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A significant element of the charm found in the Final Fantasy Universes Beyond release for *Magic: The Gathering* lies in the manner numerous cards narrate familiar stories. Take for instance the Tidus, Blitzball Star card, which offers a portrait of the protagonist at the outset of *Final Fantasy 10*: a wildly famous professional athlete whose key technique is a unique shot that knocks a defender out of the way. The abilities mirror this in nuanced ways. Such flavor is widespread across the entire Final Fantasy set, and they aren't all fun and games. Some act as somber callbacks of sad moments fans continue to reflect on to this day.

"Emotional narratives are a key component of the Final Fantasy franchise," noted a senior designer on the project. "We built some broad guidelines, but ultimately, it was primarily on a individual basis."

While the Zack Fair card may not be a competitive powerhouse, it stands as one of the release's most clever instances of flavor by way of rules. It masterfully captures one of *Final Fantasy 7*'s most important cinematic moments brilliantly, all while utilizing some of the expansion's key systems. And even if it avoids revealing anything, those who know the story will instantly understand the meaning embedded in it.

The Card's Design: Story Through Gameplay

For one white mana (the color of protagonists) in this set, Zack Fair is a starting stat line of 0/1 but arrives with a +1/+1 marker. By spending one colorless mana, you can destroy the card to grant another unit you control protection from destruction and move all of Zack’s markers, as well as an gear, onto that chosen creature.

This card paints a scene FF fans are extremely familiar with, a moment that has been reimagined multiple times — in the original *FF7*, *Crisis Core*, and even alternate-timeline iterations in *FF7 Remake*. Yet it lands powerfully here, communicated entirely through rules text. Zack makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Cloud, who then picks up the Buster Sword as his own.

A Spoiler for the Moment

For history, and consider this your *FF7* warning: Before the main events of the game, Zack and Cloud are gravely wounded after a battle with Sephiroth. Following extended testing, the pair break free. During their ordeal, Cloud is delirious, but Zack vows to protect his comrade. They eventually arrive at the outskirts outside Midgar before Zack is killed by troops. Left behind, Cloud then takes up Zack’s Buster Sword and adopts the identity of a elite SOLDIER, which leads right into the start of *FF7*.

Reenacting the Moment on the Battlefield

Through gameplay, the card mechanics essentially let you reenact this entire event. The Buster Sword is featured as a top-tier piece of armament in the collection that costs three mana and provides the equipped creature +3/+2. So, for a total 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 look through your library for an artifact card. In combination, these three cards play out as follows: You cast Zack, and he receives the +1/+1 counter. Then you cast Cloud to retrieve the Buster Sword from your deck. Then you play and equip it to Zack.

Owing to the manner Zack’s key mechanic is designed, you can potentially use it during combat, meaning you can “block” an assault and trigger it to negate the damage altogether. So you can make this play at any time, moving the +1/+1 counter *and* the Buster Sword to Cloud. He then becomes a powerful 6/4 that, every time he deals combat damage a player, lets you gain card advantage and play two spells for free. This is just the kind of experience referred to when talking about “flavorful design” — not revealing the scene, but letting the card design trigger the recollection.

Extending Past the Central Interaction

However, the thematic here is oh-so-delicious, and it extends past just these cards. 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 chosen creature, which then becomes a Mutant. This in a way suggests that Zack’s starting +1/+1 token is, symbolically, the SOLDIER treatment he underwent, which included experimentation with Jenova cells. This is a tiny connection, but one that cleverly ties the whole SOLDIER program to the +1/+1 counter mechanic in the expansion.

This design doesn't show his end, or Cloud’s confusion, or the stormy bluff where it happens. It does not need to. *Magic* allows you to recreate the legacy yourself. You choose the sacrifice. You transfer the legacy on. And for a fleeting moment, while engaged in a trading card game, you recall why *Final Fantasy 7* continues to be the most influential game in the franchise to date.