Last Update: 23.09.2023
A Starter Guide
You play Magic: The Gathering and found your way to the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game?
Then welcome!
Both games have a lot in common, but sometimes the devil is in the details and certain things you are used to in Magic work differently in Final Fantasy. Likewise, many other terms are used. To help you get started, here is an overview of terms and important rule differences.
Important general rule differences
- Mulligan: The entire starting hand can be placed under the deck once and 5 new cards can be drawn. This does not shuffle the deck.
- Playing a character does not open a stack.
- When paying cards, at least 1 CP must match the element of the card. For multi-element cards, at least 1 CP of the element must be paid per element.
- FFTCG does not have "floating mana". CP are always generated in the context of paying for a card/ability and cannot be accumulated to pay with later. You may only pay a maximum of one CP per element more than the card requires, and only by discarding a hand card.
- According to the rules, when cards are played, they are first presented and then paid. From then on, a card is considered to be used. In practice, however, the cost is often paid first and the card is shown afterwards. This is important for cards like [9-084H] Kain.
- There is no priority change in the Active Phase and the Draw Phase. The opposing player gets the priority for the first time by a phase change when switching from Main Phase 1 to Attack Phase.
- In the End Phase, players may no longer play any cards or use any action or special abilities; only auto abilities are triggered.
- Card rarities in FFTCG are classified in ascending order as follows: Common (C), Rare (R), Hero (H), Legend (L). In addition, there are Starter cards (S), which can appear in boosters outside the Starter Decks only as Foil cards, and Promos (PR).
- A playset in FFTCG includes 3 cards, not 4 as in Magic.
Terminology
Magic: The Gathering ⇒ Final Fantasy TCG
Magic: The Gathering | Final Fantasy TCG | Notes / Differences |
Activated Ability | Action Ability | |
Color | Element | |
Counter | Counter | |
Creature | Forward | |
Destroy | Break | |
to Exile | Remove | |
First Strike | First Strike | |
Flash | Back Attack | |
Graveyard | Break Zone | |
Haste | Haste | |
Hexproof | Cannot be chosen by Summons or Abilities | |
Indestructible | Cannot be broken | |
Instant | Summon | FFTCG does not have sorceries as its own card type. |
Land | Backup | Any number of backups can be played in one turn. Players may control a maximum of five backups at a time. Backups enter the field dulled. If activated on the same turn they were played, they may be used to generate CP, but are not yet able to use action abilities that require dulling the Backup (require haste to do so). |
Legacy Format | Standard Format | |
Legendary |
All cards without the "Generic"-Symbol |
Cards with "Legendary" properties play a much larger role in FFTCG. Unlike MTG, players cannot play a second copy to the field and sacrifice one of them. If, via certain interactions, two identical cards with the same card name enter the field without having the "Generic Card" icon, both cards are placed on the Break Zone. |
Library | Deck | A deck in FFTCG contains exactly 50 cards and no sideboard. |
Mana | Crystal Points / CP |
Not to be confused with crystals, which are a resource in their own right. |
Permanent | Character | Characters currently are Forwards, Backups and Monsters |
Power | Power | FFTCG combines power and toughness into a single value. |
Search | Search | Searching is its own keyword in FFTCG and includes showing the card you are looking for and shuffling the deck. |
Effects similar to Sleep | Freeze | Own Keyword |
Stack | Stack | |
Standard Format | L3 / L6 Constructed Format | While sets are removed from this format every year in Magic, FFTCG only has a similar format with L3 or L6 Constructed, where only the last 3 sets or 6 sets may be used. |
Static Ability | Field Ability | Despite the perhaps misleading name, certain field abilities can function off the field and, for example, from the hand, analogous to static abilities. |
Suspend | Warp | Characters don't get Haste when they enter the battlefield |
Tap | Dull | |
Triggered Ability | Auto Ability | |
Toughness | Power | FFTCG combines power and toughness into a single value. |
Untap | Activate | |
Vigilance | Brave | |
Energy | Crystal |
Final Fantasy TCG ⇒ Magic: The Gathering
Final Fantasy TCG | Magic: The Gathering | Notes / Differences |
Action Ability |
Activated Ability | |
Activate | Untap | |
Auto Ability | Triggered Ability | |
Back Attack | Flash | |
Backup | Land | Any number of backups can be played in one turn. Players may control a maximum of five backups at a time. Backups enter the field dulled. If activated on the same turn they were played, they may be used to generate CP, but are not yet able to use action abilities that require dulling the Backup (require haste to do so). |
Brave |
Vigilance |
|
Break |
Destroy |
|
Break Zone |
Graveyard |
|
Cannot be broken |
Indestructible |
|
Cannot be chosen by summons or abilities |
Hexproof |
|
Character |
Permanent |
Characters currently are Forwards, Monsters and Backups |
Counter |
Counter |
|
Crystal Points/CP | Mana | Not to be confused with crystals, which are a resource in their own right. |
Deck | Library | A deck in FFTCG contains exactly 50 cards and no sideboard. |
Dull | Tap | |
Element | Color | |
Field Ability | Static Ability | Despite the perhaps misleading name, certain field abilities can function off the field and, for example, from the hand, analogous to static abilities. |
First Strike | First Strike |
|
Forward | Creature | |
Freeze |
Effects similar to Sleep | Own Keyword |
All cards without the "Generic"-Symbol
|
Legendary | Cards with "Legendary" properties play a much larger role in FFTCG. Unlike MTG, players cannot play a second copy to the field and sacrifice one of them. If, via certain interactions, two identical cards with the same card name enter the field without having the "Generic Card" icon, both cards are placed on the Break Zone. |
Haste | Haste | |
L3 / L6 Constructed Format | Standard Format | While sets are removed from this format every year in Magic, FFTCG only has a similar format with L3 or L6 Constructed, where only the last 3 sets or 6 sets may be used. |
Power | Power and Toughness | FFTCG combines power and toughness into a single value. |
Remove | to exile | |
Search | Search | Searching is its own keyword in FFTCG and includes showing the card you are looking for and shuffling the deck. |
Stack | Stack | |
Standard Format | Legacy Format | |
Summon | Instant | FFTCG does not have sorceries as its own card type. |
Warp | Suspend | Characters don’t get Haste when they enter the battlefield |
Crystal | Energy |
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