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A major part of the allure found in the Final Fantasy Universes Beyond release for *Magic: The Gathering* lies in the fashion countless cards depict well-known stories. Cards like Tidus, Blitzball Star, which offers a portrait of the character at the beginning of *Final Fantasy 10*: a celebrated professional athlete whose key technique is a unique shot that pushes a defender out of the way. The card's mechanics represent this with subtlety. These kinds of flavor is widespread in the complete Final Fantasy set, and they aren't all fun and games. Several are somber callbacks of emotional events fans still mull over years after.

"Powerful narratives are a vital element of the Final Fantasy legacy," explained a principal designer involved with the set. "The team established some overarching principles, but finally, it was primarily on a individual basis."

While the Zack Fair card isn't a top-tier card, it is one of the collection's most elegant instances of flavor by way of rules. It skillfully reflects one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important cinematic moments in spectacular fashion, all while capitalizing on some of the set's central systems. And even if it avoids revealing anything, those acquainted with the tale will immediately grasp the significance behind it.

How It Works: Story Through Gameplay

For one white mana (the alignment of heroes) in this collection, Zack Fair has a starting power and toughness of 0/1 but arrives with a +1/+1 counter. By paying one generic mana, you can remove from play the card to bestow another ally you control indestructible and transfer all of Zack’s bonuses, as well as an Equipment, onto that other creature.

This card portrays a sequence FF fans are all too know well, a moment that has been retold multiple times — in the classic *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even alternate-timeline iterations in *FF7 Remake*. And yet it resonates just as hard here, conveyed solely through card abilities. Zack makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Cloud, who then takes up the Buster Sword as his own.

A Spoiler for the Card

Some necessary history, and consider this your *FF7* warning: Before the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are severely injured after a clash with Sephiroth. Following years of testing, the duo break free. Throughout this period, Cloud is comatose, but Zack makes sure to protect his friend. They finally reach the plains outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by forces. Abandoned, Cloud in that moment claims Zack’s Buster Sword and assumes the persona of a elite SOLDIER, which leads right into the start of *FF7*.

Playing Out the Passing of the Torch on the Battlefield

Through gameplay, the rules in essence let you reenact this iconic sequence. The Buster Sword is featured as a strong piece of equipment in the set that requires three mana and gives the wielding creature +3/+2. Thus, with an investment of six mana, you can make Zack into a respectable 4/6 with the Buster Sword equipped.

The Cloud, Midgar Mercenary also has intentional combo potential with the Buster Sword, letting you to find for an equipment card. In combination, these pieces play out as follows: You play Zack, and he gains the +1/+1 counter. Then you summon Cloud to fetch the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you play and equip it to Zack.

Owing to the design Zack’s sacrifice ability is worded, you can actually use it when blocking, meaning you can “intercept” an attack and trigger it to prevent the attack entirely. This allows you to make this play at a key moment, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He is transformed into a powerful 6/4 that, every time he does damage a player, lets you pull extra cards and cast two spells without paying their mana cost. This is exactly the kind of interaction referred to when talking about “emotional resonance” — not explaining the scene, but letting the gameplay make you remember.

Beyond the Central Interaction

But the flavor here is oh-so-delicious, and it reaches past just this combo. 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 also becomes a Mutant. This in a way suggests that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER conditioning he underwent, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. This is a tiny connection, but one that subtly links the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the expansion.

Zack’s card does not depict his end, or Cloud’s trauma, or the memorable bluff where it all ends. It does not need to. *Magic* allows you to recreate the passing yourself. You make the sacrifice. You transfer the sword on. And for a brief second, while enjoying a trading card game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* remains the most influential game in the series to date.