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A core aspect of the appeal of the *Final Fantasy* Universes Beyond release for *Magic: The Gathering* comes from the manner countless cards narrate familiar stories. Consider the Tidus, Blitzball Star card, which offers a snapshot of the protagonist at the very start of *Final Fantasy 10*: a celebrated professional athlete whose signature move is a fancy shot that pushes a defender aside. The card's mechanics reflect this in nuanced ways. Such storytelling is widespread across the complete Final Fantasy set, and not all joyful stories. Some act as heartbreaking callbacks of sad moments fans still mull over decades later.

"Moving tales are a central part of the Final Fantasy series," explained a principal designer on the project. "We built some overarching principles, but ultimately, it was largely on a individual level."

While the Zack Fair card is not a tournament staple, it represents one of the set's most elegant examples of storytelling through rules. It masterfully reflects one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most crucial dramatic moments in spectacular fashion, all while capitalizing on some of the set's core mechanics. And even if it doesn't spoil anything, those familiar with the saga will immediately grasp the meaning behind it.

How It Works: A Narrative in Play

For one mana of white (the alignment of heroes) in this set, Zack Fair enters with a base stat line of 0/1 but arrives with a +1/+1 token. For the cost of one colorless mana, you can sacrifice the card to give another unit you control indestructible and put all of Zack’s counters, as well as an Equipment, onto that target creature.

This design depicts a scene FF fans are very familiar with, a moment that has been retold multiple times — in the first *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even new versions in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it resonates just as hard here, expressed entirely through gameplay mechanics. Zack sacrifices himself to save Cloud, who then picks up the Buster Sword as his own.

The Context of the Moment

Some necessary context, and consider this your *FF7* spoiler alert: Before the main events of the game, Zack and Cloud are left for dead after a battle with Sephiroth. Following years of imprisonment, the pair get away. The entire time, Cloud is comatose, but Zack makes sure to take care of his companion. They eventually arrive at the edge outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by troops. Left behind, Cloud subsequently grabs Zack’s Buster Sword and takes on the persona of a elite SOLDIER, which leads right into the start of *FF7*.

Reenacting the Legacy on the Battlefield

In a game, the rules essentially let you reenact this iconic sequence. The Buster Sword is a a strong piece of equipment in the collection that costs three mana and provides the equipped creature +3/+2. Thus, with an investment of six mana, you can transform Zack into a solid 4/6 while the Buster Sword attached.

The Cloud Strife card also has intentional synergy with the Buster Sword, allowing you to find for an weapon card. In combination, these three cards function as follows: You cast Zack, and he gets the +1/+1 counter. Then you summon Cloud to retrieve the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Due to the design Zack’s key mechanic is worded, you can technically use it in the middle of battle, meaning you can “intercept” an attack and trigger it to cancel out the attack altogether. Therefore, you can make this play at a key moment, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He is transformed into a formidable 6/4 that, whenever he does damage a player, lets you pull extra cards and play two cards for free. This is exactly the kind of experience meant when talking about “narrative impact” — not explaining the scene, but letting the card design trigger the recollection.

More Than the Obvious Interaction

However, the flavor here is incredibly rich, and it goes past just Zack and Cloud. 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 kind of suggests that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER treatment he underwent, which included experimentation with Jenova cells. This is a subtle connection, but one that implicitly connects the entire SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the expansion.

Zack’s card avoids showing his death, or Cloud’s trauma, or the memorable cliff where it all ends. It does not need to. *Magic* enables you to recreate the legacy for yourself. You choose the ultimate play. You transfer the weapon on. And for a short instant, while enjoying a strategy game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* is still the most beloved game in the franchise ever made.