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A core part of the allure found in the *Final Fantasy* crossover release for *Magic: The Gathering* is the way countless cards depict familiar tales. Take for instance Tidus, Blitzball Star, which gives a snapshot of the hero at the very start of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous sports star whose signature move is a specialized shot that knocks a defender out of the way. The card's mechanics represent this perfectly. Such flavor is found across the complete Final Fantasy offering, and not all joyful stories. Some act as somber echoes of tragedies fans still mull over to this day.

"Moving tales are a central part of the Final Fantasy series," explained a principal designer on the set. "We built some overarching principles, but ultimately, it was mostly on a case-by-case level."

While the Zack Fair is not a competitive powerhouse, it represents one of the release's most elegant pieces of narrative design by way of rules. It artfully captures one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important cinematic moments brilliantly, all while utilizing some of the expansion's core systems. And although it doesn't spoil anything, those acquainted with the story will immediately grasp the emotional weight behind it.

The Mechanics: A Narrative in Play

For one white mana (the color of heroes) in this set, Zack Fair enters with a starting power and toughness of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 marker. For the cost of one colorless mana, you can sacrifice the card to bestow another ally you control protection from destruction and move all of Zack’s counters, as well as an Equipment, onto that chosen creature.

This design depicts a sequence FF fans are extremely know well, a moment that has been retold again and again — in the first *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even reimagined retellings in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it resonates just as hard here, conveyed completely through gameplay mechanics. Zack sacrifices himself to save Cloud, who then takes up the Buster Sword as his own.

The Context of the Card

A bit of backstory, and take this as your *FF7* spoiler alert: Before the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are gravely wounded after a confrontation with Sephiroth. After extended imprisonment, the friends manage to escape. The entire time, Cloud is comatose, but Zack vows to look after his comrade. They finally make it the edge outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by forces. Abandoned, Cloud in that moment claims Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the persona of a first-class SOLDIER, leading directly into the start of *FF7*.

Reenacting the Passing of the Torch on the Tabletop

On the tabletop, the card mechanics in essence let you reenact this whole scene. The Buster Sword is featured as a powerful piece of armament in the collection that costs three mana and grants the wielding creature +3/+2. Thus, with an investment of six mana, you can transform Zack into a solid 4/6 with the Buster Sword equipped.

The Cloud, Midgar Mercenary also has clear interaction with the Buster Sword, letting you to search your deck for an weapon card. When used in tandem, these three cards play out in this way: You cast Zack, and he receives the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to pull the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you play and equip it to Zack.

Owing to the design Zack’s signature action is designed, you can potentially use it when blocking, meaning you can “intercept” an assault and trigger it to cancel out the damage altogether. So you can make this play at a key moment, moving the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He then becomes a strong 6/4 that, each time he strikes a player, lets you draw two cards and cast two cards at no cost. This is exactly the kind of experience alluded to when discussing “narrative impact” — not explaining the scene, but letting the gameplay trigger the recollection.

Beyond the Obvious Interaction

But the flavor here is incredibly rich, and it reaches beyond just these cards. The Jenova card is part of the set as a creature that, at the start of combat, puts a number of +1/+1 counters on a chosen creature, which then becomes a Mutant. This sort of implies that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, in a way, the SOLDIER enhancement he received, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. It's a subtle connection, but one that implicitly ties the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter ecosystem in the set.

This design avoids showing his demise, or Cloud’s trauma, or the stormy bluff where it concludes. It does not need to. *Magic* lets you relive the moment personally. You make the ultimate play. You transfer the weapon on. And for a fleeting moment, while engaged in a card battle, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* remains the most impactful game in the series ever made.