Fun with Lists: Where are those arrows coming from?

Faction: KKZ

Theme: Skirmish Mission

Rin (24)
Dudi(o)ko (22)
Bikou (18)
Shizuka (18)
Ujimushi (16)
Smoke Bomb (1)
Herbal Remedy (1)

This is a list I have played extensively for a long time and that I enjoy a lot. It's not the most efficient, because then I would drop Dudioko and the Smoke Bomb for Ghost, but it's a lot of fun.

Rin: Rin was the second ninja I got after Makoto and the most used. I love the model and she is such an asset on the board that I'm hard pressed to replace her. Only Katsumi comes near.
4 Melee dice, Feint, Combo Attack are a nice combination. Add in Lightning Reflexes, Indomitable(1) and you have a very aggressive tank that can easily kill any model your opponent is willing to throw at her.
When she activates she can add in a nice Prowess Attack(1) to make sure she makes that hit.

Dudioko: I love the model, I love the idea of the model but she rarely delivers her 22 rice. Her Pierce(3) and long range Surprise ability make her a threat. But at the same time that ability makes me use her too much as a turret when she is actually a very mobile model. Also my opponents keep sending Soulless models at her which deny her Mirage ability.
If possible she will fire on her first activation, even if that requires me to walk her up 4". On her second activation she can then reload, drop a smoke bomb, and she's ready and in position for another shot in round 2. In my experience it becomes hard to reload after round 2.
The Smoke Bomb ability is very nice for mobile cover or if you need to block some LoS to allow Shizuka to Shadow Walk.

Bikou: My favourite ronin ninja. Distraction, Kusari and Rapid Fire shuriken are a lethal combination. Distract for the surprise bonus, Kusari to knock them Prone on a 4+ and 2 more shuriken at 3+ to hit. If you can get her in your opponent's backfield, she can wreck havoc (see Hidden Tunnel Entrance), especially against low armour targets like Shisai. But even just keeping a heavy armoured target Prone is extremely valuable. Unfortunately she is a bit lacking on the defensive side, if she gets caught, she tends to die. How often I have wished she had Agile, or even just Dodge(1)

Shizuka: My favourite objective runner. Shadow Walk got a bit of a nerf in Risen Sun now that it is only once per turn, which is a shame but she was a bit too fast before. Mirage is a nice Ki feat but not too reliable, when it works it opens a lot of tactical options though.
Dodge(1), Parry(1), Agile when needed, Pierce(2) when she is in position which pairs really well with Counterstrike Defense. She's a defensive toolbox.

Ujimushi: Very straightforward archer, except he gets to either choose to have Lightweight on his bow or remove a reload marker on activation. I.e. he shoots twice per round, unfortunately my damage rolls are terrible and he rarely does more than scratch the things he shoots. I like giving him Shadow Walk or Distraction in this list for his Ki feat. Deadeye is a nice option too but at 3 Ki it's a bit expensive for him.

For my free Skirmish Mission Enhancements/Terrain I'm now taking Hidden Tunnel Entrance by default, and tailor the other Enhancement to my opponent.

Makibishi for Shizuka is nice against Kairai, Immune(Prone) on Rin is nice against Throw/Slam heavy lists, Hotai's Coin is nice for Shizuka, Grappling Hooks to Flank, Rice Ball Barricades, ...

The Herbal Remedy is there to remove any pesky effect from a model that can't afford it, very handy against Poison but also works against Control, Prone, Stunned or Frightened.