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A major part of the charm of the Final Fantasy Universes Beyond set for *Magic: The Gathering* comes from the manner numerous cards depict familiar stories. Consider the Tidus, Blitzball Star card, which gives a glimpse of the hero at the very start of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous professional athlete whose key technique is a fancy shot that pushes a defender out of the way. The card's mechanics mirror this in nuanced ways. Such storytelling is found throughout the whole Final Fantasy set, and they aren't all joyful stories. Several act as poignant echoes of tragedies fans continue to reflect on to this day.

"Moving tales are a key component of the Final Fantasy series," noted a lead designer involved with the project. "The team established some overarching principles, but finally, it was mostly on a case-by-case level."

While the Zack Fair card is not a tournament staple, it is one of the set's most refined instances of narrative design through gameplay. It skillfully echoes one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important story moments brilliantly, all while utilizing some of the expansion's central systems. And even if it steers clear of spoiling anything, those acquainted with the saga will instantly understand the meaning within it.

The Card's Design: Flavor in Rules

For one white mana (the hue of heroes) in this collection, Zack Fair has a base stat line of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 marker. By paying one generic mana, you can remove from play the card to grant another creature you control protection from destruction and transfer all of Zack’s counters, as well as an gear, onto that other creature.

These mechanics depicts a sequence FF fans are all too familiar with, a moment that has been revisited throughout the years — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even new iterations in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it hits with equal force here, communicated entirely through gameplay mechanics. Zack makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Cloud, who then picks up the Buster Sword as his own.

A Spoiler for the Card

For backstory, and here is your *FF7* warning: Years before the main events of the game, Zack and Cloud are left for dead after a battle with Sephiroth. After years of imprisonment, the friends get away. Throughout this period, Cloud is comatose, but Zack ensures to take care of his friend. They finally arrive at the outskirts outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by Shinra soldiers. Abandoned, Cloud then takes up Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the role of a elite SOLDIER, leading directly into the start of *FF7*.

Reenacting the Moment on the Tabletop

Through gameplay, the abilities essentially let you reenact this iconic scene. The Buster Sword appears as a strong 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 while the Buster Sword attached.

The Cloud, Midgar Mercenary also has clear interaction with the Buster Sword, allowing you to find for an artifact card. In combination, these pieces play out in this way: You play Zack, and he gets the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to fetch the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Owing to the design Zack’s key mechanic is worded, you can technically use it in the middle of battle, meaning you can “block” an attack and trigger it to negate the attack completely. So you can make this play at a key moment, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a formidable 6/4 that, whenever he deals combat damage a player, lets you draw two cards and play two spells for free. This is precisely the kind of interaction referred to when discussing “narrative impact” — not spoiling the scene, but letting the gameplay evoke the memory.

Extending Past the Obvious Synergy

However, the flavor here is deeply satisfying, and it goes past 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 in a way suggests that Zack’s starting +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER enhancement he received, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. This is a tiny nod, but one that implicitly connects the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the expansion.

This design avoids showing his death, or Cloud’s breakdown, or the rain-soaked location where it happens. It doesn't have to. *Magic* enables you to recreate the legacy personally. You choose the sacrifice. You transfer the legacy on. And for a short instant, while engaged in a trading card game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* continues to be the most impactful game in the series for many fans.