Zack Fair Demonstrates That Magic's Crossover Sets Are Capable of Telling Emotional Narratives.
A major element of the allure found in the Final Fantasy crossover set for *Magic: The Gathering* comes from the way numerous cards depict iconic narratives. Take for instance Tidus, Blitzball Star, which offers a snapshot of the character at the beginning of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous professional athlete whose signature move is a unique shot that pushes a defender aside. The abilities reflect this perfectly. Such narrative is found throughout the entire Final Fantasy offering, and not all lighthearted tales. Some are poignant echoes of tragedies fans remember vividly to this day.
"Moving tales are a key element of the Final Fantasy franchise," wrote a senior game designer for the set. "They created some broad guidelines, but in the end, it was largely on a case-by-case level."
Even though the Zack Fair isn't a top-tier card, it is one of the set's most refined pieces of flavor by way of rules. It masterfully captures one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most pivotal cinematic moments with great effect, all while capitalizing on some of the set's central gameplay elements. And even if it steers clear of spoiling anything, those familiar with the story will immediately grasp the meaning embedded in it.
The Mechanics: Story Through Gameplay
At a cost of one white mana (the color of heroes) in this set, Zack Fair is a starting power and toughness of 0/1 but enters with a +1/+1 marker. For the cost of one generic mana, you can remove from play the card to bestow another creature you control indestructible and put all of Zack’s counters, as well as an gear, onto that target creature.
This design paints a moment FF fans are very familiar with, a moment that has been revisited throughout the years — in the classic *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even alternate-timeline iterations in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it hits with equal force here, expressed entirely through card abilities. Zack makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Cloud, who then inherits the Buster Sword as his own.
The Context of the Scene
For backstory, and take this as your *FF7* warning: Prior to the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are left for dead after a confrontation with Sephiroth. After years of testing, the friends manage to escape. The entire time, Cloud is comatose, but Zack ensures to look after his friend. They finally arrive at the outskirts outside Midgar before Zack is gunned down by forces. Left behind, Cloud in that moment claims Zack’s Buster Sword and takes on the persona of a elite SOLDIER, which leads right into the start of *FF7*.
Playing Out the Passing of the Torch on the Game Board
Through gameplay, the rules essentially let you reenact this whole event. The Buster Sword is featured as a powerful piece of armament in the set that requires three mana and grants the wielding creature +3/+2. Thus, with an investment of six mana, you can transform Zack into a solid 4/6 with the Buster Sword equipped.
The Cloud Strife card also has intentional combo potential with the Buster Sword, letting you to find for an artifact card. When used in tandem, these pieces function as follows: You play Zack, and he gains the +1/+1 counter. Then you summon Cloud to pull the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.
Because of the way Zack’s sacrifice ability is worded, you can potentially use it in the middle of battle, meaning you can “intercept” an attack and trigger it to negate the damage completely. Therefore, you can do this at any time, transferring the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a formidable 6/4 that, each 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 alluded to when talking about “flavorful design” — not revealing the scene, but letting the card design make you remember.
More Than the Obvious Combo
However, the flavor here is deeply satisfying, and it extends past just Zack and Cloud. The Jenova, Ancient Calamity appears in the set as a creature that, at the start of combat, puts a number of +1/+1 counters on a target creature, which then becomes a Mutant. This in a way hints that Zack’s starting +1/+1 token is, in a way, the SOLDIER enhancement he underwent, which included experimentation with Jenova cells. It's a subtle connection, but one that cleverly links the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the expansion.
Zack’s card doesn't show his end, or Cloud’s breakdown, or the stormy cliff where it concludes. It does not need to. *Magic* allows you to relive the legacy yourself. You perform the ultimate play. You pass the sword on. And for a brief second, while enjoying a trading card game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* is still the most beloved game in the franchise to date.
