MTG’s TMNT Set Ditches Ninjutsu for “Sneak” — And It Actually Fixes a 20-Year-Old Headache
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are arriving in Magic: The Gathering’s Universes Beyond lineup, and the crossover introduces a new ability called Sneak instead of using the game’s long-running Ninjutsu. The change is small in wording but meaningful in rules, and Wizards of the Coast says it lets them apply the effect to non-creature spells in this set.
What is Sneak?
Sneak is a new keyword introduced in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Universes Beyond set. It works like the familiar Ninjutsu concept—allowing a player to replace an unblocked attacker with a different card for a cheaper cost—but with one key change: when you use Sneak you cast</b the card for its Sneak cost.
This means the card is played as a spell, rather than being simply put onto the battlefield from your hand.
How Sneak differs from Ninjutsu
The technical difference is straightforward. With Ninjutsu, you swap an unblocked attacker for the ninja card without casting it. Therefore, Ninjutsu spells cannot be countered in the same way a cast spell can.
By contrast, when you pay a Sneak cost you are casting the card. Consequently, Sneak plays can be countered like any other spell. In short: Sneak = casting a discounted spell; Ninjutsu = putting a creature into play without casting it.
Why Wizards made Sneak
The design team wanted the same sneaky feel but also wanted the effect to apply to non-creature spells. According to senior game designer Eric Engelhard, “We asked the rules committee, and they said absolutely not,” about applying Ninjutsu to non-creature spells. Engelhard adds, “So we made a new mechanic for it. We made our own Ninjutsu. This lets us give you some very steep discounts on some iconic Magic spells.”
Lead narrative designer Crystal Frasier said, “Beyond this set, we can use it for trickster or sneaky characters — thieves, things like that,” and added, “So we’re hoping to reuse it in the future.” Both designers also confirmed that original Ninjutsu rules are staying in place. As Engelhard put it, “We’re not doing anything to the original Ninjutsu rules,” and he noted, “If we ever were to return to Kamigawa, we might use Ninjutsu. But on other planes, it’s more likely that we’d use Sneak, because the rules are cleaner and Sneak is what’s going to be in Standard.”
How this matters for formats
Because Sneak involves casting, the ability interacts with counterspells and stack responses in ways Ninjutsu does not. Therefore, Sneak cards behave more like regular spells and will be subject to the usual checks for countering and targeting. Also, Sneak makes it easier for the design team to place similar effects on Instants or Sorceries, not just creatures.
Cards and examples
One example from the set is Raphael’s Technique, which functions as a riff on Wheel of Fortune. It is one of 11 technique cards in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set that have a standard casting cost plus a cheaper Sneak cost. The set keeps those techniques tied to the ninja characters only.
As Crystal Frasier explained, “It doesn’t have to be tied to ninjas, but in this set we kept it tied exclusively to ninjas,” and she added, “So all 11 techniques are for different characters that are ninjas. There’s no Casey Jones’ or April O’Neil’s technique. It’s all about the ninja moves that these characters have, along with their inner turmoil.”
Background on Ninjutsu
Ninjutsu first appeared in Magic with the Feudal-Japan-inspired Champions of Kamigawa set in 2000. The old mechanic fits the ninja flavor because it lets creatures “sneak” into play by swapping with an unblocked attacker.
If you want a modern example of how powerful Ninjutsu can be in Commander, consider decks built around Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow, which exploit Ninjutsu-style tricks to trigger extra effects.
