MTG Final Fantasy Set List – Full Breakdown and Key Cards

Magic: The Gathering’s crossovers are often among its most popular sets. Fallout and Lord of the Rings were both smash hits, but they pale in comparison to the behemoth that is Final Fantasy. The impact this legendary JRPG series has had on MTG since its launch has been immense, and will likely permanently change the face of the game.

With a full, Standard-legal set, a reprint bonus sheet with some incredible cards, and four Commander decks based on your favourite games, Final Fantasy has been a leviathan of a release. Grab your buster sword, hop on your chocobo, and make sure you’re not missing out on the single biggest Magic release ever.

MTG Final Fantasy – What to Expect from This Crossover Set

Final Fantasy is the latest Universes Beyond crossover, which takes the world, characters, and lore of Final Fantasy and brings them to Magic’s card style and rules. However, this is a very special release, as it’s the first time ever a Universes Beyond set has been legal in Magic’s premiere format, Standard.

This means you can play Final Fantasy cards in just about anything – rock up to Friday Night Magic with Cloud in your Standard deck, or the Commander Party with your Tidus Commander build. The set features characters and places from all 16 of the main-series games, meaning it’s more than likely your favourite names pop up in it somewhere.

Alongside the main set, there are two more special inclusions in Final Fantasy. The first is Through The Ages – these are found in both Play and Collector boosters, and have powerful reprints, like Rhystic Study and Ancient Copper Dragon, with classic Final Fantasy art.

Key Cards from MTG Final Fantasy – Must-Haves for Collectors

Though Final Fantasy spans 16 games, hundreds of characters, and all sorts of spells, enemies, and locations, there are, of course, a few standout cards to keep an eye out for.

The first are just about any surge foil cards, found in Collector boosters. These gives cards an oil-slicked appearance and look gorgeous, especially against the flat backgrounds of the numbered alt-art cards.

More specifically, Vivi Ornitier is a card that has been tearing up just about every format since the set released. Its ability to produce more mana, ping your opponents, and get stronger with each spell you cast is unparalleled, making it by far the strongest card in the set.

Final Fantasy 7 also gets a lot of love among the most sought-after cards. Cloud, Midgar Mercenary is one of the best mono-white Voltron commanders we’ve ever had with his ability to double equipment triggers. On the other hand, Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER is a Blood Artist in the command zone, and is fantastic for any kind of sacrifice-heavy strategy.

One card everyone wants is the Traveling Chocobo. Exclusive to Collector’s boosters is an alternate Neon Ink treatment, with exclusive art that looks stunning. There’s also the rarest of the rare, a serialised Golden Chocobo with just 77 copies available. These have been selling for tens of thousands of pounds since the set launched, making it far and away the single most valuable card in the entire set.

How Final Fantasy Characters Play in MTG

The great thing about Universes Beyond is seeing how Magic can be flexed to fit in other worlds, characters, and their abilities. Like Fallout and Lord of the Rings before it, Final Fantasy is full of cool references to the series, bringing its top moments to the game.

The set is bursting with them. Some cards have ability words referencing the games, like Kain, Traitorous Dragoon having the Jump ability to give him flying on your turn, or Prompto Argentum having Selfie Shot to give you Treasure tokens if you cast big enough spells.

There are also mechanics tailor-made for the set inspired by the games, like Job Select. It’s a new mechanic debuting in Final Fantasy, and allows you to make a Hero token that can be given different Equipment to change its role in battle, just as you would when kitting out your party in FF3 or 4.

Job Select has already been having some impact on the MTG meta. A popular deck to arise has been red/black Wizards, using cards Black Mage’s Rod to make an army of Black Wizards that drain your opponent with every noncreature spell you cast.

And, of course, some cards straight-up reference the games. Suplex calls back to Sabin’s attempt to stop a train in FF6, Phoenix Down features the iconic item and its ability to bring things back to life (or exile undead creatures), and even elements like tutorials and menus are shouted out in Combat Tutorial and Battle Menu respectively.

Deck-Building Ideas for the MTG Final Fantasy Set

A few key decks have been popping from Final Fantasy.

As mentioned, black and red Wizards is an incredibly oppressive deck to play against. It often runs lots of ways to make Wizards, as well as cards like Black Waltz No. 3, to quickly drain your opponent as you play cheap burn spells. Foundations’ Boltwave can easily take out half of an opponent’s life in one go if you build up enough forces.

Towns have also been an incredibly fun deck to build, thanks in part to The Wandering Minstrel. Instead of having one unifying mechanic, Towns are lands that can do all sorts of things: some just enter tapped and give you access to two colours, but some can make Treasures, hideaway cards, or even have Adventures attached. Use the Minstrel to get them all in untapped, and you can have the Minstrel then buff your creatures by a huge amount.

If you’re wanting to tap into an existing archetype, look no further than Aristocrats. This archetype is largely dominated by Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER, but other cards like Undercity Dire Rat, Vincent Valentine, and Judge Magister Gabranth all help give you payoffs for killing creatures or sacrificing your own.

Competitive Impact – How MTG Final Fantasy Changes the Meta

Final Fantasy has had a huge impact on the competitive meta of MTG, and it’s largely because of everyone’s favourite birds, the Chocobo.

Birds have become a deck to beat in Standard, thanks to the Chocobos’ landfall ability of buffing in strength whenever a land enters. Traveling Chocobo is only part of the equation: Choco/Mog; Choco, Seeker of Paradise; and Sazh’s Chocobo are all doing incredibly well in Standard right now, and are likely to remain a viable kindred strategy for a good while yet.

But it’d be remiss not to mention Vivi. I’ve already mentioned how big of an impact Vivi has had, but at a recent Pro Tour for the set, almost all of the top eight decks were some variation on blue/red spellslinging decks that made use of him. He is such a powerful card that he’s likely going to be banned, but until then you may as well enjoy the spellcasting, power-buffing fun while it lasts.

Finally, Noctis, Prince of Lucis is a card some are keeping an eye on, especially in formats like Vintage, Legacy, and Commander. While it hasn’t proven itself just yet, its ability to play artifacts from your graveyard is powerful, and it has scary combo potential with cards like Aetherflux Reservoir and Mox Diamond.

Where to Buy MTG Final Fantasy Cards

Final Fantasy has been one of the most avidly sought-after sets in Magic’s history, and finding it just about anywhere can be tough. Fortunately, Magic Madhouse has you covered, with Play boosters and the set’s four Commander decks all available to buy.

Or you could spring for a few of the singles. I personally am after a Summon: Bahamut for a colourless deck, and also really want a Buster Sword. No matter how you choose to buy the Final Fantasy set, it’s tough not to hear the victory jingle in your head when you see the cards on offer.