQ
Careful on the first jump, you could accidentally toss Ryu into the lava.  
The wallruns need to feel a bit long in longer than normal in order for Ryu to reach the final platform.  Then shuriken+helmsplitter.

Naam	Auteur
Chapter 15 Ninpo Management	Cormag 2 years ago
Emperor One Shot Tutorial	MajorRichy 2 years ago
Emulation Setup	LonerHero 1 year ago
Item Dupe Tutorial	DigitalT 3 years ago
Life of the Gods locations - Master Ninja	unwary 6 years ago
Menu Optimization Guide (No Scarab Route)	Kanis999 6 years ago
Minor Optimizations	Kanis999 5 years ago
New Improved Worm1 fight - Tutorial!	Pahlsson 2 years ago
NGB: Basic Movement, Techniques, Weapons & Bosses Tutorials by JayTB	Kanis999 2 years ago
NGB: NewGame, Normal% - Beginner/Advanced Guides with TGD & DigitalT Updated	DigitalT 2 years ago
Normal % Guide	DigitalT 3 years ago
Skip compilation	unwary 5 years ago
Updated Ninpo Dupe Guide (With visual que) (2024)	MajorRichy 1 month ago
Video Playlist of NGB Normal	DigitalT 3 years ago