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A core element of the charm found in the Final Fantasy crossover collection for *Magic: The Gathering* lies in the fashion so many cards depict familiar narratives. Consider Tidus, Blitzball Star, which offers a snapshot of the protagonist at the outset of *Final Fantasy 10*: a renowned sports star whose key technique is a unique shot that takes a defender aside. The card's mechanics represent this in nuanced ways. These kinds of storytelling is found across the complete Final Fantasy offering, and not all fun and games. Some act as heartbreaking callbacks of emotional events fans still mull over to this day.

"Emotional tales are a key element of the Final Fantasy franchise," wrote a lead designer on the collaboration. "The team established some broad guidelines, but in the end, it was mostly on a case-by-case basis."

Even though the Zack Fair card isn't a top-tier card, it stands as one of the set's most refined examples of flavor via mechanics. It artfully captures one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important dramatic moments brilliantly, all while capitalizing on some of the set's core systems. And although it avoids revealing anything, those acquainted with the story will quickly recognize the meaning embedded in it.

The Card's Design: Story Through Gameplay

For one white mana (the hue of good) in this collection, Zack Fair enters with a starting power and toughness of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 marker. By spending one colorless mana, you can remove from play the card to grant another creature you control indestructible and put all of Zack’s markers, along with an gear, onto that target creature.

This card portrays a moment FF fans are all too remember, a moment that has been retold throughout the years — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even new retellings in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it resonates with equal force here, expressed entirely through rules text. Zack sacrifices himself to save Cloud, who then inherits the Buster Sword as his own.

The Context of the Moment

A bit of context, and consider this your *FF7* warning: Years before the main events of the game, Zack and Cloud are left for dead after a confrontation with Sephiroth. After extended imprisonment, the friends break free. During their ordeal, Cloud is barely conscious, but Zack ensures to protect his companion. They eventually reach the outskirts outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by troops. 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*.

Reenacting the Passing of the Torch on the Game Board

In a game, the card mechanics essentially let you reenact this entire sequence. The Buster Sword is a a powerful piece of armament in the collection that costs 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 while the Buster Sword wielded.

The Cloud Strife card also has clear interaction with the Buster Sword, letting you to search your deck for an artifact card. Together, these three cards unfold as follows: You summon Zack, and he gets the +1/+1 counter. Then you play Cloud to fetch the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you cast and attach it to Zack.

Owing to 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 cancel out the damage altogether. Therefore, you can make this play at a key moment, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a powerful 6/4 that, whenever he does damage a player, lets you gain card advantage and play two cards at no cost. This is just the kind of interaction alluded to when talking about “flavorful design” — not explaining the scene, but letting the mechanics make you remember.

Beyond the Central Synergy

But the thematic here is oh-so-delicious, and it extends beyond just this combo. The Jenova card is part of the collection as a creature that, at the start of combat, places a number of +1/+1 counters on a chosen creature, which additionally gains the type of a Mutant. This sort of hints that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, figuratively, the SOLDIER conditioning he underwent, which included modification with Jenova cells. This is a tiny connection, but one that cleverly ties the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter ecosystem in the expansion.

Zack’s card avoids showing his demise, or Cloud’s trauma, or the stormy bluff where it all ends. It does not need to. *Magic* allows you to recreate the legacy for yourself. You perform the ultimate play. You transfer the legacy on. And for a fleeting moment, while playing a card battle, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* continues to be the most influential game in the series ever made.