The Finest ‘Closing Fantasy’ References in Its Large ‘Magic: The Gathering’ Crossover

At the moment one of many largest units in Magic: The Gathering‘s current historical past makes its grand arrival ultimately: Final Fantasy, the primary of Magic‘s at-times-controversial “Universes Past” crossovers with different franchises to be given the total standard-legal remedy. It’s a wedding of two of gaming’s most beloved fantasy realms, and with absolute legions of followers of each Magic and Closing Fantasy to please, it has to hit the highlights and mechanical flavoring of 16 mainline sport’s price of viable playing cards. From all the pieces we’ve seen of the set within the run as much as right now’s launch, it appears to be like like Wizards of the Coast and Sq. Enix helped construct a match made in (seventh) heaven—however right here’s a few of our favorite nods to Closing Fantasy‘s huge legacy that we love most from the set.

Naturally, a few of these references are about key main story factors of their respective Closing Fantasy titles. Should you’re not caught up with the 16 mainline video games which have launched over the previous 4 a long time, nicely, take into account your self very flippantly spoiler warned right here.

Tiered Spells Are a Good Mix of Closing Fantasy and Magic

One of many new mechanical additions the Closing Fantasy set brings to Magic is the “Tiered” rule: if a participant pays a further price to the cardboard’s preliminary mana price, they will choose from one in every of three tiers of energy. Extra mana means extra results—identical to how in Closing Fantasy plenty of magic spells have three evolutionary steps: their base type, a stronger model of that type with the suffix -ara, after which its strongest type with the suffix -aga.

The tiered spells within the set are unfold throughout two totally different varieties: some are given to signify numerous restrict break assaults from Closing Fantasy VII, reflecting the celebration’s means to develop stronger particular assaults over the course of the sport. However the ones that signify a few of Closing Fantasy‘s elemental and restorative magics are every well attuned to the colour identities they’re assigned to in Magic. Aggressive hearth and thunder magics are assigned to pink; ice, which as an alternative of doing harm bounces playing cards again into an opponents palms or libraries, is assigned to blue, which displays that shade’s archetypal give attention to interruption and management mechanics. It’s a really neat strategy to mechanically marry a Closing Fantasy participant’s understanding of the sequence’ base magic system to a Magic participant’s understanding of its personal colours’ archetypes and escalatory results.

Suplex the Prepare, Dammit

Suplex, renamed to Meteor Strike in later variations of Closing Fantasy VI, is among the many martial talents of Sabin the Monk, letting him… nicely, choose an enemy up and flip them within the air to slam them straight again down. However whereas Sabin can use the transfer on a large number of VI‘s huge creatures, essentially the most notorious sufferer of the assault—spurring years of web meme historical past—is the truth that he can use it when the celebration encounters the Phantom Prepare after Sabin, Cyan, and Shadow flee the Empire’s invasion of Doma. The Phantom Prepare is, after all, a spectral haunted steam prepare, so it’s very absurd that Sabin can simply choose it up and suplex it prefer it’s no huge deal.

Suplex will get its personal card as a sorcery in Magic, which helps you to do three harm to a creature—fairly primary. Besides, a participant who performs Suplex may as an alternative use its second means, which permits it to particularly exile an artifact card. You realize what’s an artifact within the Closing Fantasy set? The Phantom Prepare.

Lightning’s Stagger

FF XIII‘s protagonist has a number of playing cards to her identify within the set, however Lightning, Military of One has a number of cool mechanical nods to XIII‘s battle system. The primary is that “Military of One” suffix, a reference to Lightning’s highly effective combo assault of that identify within the sport—an aggression that’s symbolically matched within the card by giving her a number of offensive key phrases like Trample (which lets her deal extra harm from fight on to a participant) and First Strike (which lets her deal harm earlier than anybody else resolves harm in fight).

However it’s Lightning, Military of One’s different rule that’s the neater reference: she has Stagger, a nod to the mechanic of the identical identify in XIII that lets the celebration deal bonus harm to an opponent as soon as they’ve maxed out its stagger gauge by regular, repeated assaults for a quick time period. In Magic, it lets some other creature that assaults Lightning’s goal, whether or not it’s one other creature or a participant, take double harm for the remainder of the flip. Similar hat!

Sephiroth Yearns to Kill Aerith

One of many most infamous moments within the unique Closing Fantasy VII is Sephiroth’s homicide of Aerith as she prays within the Metropolis of Ancients. Just like the synergy between Suplex and Phantom Prepare earlier than it, Sephiroth, Fabled Soldier and Aerith have a synergy that grimly displays his fated killing: Aerith’s guidelines let her achieve +1/+1 counters each time you achieve life, and Sephiroth, Fabled Soldier provides you life each time one other creature dies. The fourth time that impact occurs, you possibly can flip Sephiroth over, reworking him into his highly effective One Winged Angel type.

However he may sacrifice any card, together with one in every of your personal, each time he assaults. Which, most of the time, triggers “dies” as a mechanic, advancing Sephiroth nearer to his transformation… and Aerith herself has a particular rule that, when she dies, her accrued +1/+1 tokens will be given to all Legendary Creatures you may have in play. So, you probably have them each in play, Sephiroth can sacrifice Aerith for his fourth set off, reworking, and then reap the advantages of all of the +1/+1 tokens Aerith had constructed up from his attacking. It’s imply! And really flavorful.

Or you could possibly simply play Sephiroth’s Intervention, a black Immediate that destroys any goal creature, when you simply wish to kill an Aerith for funsies.

Closing Fantasy XIV‘s Closing Days

One of many largest items of background lore within the critically acclaimed MMORPG Closing Fantasy XIV is the “Closing Days,” a cataclysmic apocalypse that occurred hundreds of years prior to now that noticed the world of Etheirys, the realm of a precursor race known as the Ancients, break into 14 shards throughout a battle between the gods Zodiark and Hydaelyn in an try and stall the Closing Days’ arrival. A lot of Closing Fantasy XIV takes place on the first of these reflective shards, the Supply, whereas a few of its expansions have seen gamers journey to the worlds of different shards, like Shadowbringers.

This occasion comes up in a number of poignantly thematic playing cards within the Magic set. Zodiark, Umbral God sees a participant sacrifice half of the creatures they management, as a reference to the sacrifice the Ancients made to summon Zodiark and delay the Closing Days within the first place. In the meantime, Emet-Selch, Unsundered—one of many few surviving Ancients, haunted by his want to revive the world to what it was in his lifetime—can rework into his godlike type of Hades as soon as 14 playing cards enter your graveyard, and might play playing cards out of your graveyard as soon as he’s accomplished so.

Phoenix Down Can Heal… and Hurt

Phoenix Down is an iconic merchandise from throughout Closing Fantasy, the straightforward revival drugs that permits you to deliver again a lifeless celebration member in battle. In Magic, it might probably solely deliver again playing cards out of your graveyard with a mana worth of 4 or much less, reflective of its comparatively primary type of restorative magic. However even higher is the truth that it has a second means: you should utilize it to exile undead creatures, a nod to the truth that therapeutic gadgets in Closing Fantasy can be utilized on undead enemies to do harm as an alternative.

Worry the Tonberry

Tonberries could look oddly cute with the dainty little knife and their huge yellow eyes, however each Closing Fantasy participant is aware of that these inexperienced critters imply enterprise as soon as they get near you. In most of their appearances, Tonberries take a number of turns of fight to slowly inch in direction of your celebration—and as soon as they do, they immediately kill you in a single assault with their chef’s knife. That is splendidly translated into Magic with a mixture of two mechanics: a Tonberry enters play tapped and with a stun counter on it, which implies it takes two participant turns to be able to assault. As soon as it does assault although, it has First Strike and Deathtouch, which means regardless of how a lot harm it does to a creature, it’ll at all times do deadly harm.

Galuf’s Sacrifice

Galuf’s loss of life combating Exdeath in Closing Fantasy V is among the sport’s most iconic moments, made all of the extra bittersweet by the very fact his talents are handed onto his granddaughter Krile, who joins the celebration in his stead. That inheritance is of course mirrored in Galuf’s Closing Act, which not solely briefly boosts a creature’s energy (a nod to Galuf going all out as he takes on Exdeath 1v1), however lets it cross on +1/+1 tokens equal to its energy when it dies.

Combat or Flight

An notorious gag second in Closing Fantasy VII comes when the celebration goes to rescue Aerith from Shinra’s HQ forward of the climactic escape from Midgar. You’re given a easy selection, in each the unique sport and in Remake: take the elevator as much as the sixtieth ground, which stops a number of occasions for a sequence of fights, or the “quiet” route… having to regulate Cloud as he runs up 59 flights of stairs.

The Magic card Aerith Rescue Mission encapsulates that selection completely: you possibly can both take the elevator, supplying you with three 1/1 Hero Tokens (representing Cloud, Tifa, and Barrett being able to battle), or you possibly can take the steps, which helps you to faucet and stun as much as three creatures (representing their cardio-induced duress).

The Cycle of Sin

Closing Fantasy X is constructed across the cycle of Sin, a large creature that rises to cull civilizations that develop too giant or too superior—however whose slaughter will be paused for a interval of “Calm” years when a Summoner sacrifices themselves in a remaining battle towards Sin to summon a remaining aeon able to defeating Sin… albeit solely quickly, locking the world in a cycle of destruction.

That will get a fairly spot-on mirror within the card Sin, Never-ending Cataclysm; it not solely removes counters from any variety of creatures on the battlefield (to signify Sin’s limitation of technological development), but additionally returns to your library when it dies relatively than dying, which means it might probably’t be conventionally defeated. Its personal bonus counters created from eradicating counters will be given to one in every of your different creatures… you realize, so Sin can inherit them twice over when it returns.

Champions From Past the Rift, Heed My Name!

Champions From Past is a multilayered reference for Closing Fantasy XIV gamers: the identify and the artwork represents the climactic moments of the Shadowbringers growth, when the participant is aided by Iconic Catboy G’raha Tia, who summons heroes (aka, different gamers) from throughout the 14 shards of the world to battle Emet-Selch. That group-content focus is mirrored in its guidelines, which helps you to create any variety of Hero tokens whereas additionally providing bonuses for attacking in both teams of 4 or eight creatures.  These are references to the 2 normal group sizes for FF XIV‘s multiplayer content material: Gentle Events, teams of 4 for traditional dungeon content material; and Full Events, teams of eight sometimes utilized in more difficult boss fights or endgame raids.

Quistis’ Blue Magic

Closing Fantasy has all types of various magical archetypes throughout the sequence, however Blue Magic is one in every of its most arcane logos within the numerous colleges of color-themed magics. Black Magic is primarily damaging elemental spells, White Magic is therapeutic and assist, Pink Magic blends the 2, whereas Blue represents a capability to soak up and be taught the talents of an enemy opponent. Blue Mages exist throughout a number of Closing Fantasy video games, however FF VIII‘s Quistis it maybe probably the most well-known. It’s becoming then that not solely is she slotted into Magic‘s blue shade archetype, however that her Blue Magic means lets her solid spells from any participant’s graveyard, be it yours or your opponent: and that she solid them with any mana, no matter their unique price.

Kain’s Thoughts Management

Kain Highwind is an interesting foil in Closing Fantasy IV, his lingering jealousy in direction of FF IV‘s important character Cecil making him a simple goal for the sport’s antagonist, Golbez, to deprave him and brainwash him a number of occasions over the course of the story. Kain’s almost-comical means to be pressured into betraying you is delightfully woven into Magic together with his card, Kain, Traitorous Dragoon—each time Kain does harm to a different participant, they will select to take management of him and he does mirrored harm to his unique proprietor, which means that Kain can bounce backwards and forwards between possession over the course of the sport!

Ashe’s Temptation

A serious turning level in Closing Fantasy XII comes when Ashe, the exiled princess of the dominion of Dalmasca, finds herself confronted with a harmful temptation: fulfill her future as Ivalice’s generational ruler and use the ability of the almighty crystal known as the Solar-Cryst to destroy the Archadian Empire that attacked Dalmasca in the beginning of the sport, or destroy the Solar-Cryst and free Ivalice from the machinations of its creators.

On the floor, the Immediate Destiny of the Solar-Cryst is a fairly typical Magic card, paying 5 mana to destroy any non-land everlasting. However it has a bonus twist: it solely prices three mana when you goal a tapped creature, ie… a creature that’s already attacked you. It’s a really flavorful strategy to incorporate Ashe’s temptation in direction of revenge.

Of Course Ignis Cooks

Ignis’ card simply wouldn’t be Ignis if it didn’t embody a capability based mostly round cooking. “I’ve Come Up With a New Recipe!” lets a participant faucet Ignis and pay some mana to exile a card out of your graveyard—and if it was a creature, you possibly can create a meals token, letting a participant regain well being. It’s named, after all, for Ignis’ meme-worthy repeated catchphrase from Closing Fantasy XV: the celebration’s cook dinner each time they camped, Ignis may be taught numerous recipes all through XV to grant the celebration numerous buffs and standing results after they rested. Specifying the bonus for exiling a creature is itself a cute reference to the truth that Ignis can cook dinner numerous meals from the supplies you get from killing creatures throughout XV‘s world, as well.

A Smile Higher Fits a Hero

A number of playing cards all through the Closing Fantasy set give new themed artwork to already established Magic playing cards. Relic of Legends, a easy mana-generating artifact launched in Dominaria United, is one in every of them, however its inclusion within the Closing Fantasy XIV-themed Commander Deck, Scions & Spellcraft, is given a painful twist. The relic of legend within the new artwork refers to a traumatic sacrifice from Heavensward, XIV‘s first growth, when one in every of your allies within the kingdom of Ishgard, Haurchefant Greystone, makes an attempt to deflect a magical assault supposed to strike the hero… just for his defend to buckle and for the strike to run him by as an alternative, killing him. Cue the waterworks!

Ifrit vs. Titan

Conflict of the Eikons refers to one of many standout moments of the latest mainline Final Fantasy, XVI, wherein protagonist Clive Rosfield, reworked into the almighty summon Ifrit, scraps with rival summon Titan in an epic battle. Except for trying as cool because the battle in XVI does, this sorcery allows you to manipulate the quantity of lore counters on a Saga card below your management: the cardboard archetype that represents Closing Fantasy‘s numerous summon creatures throughout the video games within the set to mirror their standing as highly effective, however limited-time forces in battle.

It’s not solely flavorful in that sense, it’s significantly flavorful to Closing Fantasy XVI. The battle between Ifrit and Titan is absolutely the primary time that Clive actually comes into his personal as Ifrit’s “Dominant”, embracing his transformation and pulling out all of the stops to defeat Titan—so it’s solely becoming that that conflict represents the power to control Sagas on this means!

The Warrior of Gentle Unites All

The Warrior of Gentle is the identify of the character created to signify the generic celebration members of the very first Closing Fantasy, who had no set characters and might be given any of the sequence’ iconic jobs over the course of the sport. Now a quasi-mascot of Closing Fantasy as an entire, oddly sufficient the Warrior of Gentle doesn’t even have a singular card representing him within the Magic set (he seems on some, however none are particularly centered round him as a personality).

He’s represented, nonetheless, on the “By The Ages” bonus sheet, a sequence of playing cards that reprints traditional Magic playing cards with paintings drawn from throughout Closing Fantasy historical past, from character idea work to promotional imagery from every sport. The Warrior of Gentle is represented on this set of playing cards with a reprint of Jodah the Unifier, an iconic card that’s widespread in Magic‘s Commander as a “WURBG” archetype: having a value that makes use of one mana from every of Magic‘s 5 colours, a deck with Jodah as its Commander will be constructed out of playing cards from each shade in flip.

On high of that, Jodah the Unifier’s talents are constructed round synergies with Legendary Creatures and spells, buffing the extra of them you may have in play and getting extra of them in play as rapidly as doable. Throughout the Closing Fantasy set most important characters are represented as Legendary Creatures, so it’s becoming that the Warrior of Gentle can deliver collectively heroes and villains from throughout the entire sequence to face collectively!

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