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A significant element of the allure within the Final Fantasy crossover set for *Magic: The Gathering* is the fashion countless cards depict well-known narratives. Take for instance Tidus, Blitzball Star, which gives a portrait of the character at the beginning of *Final Fantasy 10*: a renowned sports star whose signature move is a fancy shot that knocks a defender out of the way. The card's mechanics mirror this with subtlety. These kinds of storytelling is found across the complete Final Fantasy set, and they aren't all joyful stories. A number are poignant callbacks of sad moments fans remember vividly to this day.

"Powerful tales are a vital element of the Final Fantasy series," wrote a senior game designer on the collaboration. "They created some general rules, but ultimately, it was mostly on a individual basis."

Even though the Zack Fair is not a competitive powerhouse, it is one of the set's most refined examples of storytelling by way of rules. It skillfully echoes one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important story moments with great effect, all while leveraging some of the expansion's central systems. And even if it doesn't spoil anything, those familiar with the saga will immediately grasp the meaning behind it.

The Card's Design: Story Through Gameplay

For one white mana (the color of heroes) in this collection, Zack Fair enters with a base power and toughness of 0/1 but comes into play with a +1/+1 token. By spending one generic mana, you can destroy the card to give another ally you control indestructible and transfer all of Zack’s counters, along with an artifact weapon, onto that target creature.

This design depicts a scene FF fans are very know well, a moment that has been reimagined throughout the years — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even alternate-timeline retellings in *FF7 Remake*. But somehow it lands with equal force here, expressed entirely through gameplay mechanics. Zack makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Cloud, who then takes up the Buster Sword as his own.

The Context of the Moment

Some necessary history, and consider this your *FF7* warning: Prior to the primary events of the game, Zack and Cloud are severely injured after a battle with Sephiroth. Following years of testing, the duo get away. The entire time, Cloud is comatose, but Zack vows to take care of his comrade. They eventually make it the plains outside Midgar before Zack is fatally wounded by troops. Abandoned, Cloud subsequently grabs Zack’s Buster Sword and assumes the identity of a first-class SOLDIER, leading directly into the start of *FF7*.

Playing Out the Passing of the Torch on the Game Board

In a game, the card mechanics effectively let you reenact this iconic sequence. The Buster Sword is featured as a top-tier piece of gear in the set that costs three mana and gives the wielding creature +3/+2. Thus, with an investment of six mana, you can transform Zack into a respectable 4/6 while the Buster Sword attached.

The Cloud Strife card also has deliberate interaction with the Buster Sword, enabling you to look through your library for an equipment card. In combination, these pieces play out in this way: You cast Zack, and he gets the +1/+1 counter. Then you play Cloud to retrieve the Buster Sword out of your deck. Then you play and equip it to Zack.

Due to the manner Zack’s key mechanic is designed, you can technically use it when blocking, meaning you can “block” an assault and activate it to cancel out the attack altogether. So you can perform this action at any time, passing the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He subsequently becomes a formidable 6/4 that, every time he deals combat damage a player, lets you draw two cards and play two spells for free. This is precisely the kind of moment referred to when discussing “emotional resonance” — not explaining the scene, but letting the gameplay make you remember.

Extending Past the Obvious Synergy

And the narrative here is incredibly rich, and it reaches further than just these cards. The Jenova, Ancient Calamity appears in 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 in a way suggests that Zack’s initial +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER conditioning he received, which included modification with Jenova cells. It's a small connection, but one that cleverly links the entire SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the set.

The card doesn't show his end, or Cloud’s trauma, or the rain-soaked bluff where it happens. It isn't necessary. *Magic* allows you to recreate the legacy personally. You choose the sacrifice. You hand over the sword on. And for a short instant, while engaged in a trading card game, you are reminded of why *Final Fantasy 7* is still the most influential game in the series for many fans.