Are you looking for a magical fantasy during the summer holidays? You will find that (and a ton of fun) with Magic: the Gathering’s newest and biggest set release since Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-Earth. Set for release on June 14th, the Final Fantasy mega crossover is part of Magic’s Universes Beyond line, and promises legendary heroes and villains, powerful equipment and an unrivalled sense of nostalgia for anyone who grew up playing the games. Geek Culture and Tap & Sac are thrilled to reveal a very special preview card that even casual Final Fantasy fans will recognise: The Masamune!

What’s the Big Deal with The Masamune and Who Uses It?

The Masamune is one of the most iconic weapons across franchise history, wielded none other by Sephiroth, the big bad of Final Fantasy VII. More than just a normal odachi blade, it symbolises his might as the game’s penultimate and final boss – while its handle is long enough to accommodate both hands, Sephiroth carries it single-handedly due to his incredible strength. 

Much of the detail is carried over to the card design, including its gold-coloured tsuba, or guard, and curving angle, which varies across depictions but is never entirely straight (as seen above). The top-down perspective, with its tip pointing at the player, also references his infamous method of impalement instead of slashing, the traditional way of using the weapon. Meanwhile, the side stance Sephiroth adopts in the later games is reflected in the borderless art variant, showcasing a slightly lowered blade that falls under its own weight.

How is The Masamune as an Equipment in Magic?

The Masamune is no slouch and certainly lives up to its name as Sephiroth’s legendary weapon. When equipped, the creature wielding it gains First Strike and must be blocked if able. While it doesn’t have any triggers when dealing combat damage to a player (unlike other swords such as Sword of Fire and Ice), The Masamune supplies an additional benefit: “If a creature dying causes a triggered ability of this creature or an emblem you own to trigger, that ability triggers an additional time.”

That was rather wordy, so it’s worth noting a few things: 

1. The Masamune must be equipped onto a creature for it to be in effect.

2. The extra triggered ability only applies to the creature that The Masamune is equipped to. If the creature doesn’t have any triggered abilities, then The Masamune is merely a glorified long sword. 

3. Likewise with emblems, you need to have a death-triggering emblem for an extra triggered ability to happen. For example, The Masamune will not work with most emblems (like Chandra, Torch of Defiance’s emblem), but will work with the also-new Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel’s emblem.

How Does The Masamune Compare with Other Strong Magic Swords?

Swords are the most-loved Equipment in Magic history, and as you would expect, is very well represented. There have been some very strong swords that have become just as mythical in Magic’s lore as a sword as The Masamunec in the Final Fantasy realms. Let’s look at two other famous Magic swords and see how it compare with The Masamune.

Sword of Feast and Famine

Arguably one of the most powerful swords among the 10 of its cycle, Sword of Feast and Famine gives equipped creature protection from black and green, and +2/+2 stats. After connecting with a player, you get to untap all your Lands and force the opponent to discard a card. In short, every granted effect is going to get you ahead, especially when you can untap all your Lands and cast another few spells. Protection from two colours is also tough to get around, giving your creature added resilience.

The Masamune[, on the other hand, doesn’t offer any protection or evasion, but instead goads the opponent to block. With First Strike, there’s a pretty good chance your creature will come out victorious. A deck filled with death triggers will find The Masamune more useful, but in nearly every other scenario, Sword of Feast and Famine is going to be top pick. 

Sword of the Animist

Another fan-favourite of Magic players, Sword of the Animist fits into the utility category, able to expand your mana base by searching for a Land and placing it directly onto the battlefield. The +1/+1 buff is not going to be that much of a game changer, but it’s offset by the sword’s low 2-mana cost and equip.

The Masamune is clearly a better offensive tool than Sword of the Animist, and depending on what creature you have equipped, The Masamune can also outshine Sword of the Animist in pure value. For example, a Zulaport Cutthroat with The Masamune is going to be draining each opponent for 2 life instead of 1 when it triggers. That could happen any number of times you can muster, rather than just once per attack as is the case with Sword of the Animist. 

End Step

The Masamune is certainly going into every deck with Sephiroth, just for the sheer pleasure of having him swing his iconic sword, not to mention its ability synergises perfectly with Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel’s emblem. For most other decks, The Masamune is going to be quite situational and falls lower in the pecking order of powerful Equipment. But with the Buster Sword also an actual Magic card, clashing both blades in a game would be a wonderful treat.