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A Level-Based Guide for Being a Cost-Effective Ninja
By Alahra
General
This is meant to serve as a guide for someone who's leveling Ninja as their first job to 75 or for someone that's a little tight on the gil. It's not the best way to level Ninja by any means, but there are certain things you can save money on by either putting them off until later or not worrying about them at all.
No matter what, though, be prepared to farm. A lot. Ninja isn't a cheap job, even using this guide. There's just no way around that. If you want to be a good Ninja (and why wouldn't you?), you have to spend money. It's just like any other job with consumable costs, such as Ranger or Corsair. You just have to buckle down. You're going to level more slowly than other Ninjas around you, as they likely have the resources necessary from another job to level without all the farming in between. You're not going to have some of the cool gear. If that's going to bother you, it's going to be difficult leveling, but if you follow the equipment guidelines outlined here, you'll be able to be an effective Ninja while not setting off sixteen nukes on your wallet.
The Plan
This guide focuses on getting you used to expending tools by using them as soon as they are available to and getting yourself into the habit of buying them. The trick to Ninja Tools is that eventually, after you've gone through so many stacks of them, you forget how many you've gone through. That means you can't remember how much money you've spent on them, but you'll be used to spending that money on them, so it will no longer be painful stocking up at the Auction House.
In terms of gear, this guide takes a balanced approach. It focuses on Evasion in the early levels and slowly begins to incorporate Accuracy, Enmity, and Attack-based gear into your setup as you level up. While you may not put out the damage of a Haubergeon-using Ninja at level 60, you'll still be doing respectable damage and will be able to hold hate well if you've learned to play properly (and for tips on how to do that, check out Watkins' guide in the stickies).
This balanced approach allows you to have fewer pieces of gear overall (as opposed to having a full Evasion set, a full DD set, and so on), which means you'll be spending less. As you can, it's often best to pick up a piece here and there that you can macro into Provoke or Weaponskills or that has some other use. Once you reach 75, you'll have a lot of time to work on perfecting your individual setups for various uses, but while you're getting there, you don't really need all that equipment, since XP mobs aren't exactly the most dangerous of creatures.
Keeping that in mind, let's move on to the actual suggestions for your leveling adventures.
Please note: There are some more great suggestions from other posters in the rest of this thread; in the interest of keeping this from growing into some kind of monster post, I didn't include everything here. I recommend you check out the rest of the thread, too.
Levels 1-11
You don't have anything to worry about here. Kill stuff. Get experience points. You might try to focus on targets that can provide some monetary gain, such as bees (beehive chips) and crawlers (silk thread). No amount of money is too small to be insignificant.
Spells and Tools
If you haven't already done it by this point, get back on your level 30 job (or some higher level job) and get your Norg fame up. After that's taken care of, do the line of quests to get Tonko: Ichi, Utsusemi: Ichi, Kurayami: Ichi, Hojo: Ichi, Dokumori: Ichi, and Jubaku: Ichi. You'll save a lot of money if you do this.
Gear
Don't buy Leaping Boots. Seriously. They have very little impact on the Ninja job as a whole; most people wear them simply because they already have them from some other job or because they want to show off their gil-based machismo. If you happen to have Bounding Boots or Leaping Boots already, by all means, feel free to wear them. They're snazzy looking and will last you until level 25 if you're actually going to follow the advice I'm giving.
Levels 12-18
Use that Utsusemi: Ichi scroll, and have Shihei ready for use. You can continue to solo at this level fairly well (White Mage makes a decent sub for this), but if you can find another Ninja to partner up with, you'll pull in much more XP partying in the Dunes. Plan on having about 3-4 stacks of Shihei on you at all times; you won't really go through it that fast at this level, but this is a habit that you'll want to pick up as soon as possible. The sooner you get used to it, the sooner you forget that you've spent so much money on Shihei.
Spells and Tools
Your main deal here is Utsusemi. Get used to it, you'll be casting it often. And if you ever run out of Shihei while in a party, you should politely explain to the party that either a) you're going to get some more or
you won't gimp them by your now not so useful presence and will allow them to find a replacement.
At level 15, you can go to the Tenshodo vendors in Bastok and Norg to pick up the Ichi-level elemental ninjutsu. These are, for all intents and purposes pretty much worthless, but they only cost around 5000 gil a piece, so you should pick them up, if for nothing else but working on capping your Ninjutsu skill. Hyoton relies on a rather cheap tool (Tsurara), so casting it once a fight as you level will slowly build up your ninjutsu skill without greatly hurting your wallet.
Gear
The Traveler's Mantle is a great choice at level 12, for the +3 Evasion. It's not horribly expensive (though this may very by server). On Caitsith, at least, you can often sell this back at 24 and buy a Nomad's Mantle for less gil and more stats.
Legionnaire's Mittens and Royal Squire's Gloves are nice pieces of gear for any melee job, and they aren't that expensive. The level 15 versions of the Royal Squire's Gloves also offer some additional HP, which is nice for any tank. Since they're low-level CP gear, they shouldn't have any significant costs (the +2, blue-bordered versions are primarily for showing off, though).
At level 14, you'll be able to pick up your first set of rings. The choices you make will perhaps vary based on race, but generally, Courage Rings (yes, take the time to farm a little extra for them, they last a long time) are a good choice. I don't really recommend Reflex Rings (+2 AGI), since your ring slots are one of the best places to boost your STR in the early levels, and you can find lots of Evasion gear to suit your needs in other slots.
At level 15, pick up a Warrior's Belt (and get the +1 version if it's not too expensive). It's probably the best belt option you have until the Survival Belt in the late 30's, so it's a worthwhile investment.
At level 16, you'll have the option of equipping the Bone Harness set; while the normal quality versions are nothing to get excited over, the high quality versions each give the nice bonus of +1 Evasion. They're probably a little expensive for the gil-conscious Ninja, but if you do happen to get some of these pieces, remember you can sell them back at level 21 and upgrade to the +1 Beetle Harness pieces.
Levels 19-22
At level 19, you can use your Kurayami: Ichi scroll. You finally get to do something else besides spam Utsusemi: Ichi! Have fun with it, and don't discount these debuffs. While Ichi-level Ninjutsu debuffs are no more powerful than their Red Mage counterparts, they do have the added benefit of generating enmity for you as opposed to your Red Mage (or White or Black Mage). These spells, as you gain them, will be your friends in many ways.
Spells and Tools
Plan on adding one stack of Sairui-Ran to your Ninja Tools list. Just like you'll want to always carry 3-4 stacks of Shihei with you, try to keep a stack of Sairui-Ran around. Personally, I tend to carry about one and a half; when my main stack hits around 50, I buy another one. Sometimes parties can last for far longer than you've anticipated and you'll find yourself running low, so it never hurts to be prepared. Remember, if you become a career Ninja, you're always going to use the tools you buy later if you don't use them right away.
Gear
At level 21, you can pick up a Spike Necklace, which gives you +3 STR and +3 DEX at the cost of -6 MND. Since many of a Ninja's Weaponskills rely on those two physical stats, this is a good trade-off. This piece will serve you well and is worth the price of the higher quality version though the Tiger Stole (at level 24) will perform nearly as well without the loss of MND, if you're worried about resisting spells.
Nothing really notable here. You could buy Mercenary's Sitabaki fairly cheap for +1 Evasion if you hadn't already purchased a Bone Subligar +1, though you'll be replacing either one of those with a far more important piece in just a few levels. As mentioned above, the +1 Beetle Harness set becomes available at level 21, and these pieces are nice.
Levels 23-27
This is a nice little range. Some long-lasting equipment shows up here, and when you're trying to be cost-effective, pieces of gear that last a long time are great!
Spells and Tools
At level 23, you can learn Hojo: Ichi. Just like you want to carry a stack of Sairui-Ran with you, you'll also want to begin keeping a stack of Kaginawa handy. Unfortunately, though, Kaginawa is generally one of the most expensive Ninja Tools on any server. This is just one of those things you're going to have to bite the bullet on. If you run out and you can't afford your next stack, take a break from leveling for a little bit. Figure out something you can farm that has roughly the same price as the stack of Kaginawa, and go round that up (stacks of silk, on Caitsith, currently sell for close to the same amount of Kaginawa). Provided you've worked on your Rank Missions, you might also be able to sell some CP gear, depending on your nation (Mercenary's Tekko financed a lot of my Ninja-ing in the 20's-30's.)
At 27, you pick up Dokumori: Ichi. The tools for this spell are expensive to make, and the spell itself isn't that great. I suppose if you want to impress your friends, you can cast this spell a few times as a parlor trick, but Kodoku tools are definitely one thing you don't need to worry about.
Gear
As I said above, some important gear shows up here.
At level 24, you can replace your Traveler's Mantle with a Nomad's Mantle, which has the added benefit of +1 AGI on top of the +3 Evasion. This will last you until level 61, when you pick up an Amemet Mantle.
Also at level 24, the Emperor/Empress Hairpin is now available for your equipping pleasure. This is an expensive item. If you can't pay for it, don't buy one. However, this piece will last you until level 70 when you get your Optical Hat; therefore, it's extremely recommended that you get some friends together to help you camp the Valkurm Emperor or find some other method of acquiring one. If you can't get your pin right at 24, you can wear Headbands to substitute until you have it, but make the upgrade as soon as possible. You won't regret it.
Level 25 packs four solid buys. The Federation Gi grants you +3 Evasion and +1 Vitality and makes a great companion (and, depending on race, hilarious fashion statement) to the Kingdom Trousers, which have the same stats. These two are an example of when the +2 (blue-border) versions are truly worth it. The Gi will last you until level 40, and the Trousers will last you until 52. The other two options are the Windurstian/Federation Tekko, which grant +2/+3 Accuracy and Ranged Accuracy the Windurstian/Federation Kyahan, which grant +4/+5 Attack Ranged Attack. The latter should replace your Leaping/Bounding Boots if you were using them. The +2 versions of these items are also recommended (though you might get more mileage out of your RSE gloves/boots, which are just around the corner. If you plan on getting RSE for these slots, then go for the cheaper versions at this point).
Levels 28-30
If you haven't caught on yet, I'm basically doing these breakdowns by following the levels at which you learn your Ninjutsu spells, for no reason other than that it keeps things from getting too clumped together. Here, you'll pick up another one of those pieces of equipment that will last you for a very long time, and your last truly new spell.
Spells and Tools
Level 30 brings Jubaku: Ichi, the Ninjutsu paralyze spell. Much like the earlier useful debuffs, plan on keeping a stack of Jusatsu around for use with this spell. Like Kaginawa, Jusatsu is expensive, but fortunately, you don't use it as often as you will Hojo as you level. The debuffs at this level have long casting times of 4 seconds, so in many fights, it's simply more effective to stick 2 of the enfeebles yourself and let the Red Mage (or whoever else) stick the other one. Jubaku is still useful, though, and if you find yourself in a party lacking debuffers or in a situation where one of the other spells isn't going to stick (Kurayami becomes very difficult to stick on Bats, for instance), you'll want to have it around.
Once you get the Ni versions of Kurayami and Hojo, Jubaku will probably end up seeing far less use, because the tanking process becomes more demanding and you simply don't want to waste 4 seconds trying to cast it against XP-level mobs. For solo play, however, it's a very useful spell.
Gear
Level 29 gives you Dodge Earrings, which grant +3 Evasion each and are the first earrings that are truly worth equipping for Ninja. They're a little pricey (they average 100k or so each on Caitsith), but they're worth it. You also have the option, though, of trading them in for Drone Earrings at level 35 (get the +1 versions here). These grant +3 AGI each, in a slot where you're not going to find much in the way of STR or Attack (though you can equip those –Evasion attack rings if you're comfortable with that). They're usually cheaper than Dodge Earrings, and provide a bit of a boost to your AGI, which can be useful in leveling your Parrying skill. For general use, the Dodge Earrings are going to probably give you more evades, considering that Parrying is such a difficult skill to level, but if your parrying is already high (from perhaps, Paladin), they're a good option. If you decide not to use Drone Earrings, Dodge Earrings will last you until level 60, where Elusive Earrings come into play (though, if you're being cost-effective, these are a fairly minor upgrade that may not be worth the cost depending on your server).
Levels 31-37
You're on the home stretch if you're leveling Ninja for subjob use, but this guide is really written with the idea of taking Ninja to 75. This range ends on a bang, with you finally picking up the fundamental item for Ninja tanking, Utsusemi: Ni.
Spells and Tools
Tonko: Ni is at level 33. It's not that expensive and has a very long duration that makes it farm more useful than prism powders or a White Mage's Invisibility. Utsusemi: Ni is at 37. This is going to be one of those points where you just need to stop leveling for awhile. There's no point in continuing if you don't get this spell. From this point onward, Ninja begins climbing its way up the mountain to being one of the strongest classes in the game, and a large part of what allows them to do that is this spell. It's expensive. Farm gil, craft and sell to make it, or borrow money from friends for a little while (this is actually what I did, and paid them back promptly). If you've got a lot of Beastmen's Seals and a group of friends that will consent to join you and let you have the scroll, check out BCNM40: Steamed Sprouts. This scroll drops from that, and you can probably pick it up within one set of six runs.
Gear
At level 30, you can pick up a Nanban Kariginu, which gives you +3 Attack. It's not that expensive, but that's partly because it's not that amazing. +3 Attack is a minor boost, but if you're getting tired of the look of your Federation Gi, this is the first piece that rivals it in terms of effectiveness. (Wonder Kaftan is a good choice for Tarutaru, which comes at level 33.)
At level 34, you have the option of wearing Ochiudo's Kote or Horomusha Kote. Both are really great items, but both are also highly expensive. Since your katana damage at this level isn't going to be that phenomenal no matter what you do, these gloves are a piece of gear you can bypass for this level range. Your Federation Tekko or RSE-gloves (for Tarutaru and Humes only) will do just fine for you here.
At level 35, you have the option of trading in your Dodge Earrings for Drone Earrings if parrying suits you. Dodge Earrings are recommended more highly than Drone, though.
At 36, you can sell your level 14 rings if the level 36 rings with the same stats are cheaper. Comparatively, the +1 versions of the level 36 rings cost a lot more than the +1 versions of the level 14 rings, so if you don't upgrade here, it's understandable, though if you can afford it, this is a great place to pick up another couple pieces that will last you for a long time (until 54).
Levels 38-40
Another short range, which caps off at you picking up your new elemental spells, which unlike the others, are actually highly useful!
Spells and Tools
At level 40, the Ni levels of the elemental spells are finally available. This is where your costs are going to start really picking up. Unfortunately, using the Elemental Wheel is simply your strongest hate tool from 40 until 60 (though it begins its decline around level 50). You're going to be going through a lot of the six elemental tools. Plan on carrying 1 stack of each with you at all times.
Gear
At level 38, you can pick up the Spirit Torque (+5 Evasion) and the Survival Belt (+5 Evasion and some HP). Both are good pieces, but if you've been picking up other Evasion gear as you've leveled, the benefits they provide are questionable, especially in the case of the Spirit Torque, since you have access to the Spike Necklace here. The Survival Belt is pretty much a definite trade-in for the Warrior's Belt +1, though, since you shouldn't be getting hit much now that you have Utsusemi: Ni, anyway.
Get a Jujitsu Gi at 40. It's one of those expensive items, but it's farmable, looks sexy, and has a solid +4 Accuracy. If the gilsellers don't have Davoi on farm status on your server, you can even camp it yourself. This will last you until either 55 (Royal Knight's Chainmail) or 58 (Ninja Chainmail).
Fuma Kyahan really aren't worth it. +3% haste is a desirable stat, but unfortunately, this isn't going to make much of a difference in your gameplay until you can really stack haste gear, which doesn't begin to appear until 72+. Stick with your Federation Kyahan or RSE (in the case of Mithra and Tarutaru, since they get STR bonuses here).
If you have the cash for them, you can get Sniper's, but with Sushi, I never felt like they were that necessary. The Venerer Ring, available at 34, is a fairly cheap alternative that you can wear with one Strength ring, if you feel you need a bit more Accuracy.
You'll get your AF weapons at 40. Put them in the Mog House and keep them there if you're sentimental (like me). If you're not, throw them away, unless you want them for capped events.
Levels 41-50
At this point, individual upgrades and spells become much fewer and farther in between. Now that you've got the Elemental Wheel, you've basically got every tool a Ninja will get (Blade: Jin aside) for the rest of the trip to 75. There are just a few things worth mentioning here.
Spells and Tools
At 44 and 48, you pick up the Ni-level versions of Kurayami and Hojo. Learn to love these. The same rules about carrying 1 stack of the appropriate tools for each still applies (and if you've been a good Ninja, you wouldn't even think about carrying less by now, would you?).
Hojo, sadly, is the last spell you'll be learning until you start meriting at level 75.
Gear
Pick up a Swordbelt (or Swordbelt +1 if it's not too expensive) at 43 and a Life Belt at 48. These are great belts. Switch between them as the situation dictates. In desperate situations, if you decide to hang onto your Survival Belt, you can make use of that, as well.
At 46, you'll come across the first katanas I truly recommend. Yoto +1's are fairly inexpensive (perhaps 50k each, depending on server) and will last you until level 61. With the levels getting longer, that's quite a long time. The Defense Down proc on these is very useful, and activates pretty often with the +1 versions.
Levels 51-60
It's AF time!
Spells and Tools
As you move closer to 60, you'll begin to see your elemental ninjutsu being resisted more and more. Once you reach this point, it becomes more and more important to work toward increasing your melee damage and enmity, because the elemental wheel isn't going to help you hold hate that well, and by 61, your katana swings will actually be outdamaging your spell damage.
Keep these tools on you until 61 for sure. After this point, they'll not really be worth it anymore.
Gear
You're probably hyped to begin collecting your AF by now, and luckily, Ninja do get to make use of 4/5 pieces quite effectively.
At level 50, if you're tired of your Jujitsu Gi, you can complete the quest "Brydgit the Stylist Returns" to receive a Nokizaru Gi, which will give you +4 AGI and +1 Enmity. It's also free.
At 52, you get your Ninja Hakama, which can finally replace your Kingdom Trousers, though you might keep Kingdom Trousers around for the daytime if you want the Evasion.
At 54, you get your Ninja Kyahan, which are a solid pair of boots that can replace your Federation Kyahan or RSE if you're still using them by this point. You should keep the other piece around for macroing into your Weapon Skills, though.
Also at 54, you can pick up Eris' Earrings. These come at a good time, since the Elemental Wheel is beginning to fade. That extra enmity is just what you need. You'll want to at least macro them in for your Provokes and any Elemental Wheel casting you do. You could consider wearing them full-time, as well.
While you're at it, also, upgrade to Sun Rings.
At 55, you can choose to buy Royal Knight's Chainmail, but you should probably just wait for AF, since you should already have your Jujitsu Gi. If you want a good piece for your WS's, pick up Royal Knight's Breeches as well, though they're not really worth tanking full time at this level. Another option is the Jaridah Peti. It offers +5 Accuracy and +5 Attack, and probably isn't that expensive. The Jaridah Bazubands are a good choice, as they offer +2 Evasion along with the +3 Accuracy you've been counting on from your Federation Tekko up until now. The Royal Guard's Collar is an effective piece that can replace your Spike Necklace for TP-gains, though you might choose to macro in the Necklace for WS's.
At 56, you get your Ninja Hatsuburi, which is mostly used for macroing into your Kurayami/Hojo/Jubaku casts. It shouldn't be used over the Emperor Hairpin, so don't think about selling that.
If it's not too expensive, grab a Bailathorn at this level, too. +3 Accuracy in a slot you probably weren't using in the first place is a nice boost, and it'll last you for a long time (since the only main piece to replace it with is the Bomb Core, which may or may not be expensive on your server).
At 57, you'll find the dreaded (by gil-conscious Ninja) Scorpion Harness. Since this guide is about being cost-effective, I won't tell you to take a couple months out of your time to farm this. It is in no way as essential for a Ninja as the Haubergeon is for melee jobs. What it is, though, is a great body piece that you can use for many things as a Ninja. It's the best piece you can use for soloing, and the Accuracy it provides is great for keeping hate. The Evasion is pretty much a bonus for using it in XP. If you have some means to acquire one and have the drive to do it, it's highly recommended that you do so. It's the kind of piece that you'll never really have a reason to get rid of.
At 58, you'll get your Ninja Chainmail, which is a great piece of armor. Enhanced Dual Wield is a trait not found on very many pieces of equipment. This evens out to a 5% haste on your melee swings, which is very useful for building TP quickly and it will help you to keep hate. This will probably be your body piece of choice if you're not getting a Scorpion Harness.
At 60, you get your Ninja Tekko, which are probably the least useful AF piece for a typical tanking Ninja. If you're fortunate enough to have good RSE hands, continue to use them, or otherwise, stick to Jaridah Bazubands.
You also have the option of getting Elusive Earrings at this level. They're expensive, but the good news is, they also aren't that hard to get. Find a Red Mage or White Mage friend that would be willing to do BCNM60: Celery with you. This BCNM is easily duo-able, though there's also room for one more person if you like. The earrings have a fairly common drop rate, and with enough seals, you should be able to guarantee this upgrade without too much trouble. You'll probably also make a bit of money on the way.
Levels 61-70
This level range is where you're going to truly begin to focus on dealing melee damage to hold hate (if you hadn't already before). Katana damage takes a big jump here, and you get the WS you'll soon grow tired of seeing, Blade: Jin. It's pretty much all you're going to be using for the rest of your Ninja career, unless you're having a little fun.
Note: If there's anytime to take some time off and or farm up the gil to buy Ochiudo's Kote or camp the drop, it's now. This is when your melee damage really starts to matter, and this piece will make the adjustment to your tanking style a little smoother. While they aren't a necessary piece, they're still the best thing you're able to wear on your hands from this point on until Dusk Gloves (and even then, you'll be using Kote for your Weaponskills).
Spells and Tools
You can stop carrying around those elemental tools now. They're going to get resisted almost constantly and will take up space in your inventory that would better be put toward carrying around equipment for macro-swaps and WS-gear.
Gear
As soon as you hit 61, get an Amemet Mantle. If the +1 version is affordable on your server, get that. If you want, you can hang onto your Nomad's Mantle for capped events, but if you don't plan on doing those, you don't really need it anymore. You'll also be able to upgrade to the sexy Kabutowari at this level.
At 63, pick up a pair of Arhat's Tekko and Arhat's Sune-Ate. Depending on your previous gear choices, you may or may not wear these full time. If you already have Ochiudo's Kote, for instance, you don't really need the Tekko unless you want to macro them into your Provokes. The Sune-Ate are your best bet at replacing Ninja Kyahan.
At 64, pick up Arhat's Gi and Arhat's Hakama. The Gi is something you'll want to macro in for situations when you find yourself without shadows, mostly, though tanking in full Arhat's does have the nice benefit of generating a lot of hate in the mid-60's. The Hakama are something you'll want to wear until 75, pretty much, until you someday end up with Koga Hakama or Byakko's Haidate. If the +1 version of the Hakama isn't that high on your server, they're probably worth the investment. The HQ versions of the Gi and Hachimaki are not necessary until you begin endgame-tanking.
At 65, get an Evasion Torque. If you can't afford to buy it right away, get together friends to do BCNM60's (Amphibian Assault, Jungle Boogeyman, and a couple others) until you can get one.
At 66, upgrade to Kororito +1's. These, for some reason, have two extra damage over the normal-quality ones, and probably aren't that expensive, so you should pick them up.
At 67, take time out to camp Ose in the Labyrinth of Onzozo to get an Assault Jerkin. You'll want some help. Yes, there are better options than this body piece. However, it has almost as much Attack as a Byrnie and a little bit of Accuracy, without the minuses to your DEX. It's a good piece that you can use until you hit 75 for macroing into your WS's or even wearing full time. I happen to think it looks neat, too, but I've been told I'm crazy for thinking that.
At level 70, you get some fancy Fudo's. These are apparently very expensive on some servers (they're only around 200k on mine, but I've heard reports of them being a couple million on others). This is just one area you're going to have to bite the bullet on, though, because these katanas are good enough you can use them for the rest of your career if you want to (though there's one very good upgrade that's even free coming up, which is recommended).
Also at 70, it's time to start farming eyes for that lovely Optical Hat. If you find eyes cheap and feel the cost is worth it, you can also buy them. Your Emperor Hairpin will suffice until you can get the alliance necessary to take down Hakutaku, but hopefully you don't have to wait long.
If you've got some money sitting around not being spent, take a look at the War Shinobi Gi. It looks awesome, and you won't use it in XP parties at all, really, but it's a decent piece of soloing armor, and most importantly, it makes your farming way more efficient. With its Regen trait, you'll never have to rest again while farming, which greatly increases your productivity. You'll thank yourself for this purchase later.
Levels 71-75
You're on the home stretch now. There's not too much farther to go, and now's when you're going to want to start thinking about how you're going to acquire some of the expensive pieces you've passed by during your leveling. Once you hit 75, you'll want to spend some of the time you used to spend leveling toward generating funds to buy a Scorpion Harness (if you solo regularly), a Haubergeon or a Byrnie, Ochiudo's Kote (if you don't already have them) and other similar pieces of gear.
Spells and Tools
Nothing noteworthy here.
Gear
71 brings you the Warwolf Belt, a very solid piece of gear. You may not be able to wear it full time quite yet, but you should at least macro it into your Provokes and Blade: Jins. The closer you get to 75, the less important your accuracy will be, because the XP mobs are getting lower level in relation to you, which means you'll be able to wear this more and more. It's also rather inexpensive for its very nice stats.
72 gives you Rasetsu-Sune Ate and (if you're not already packing Kote) Rasetsu Tekko. The Sune-Ate are a very solid, all around piece that will serve you well until you can get Fuma Sune-Ate. The Tekko aren't really worth it if you already have Kote, but they're better than other alternatives you may have (unless you got lucky with RSE).
At 72, get a group together and run KSNM30: Operation Desert Swarm until you get a Senjuinrikio. Take the time to break the latent on this. It will replace your main-hand Fudo, meaning you'll be able to sell that one back for a nice amount of gil.
If you've been leveling in the ToAU zones and saving up your IS (and I hope you have!), then you'll want to get a Walahra Turban for when you hit 75. Not only is this a great piece of armor, it's pretty much free.
These are the last main upgrades you'll want to be making on your way to 75.
Level 75 and Onward
Now that you've made it this far, your main concerns will vary based on your goals. If you like meriting, now's the time to save up for items like the Haubergeon and Dusk Gloves. If you're looking to get into a Sky LS, start saving for those +1 Arhat's pieces (head and body). You've got a lot of options when it comes to farming—as a Ninja, if you carry Shihei with you, you can do well against many things that others cannot. If, for instance, spider webs sell well on your server, the Attercops outside of Al Zhabi are great farming material for you. You've also got plenty of time to do BCNM's and KSNM's and to camp regular NM's for cash.
Afterword
Keep in mind, this guide isn't meant to be the best way to get Ninja to 75. Quite frankly, the best way to do it really is to have another job at 75 that will allow you to easily afford all of the tool-expenditures and expensive equipment Ninja can wear. However, should you choose to take Ninja to 75 as your first job (as I did), I'd like to hope this guide has been helpful to you.
Remember, while you might be able to skip certain pieces of gear, you should never skip out on your spell usage. A Paladin has a lot of tools to hold hate, and he just happens to be lucky enough that his don't require spending money to use. Ours do, but just like you wouldn't tell a Paladin to stop healing himself, you wouldn't tell a Ninja to stop using Utsusemi, Kurayami, Hojo (and, level-appropriately) the Elemental Wheel.
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