Free Step Dodge

...is too easy.

Go Master Ninja or go home!

Pfft I've never even played it on hard! The only thing I can do on Master Ninja is the first trial mission... thing.

I keep a typed walkthrough with me at all times... to find all the scarabs and for boss battle strategies. I would try hard, but... my NG game isn't too stronk. I pretty much just jump around, block and do izunas the whole time, (with a few different combos here and there)

I may not be right about this, but is the max number of items you can hold less on Hard compare to Normal? I'd be really screwed at the end then.

Yes. It decreases with each difficulty. IIRC on Master Ninja, you can carry two Great Spirit Elixirs and three small Elixirs total.

Wow. On Normal you get 15 small Elixirs, lol!

If the item count isn't too ridiculous for hard (like, 10 small elixirs...) then I'll try Hard...

Any tips? Like what I should do other than izunas and jumping off walls?

Honestly, I don't remember Hard being much different from Normal Mode. The only real big differences are some new enemy types and having to fight normal mook enemies during boss fights. Basically just approach most things as you would in Normal mode. You might actually find it a bit easier, now that you know where all save statues are, when boss fights will pop up, etc.

The difficulty doesn't really kick up until Very Hard.

Yeah enemies like those cat things (the walkthrough I use has a Hard version of it, so I know about them from there).
And I hate having normal enemies during boss fights >_>. Also I've played it more than once on normal so... I have already known where save statues and boss fights have been on Normal playthroughs. Might have been a factor in why I lost few to no boss battles last time.

I'm excited about the battles against Evil/Fiend Ryu though

The Doppleganger Fiends are really fun fights.

Oh, and feel free to beat Eternal Legend before going to the higher difficulties. That way you can play them in Ryu's awesome Throwback/Legacy outfit.

It also changes the after-effects to white, which is awesome.

They have that costume in NGB? XD

Also, just out of curiosity - if you have one, what's your weapon of choice? Mine is just the good old Dragon Sword

Yup. Just beat all the missions mode challenges (except any 5 of your choice) and you'll unlock a special gauntlet-type mode. Beat that, and you get the Throwback outfit! Best costume in the game.

My favorite weapon in all the NG games is the True Dragon Sword in NG2. Best movelist by far. In NG: Black, I generally use the Dragon Sword due to its versatility, though later in the game I find myself with the Unlabored Flawlessness quite often, as well.

I've never taken the time or money to upgrade the wooden sword that much. I usually just stick to my Dragon Sword and use the Dabilahro sometimes for larger enemies or to use its UT, and teh Vigoorian Flail for small enemies.

For me, the NG2 True Dragon Sword's X X X Y / Square Square Square Triangle Combo is godly. Usually decapitates enemies with just that combo. (at least on the first 2 difficulties)

Should I be worrying about getting all the scarabs? Is the Plasma Saber or Dark Dragon Blade worth the trouble?

Plasma Saber is exactly like the Dragon Sword in function. Just looks different. Dark Dragon Blade is kinda like a "Super Dabilharo." It dishes out way higher damage, but it has a pitifully small moveset and is insufferably slow. I personally hate it.