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A significant element of the charm found in the Final Fantasy crossover release for *Magic: The Gathering* comes from the way so many cards depict familiar narratives. Cards like Tidus, Blitzball Star, which offers a portrait of the protagonist at the beginning of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous sports star whose secret weapon is a fancy shot that knocks a defender aside. The card's mechanics mirror this in nuanced ways. Such flavor is prevalent throughout the entire Final Fantasy offering, and they aren't all joyful stories. Several serve as poignant callbacks of sad moments fans remember vividly decades later.

"Emotional tales are a central part of the Final Fantasy legacy," explained a principal game designer on the collaboration. "They created some general rules, but in the end, it was primarily on a individual basis."

While the Zack Fair card may not be a top-tier card, it stands as one of the collection's most refined examples of narrative design through rules. It skillfully echoes one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most crucial story moments in spectacular fashion, all while leveraging some of the expansion's core mechanics. And while it avoids revealing anything, those who know the story will quickly recognize the significance embedded in it.

How It Works: A Narrative in Play

At a cost of one white mana (the hue of heroes) in this set, Zack Fair enters with a base stat line of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 counter. By paying one generic mana, you can remove from play the card to give another ally you control protection from destruction and move all of Zack’s bonuses, as well as an gear, onto that chosen creature.

These mechanics depicts a scene FF fans are all too remember, a moment that has been revisited again and again — in the first *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even new versions in *FF7 Remake*. And yet it resonates with equal force here, communicated entirely through rules text. Zack gives his life to save Cloud, who then picks up the Buster Sword as his own.

A Spoiler for the Scene

For history, and take this as your *FF7* warning: Before the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are gravely wounded after a confrontation with Sephiroth. After extended testing, the friends get away. During their ordeal, Cloud is delirious, but Zack vows to look after his companion. They finally arrive at the edge outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by Shinra soldiers. Presumed dead, Cloud then takes up Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the identity of a first-class SOLDIER, setting the stage for the start of *FF7*.

Playing Out the Moment on the Tabletop

On the tabletop, the abilities in essence let you relive this entire sequence. The Buster Sword is featured as a powerful piece of equipment in the collection that costs three mana and gives the equipped creature +3/+2. Therefore, using six mana, you can turn Zack into a formidable 4/6 while the Buster Sword wielded.

The Cloud Strife card also has intentional combo potential with the Buster Sword, enabling you to search your deck for an weapon card. When used in tandem, these three cards unfold as follows: You play Zack, and he gains the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to fetch the Buster Sword out of your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Due to the way Zack’s signature action is structured, you can technically use it when blocking, meaning you can “intercept” an assault and activate it to negate the damage altogether. This allows you to make this play at a key moment, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a strong 6/4 that, each time he does damage a player, lets you draw two cards and cast two spells without paying their mana cost. This is just the kind of moment referred to when talking about “emotional resonance” — not explaining the scene, but letting the card design make you remember.

More Than the Main Interaction

However, the flavor here is deeply satisfying, and it extends past just this combo. The Jenova card is part of the set as a creature that, at the start of combat, places a number of +1/+1 counters on a target creature, which additionally gains the type of a Mutant. This sort of suggests that Zack’s starting +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER conditioning he received, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. This is a tiny connection, but one that implicitly connects the entire SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the set.

This design avoids showing his death, or Cloud’s breakdown, or the memorable bluff where it happens. It does not need to. *Magic* lets you recreate the passing personally. You make the ultimate play. You transfer the sword on. And for a brief second, while playing a trading card game, you recall why *Final Fantasy 7* remains the most impactful game in the series for many fans.