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A core aspect of the allure of the *Final Fantasy* crossover release for *Magic: The Gathering* lies in the manner countless cards tell iconic tales. Cards like Tidus, Blitzball Star, which provides a glimpse of the protagonist at the very start of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous professional athlete whose secret weapon is a unique shot that takes a defender out of the way. The card's mechanics represent this perfectly. These kinds of storytelling is found throughout the whole Final Fantasy offering, and they aren't all fun and games. A number serve as somber reminders of emotional events fans remember vividly to this day.

"Emotional tales are a central element of the Final Fantasy franchise," explained a lead game designer involved with the set. "We built some overarching principles, but ultimately, it was primarily on a individual basis."

Even though the Zack Fair isn't a tournament staple, it stands as one of the collection's most elegant pieces of storytelling via gameplay. It artfully echoes one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most crucial cinematic moments with great effect, all while utilizing some of the set's central systems. And although it avoids revealing anything, those acquainted with the story will quickly recognize the meaning behind it.

The Mechanics: Flavor in Rules

At a cost of one mana of white (the hue of good) in this set, Zack Fair has a base stat line of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 token. By paying one colorless mana, you can remove from play the card to give another unit you control indestructible and transfer all of Zack’s markers, along with an artifact weapon, onto that chosen creature.

This card portrays a scene FF fans are all too know well, a moment that has been retold again and again — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even new retellings in *FF7 Remake*. But somehow it lands just as hard here, expressed solely through rules text. Zack gives his life to save Cloud, who then picks up the Buster Sword as his own.

The Story Behind the Card

For backstory, and here is your *FF7* warning: Before the main events of the game, Zack and Cloud are severely injured after a confrontation with Sephiroth. Following extended testing, the duo break free. The entire time, Cloud is comatose, but Zack vows to take care of his friend. They eventually reach the plains outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by Shinra soldiers. Abandoned, Cloud in that moment claims Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the role of a first-class SOLDIER, setting the stage for the start of *FF7*.

Simulating the Passing of the Torch on the Tabletop

In a game, the rules essentially let you reenact this whole sequence. The Buster Sword is a a powerful piece of armament in the set that costs three mana and provides the wielding creature +3/+2. So, for a total of six mana, you can turn Zack into a solid 4/6 with the Buster Sword attached.

The Cloud Strife card also has intentional combo potential with the Buster Sword, letting you to search your deck for an artifact card. In combination, these three cards unfold as follows: You summon Zack, and he receives the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to pull the Buster Sword out of your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Due to the way Zack’s key mechanic is worded, you can potentially use it during combat, meaning you can “block” an attack and activate it to prevent the attack completely. This allows you to do this at any time, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a powerful 6/4 that, each time he strikes a player, lets you gain card advantage and play two spells for free. This is just the kind of experience meant when talking about “narrative impact” — not revealing the scene, but letting the card design trigger the recollection.

More Than the Obvious Synergy

And the thematic here is incredibly rich, and it reaches past just these cards. The Jenova card appears in the set as a creature that, at the start of combat, places a number of +1/+1 counters on a chosen creature, which also becomes a Mutant. This sort of hints that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, figuratively, the SOLDIER conditioning he received, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. This is a tiny connection, but one that subtly connects the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter theme in the expansion.

The card avoids showing his demise, or Cloud’s confusion, or the rain-soaked location where it concludes. It does not need to. *Magic* allows you to reenact the legacy personally. You choose the sacrifice. You transfer the weapon on. And for a short instant, while engaged in a card battle, you remember why *Final Fantasy 7* continues to be the most impactful game in the saga ever made.