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A major part of the charm of the *Final Fantasy* crossover release for *Magic: The Gathering* lies in the manner countless cards depict well-known narratives. Consider the Tidus, Blitzball Star card, which gives a portrait of the character at the outset of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous professional athlete whose secret weapon is a unique shot that knocks a defender aside. The card's mechanics represent this perfectly. This type of narrative is prevalent in the complete Final Fantasy offering, and not all joyful stories. Some act as somber callbacks of sad moments fans remember vividly decades later.

"Emotional tales are a central element of the Final Fantasy series," noted a lead designer on the project. "The team established some general rules, but ultimately, it was mostly on a card-by-card basis."

Though the Zack Fair card may not be a top-tier card, it stands as one of the set's most clever examples of storytelling via gameplay. It masterfully echoes one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most pivotal dramatic moments in spectacular fashion, all while leveraging some of the expansion's core gameplay elements. And although it avoids revealing anything, those familiar with the saga will immediately grasp the emotional weight behind it.

How It Works: A Narrative in Play

At a cost of one white mana (the alignment of good) in this set, Zack Fair enters with a base power and toughness of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 marker. By spending one colorless mana, you can destroy the card to grant another ally you control protection from destruction and put all of Zack’s counters, as well as an gear, onto that chosen creature.

These mechanics depicts a sequence FF fans are extremely familiar with, a moment that has been revisited again and again — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even reimagined iterations in *FF7 Remake*. But somehow it lands with equal force here, communicated entirely through gameplay mechanics. Zack gives his life to save Cloud, who then inherits the Buster Sword as his own.

The Story Behind the Moment

Some necessary backstory, and take this as your *FF7* spoiler alert: Prior to the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are severely injured after a battle with Sephiroth. Following extended testing, the friends break free. Throughout this period, Cloud is barely conscious, but Zack makes sure to take care of his companion. They eventually reach the plains outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by Shinra soldiers. Presumed dead, Cloud subsequently grabs Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the role of a elite SOLDIER, leading directly into the start of *FF7*.

Playing Out the Passing of the Torch on the Game Board

On the tabletop, the abilities essentially let you reenact this whole event. The Buster Sword is featured as a powerful piece of equipment in the set that requires three mana and grants the equipped creature +3/+2. Therefore, using six mana, you can make Zack into a respectable 4/6 while the Buster Sword equipped.

The Cloud, Midgar Mercenary also has clear combo potential with the Buster Sword, enabling you to look through your library for an equipment card. Together, these pieces function as follows: You summon Zack, and he gets the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to pull the Buster Sword out of your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Owing to the design Zack’s key mechanic is structured, you can potentially use it during combat, meaning you can “block” an assault and trigger it to negate the damage altogether. Therefore, you can make this play at any time, transferring the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a formidable 6/4 that, every time he strikes a player, lets you draw two cards and cast two cards for free. This is precisely the kind of moment referred to when talking about “narrative impact” — not spoiling the scene, but letting the card design evoke the memory.

Extending Past the Central Combo

But the narrative here is oh-so-delicious, and it goes beyond just this combo. The Jenova, Ancient Calamity 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 then becomes a Mutant. This sort of suggests that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, figuratively, the SOLDIER conditioning he received, which included genetic manipulation with Jenova cells. This is a subtle connection, but one that subtly links the entire SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter ecosystem in the set.

Zack’s card avoids showing his demise, or Cloud’s trauma, or the stormy cliff where it happens. It doesn't have to. *Magic* lets you relive the passing personally. You perform the ultimate play. You transfer the legacy on. And for a short instant, while enjoying a strategy game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* remains the most influential game in the franchise to date.