So I kinda hate that CB Shinobi schools suffer just for not being in Court of Stone. So here is my homebrewed solution:

Shinobi from the CB may swap one ninjutsu technique from their school curriculum with any other equal level or lower ninja technique at each school rank.

E.g. a Hiruma Scout that is rank 2 may learn Skulk (a rank 1 ninjutsu) from her curriculum, or may swap Skulk for any other rank 1 ninjutsu, but then may not learn Skulk, or any other ninjutsu technique from her curriculum until she reaches rank 3.

Thoughts?

1 minute ago, guest356800 said:

So I kinda hate that CB Shinobi schools suffer just for not being in Court of Stone. So here is my homebrewed solution:

Shinobi from the CB may swap one ninjutsu technique from their school curriculum with any other equal level or lower ninja technique at each school rank.

E.g. a Hiruma Scout that is rank 2 may learn Skulk (a rank 1 ninjutsu) from her curriculum, or may swap Skulk for any other rank 1 ninjutsu, but then may not learn Skulk, or any other ninjutsu technique from her curriculum until she reaches rank 3.

Thoughts?

I wouldn't mess with the schools because some of the new Ninjutsu techniques might or might not fit the school. For example, a Hiruma Scout with "silent execution" or whatever it is called doesn't really make sense.

But otherwise, it really doesn't break anything. Nothing can really break this game to be fair. That you play super strict by the book, or super narrative (as the book suggest at some point, making the techniques only "style" and no mechanical bonus), or that you mix and match... It will be perfectly fine.

I have house-ruled that all Shinobi schools add Ninjutzu to their Techniques Available.

Yes, it means that e.g. the Soshi Illusionist also gets access to Deadly Sting earlier, though it matters little.

But the Shosuro and Soshi are among THE shinobi families. They should not be outclassed by random Mercenary Shinobi without a millennium of training and the ressources of a major clan.

Indeed. It should also be noted that the Hiruma might have the shinobi tag but are very much scouts in the 'ranger' archtype, not 'sneak into the enemy camp with smoke bombs and poisoned throwing stars' types that the word shinobi normally gets associated with.

I'm actually okay with it, because the appendix at the back of the Scorpion novella. Shinobi dojos don't teach you literally everything , that's dangerous and unnecessary, there are stories of masters going rogue and whole schools being lost because they have access to so much knowledge, and don't want to retire (protip: the shinobi retirement plan involves you in the ground). Instead, they impart to you only what matters for your school.

Scorpion schools aren't really known for spears, they don't need slicing wind kick. Shosuro Infiltrators and Hiruma Scouts aren't going to be assassinating somebody in an illegal duel, they don't need Cunning Distraction or Deceitful Strike and the Bayushi Deathdealer is a bushi school with dirty tricks, they don't need to be Skulking around. Deer clan aren't known for their poisons (that's traditionally a Scorpion thing) they don't need Deadly Sting or Noxious Cloud. A Mercenary Ninja is self-taught or a natural aptitude, they don't have any restrictions or safety nets on them - but actually being a ninja makes you as low as a hinin and without a Clan to support you it's real easy to shank you with no justification if anybody thinks you're being shifty. 5E doesn't really have a "ronin and ninja schools need to suck" rule, so Mercenary Ninja needs some advantage, otherwise there's no reason to take it. If you want to course-correct with a couple of out-of-school ninjutsu, there's always the option of titles. You succeed in bumping off a target, bam you're a Dreaded Enforcer.

A lot of games have the frustration of new abilities being locked away from older characters. Just ask any melee-focused character from Edge of the Empire or Age of Rebellion how much it sucks not to have Parry in their talent tree. The solution is simple: talk to your GM. "Hey, can I swap this into my curriculum somehow?" If he's feeling generous, he may not even have you swap anything out. If it's thematic to the school, there's not much reason to bar it, no need for a house-rule.