The FFTCG, enjoyed by players all over the world, is getting a new booster pack titled “Gunslinger in the Abyss” on Friday, August 8th!
We’ve decided to give you all a first look at two of the new cards here on the FF Portal Site.
We also have a message to share from FFTCG producer, Tarou Kageyama as well as the illustrator who handled the cards’ art.
A Sneak Peek at Gunslinger in the Abyss
Hello, everyone. I’m Tarou Kageyama, producer of FFTCG.
Those of you who follow the game have probably seen blogs from me before when new cards are released. Today, I’d like to talk about a few cards from our latest booster pack: Gunslinger in the Abyss.
The art for these two was handled by Tetsu Tsukamoto. This was Tetsu’s first time doing illustrations for FFTCG, and the drawings here feature characters from FINAL FANTASY XIV. This also marks the first time original art of FFXIV has been drawn for the card game.
Both cards feature symbolic layouts, but I’m worried I’ll spoil the story of FFXIV if I explain too much, so I’ll leave it at that for now. However, take it from me as a player who’s currently obsessed with Occult Crescent (recently released content for FFXIV) that these designs will tug on the heartstrings of all Warriors of Light.
Now, let me dive into how the cards perform within the game itself.
[26-085L] Vrtra
Let’s start with the [26-085L] lightning-element Vrtra card.
[26-085L] Vrtra has a cost of 5, a power of 9000, and is a Forward. It’s highly useful as a defensive card as it can’t be chosen by your opponent’s Summons, and it possesses two auto-abilities.
One of his auto-abilities stops him from being chosen by an opponent’s abilities until the end of the opponent’s turn when he enters the field, which helps prevent him from being removed by opponents. What’s more, Vrtra cannot be chosen by an opponent’s abilities for the rest of the game—making this a special auto-ability indeed.
Vrtra also has an offensive ability up his sleeve. When a Lightning Forward you control attacks, you can dull an opponent’s Forward of your choosing and deal 7000 damage. If this defeats your opponent, then great, and even if it doesn’t you can still dull them, stopping that forward from blocking you.
This means that if you can attack other Forwards your opponent uses, you have the chance to obliterate their field without too much difficulty. Vrtra is a fine card that excels both defensively and offensively.
[Comments from the Illustrator: Tetsu Tsukamoto]
Vrtra is one of the first brood, seven wyrms sired by Midgardsormr, and satrap of Radz-at-Han. In order to mingle with his subjects, Vrtra would roam the streets of his city under the guise of the childlike simulacrum Varshahn. Once his true nature was discovered, Vrtra employed the use of an older form of his simulacrum to aid the Warrior of Light and search for his lost sister Azdaja in the void.
This card shows all three forms of Vrtra.
[26-103L] Azdaja
Next, let’s take a look at [26-103L] Azdaja.
Unlike [26-085L] Vrtra, she is a Water Forward, though they share a cost of 5, and power of 9000. She also shares two of the same abilities with Vrtra. Your opponent’s Summons cannot choose her, and she can’t be chosen by an opponent’s abilities until the end of your opponent’s turn when she enters the field, just like Vrtra.
Similarly to [26-085L] Vrtra, she has an auto-ability which is activated when a Water Forward (Lightning Forwards for Vrtra) you control attacks. Her ability allows you to choose one forward an opponent controls and return it to their hand. While this effect is different to the Vrtra card’s, it can also allow you to break through an enemy’s defenses.
[Comments from the Illustrator: Tetsu Tsukamoto]
Like Vrtra’s illustration, I included three forms of Azdaja: as the wyrm known to her kin, the Shadow Dragon weapon used by Golbez, and her dragonet form from after her rescue. I added the sky and clouds in the background to show how she’s regained her freedom. Depending on where you are in the story, both Vrtra and Azdaja are missing one or more of their eyes. But I decided to illustrate a picture from the past when she had both of her eyes intact.
I hope you enjoyed hearing about these two new cards. Both ought to allow players to do battle in new and exciting ways. There are two other cards Tetsu did original art for which I’m sure you’ll all love.
I look forward to talking to you all again for the “Journey of Discovery” booster pack! Thanks for reading.
What is FFTCG?
FFTCG is a one-on-one tactical card game featuring FINAL FANTASY characters and summons. Not only is there fun in collecting cards featuring familiar faces, the main draw of the game is the simplicity of the rules combined with the complexity of the gameplay. The art drawn for the game by famed illustrators is also a popular aspect of FFTCG!
Play the FFTCG tutorial:
https://sqex.to/FinalFantasyTCG
