FINAL FANTASY, the first Standard-legal Universes Beyond set, is less than two weeks away from release. FINAL FANTASY will have a unique impact on Standard - unlike the main in-universe sets that have some pretty powerful cards associated with them, like Tarkir: Dragonstorm and Aetherdrift, FINAL FANTASY seems much weaker on the surface.

It's honestly kind of refreshing to look at the spoiler for FF and see a much weaker Magic set in terms of power-level compared to some of the more recent sets we've been getting. Unlike The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth which included Modern powerhouses like The One Ring, Orcish Bowmasters, and Delighted Halfling, FINAL FANTASY doesn't seem to have as many format-warping cards (at least right now). This makes sense as it feels like this set is reminiscent of Core Set power levels - the cards aren't incredibly complicated, and they serve as a way for casual MTG fans, as well as non-MTG playing FINAL FANTASY fans to get into the game.

Thus, FINAL FANTASY produces an interesting case as a Standard-legal Magic set - it's not powerful enough to where a ton of cards will have a huge impact, but at the same time it's refreshing to have a set introduced to the format that isn't full of cards that would drastically shake things up. Standard is definitely in need of some change, as Cori-Steel Cutter continues to warp the format, but I'd rather WOTC ban the card than try and cover it up with more busted cards in the next set. It also becomes hard to keep up for new players if they have to change decks every few months.

With FINAL FANTASY on a lower power level compared to recent Standard sets, it begs the question - what cards will actually see play? While I've talked about which cards I think will make an impact on the Control archetype, here are the other cards I think may or may not make an impact on the format, as the set is legal until 2028. It's also worth noting that Standard rotation is on the horizon, with five sets rotating out of the format with the release of Edge of Eternities in late July.

Ultima

Ultima is a card I've written about before, but I do want to reiterate its importance as a five-mana wrath that'll eventually take Sunfall's place. Ultima is relevant for a few key reasons, the main one being it destroys your opponent's copies of Cori-Steel Cutter. This is important in games where you're able to keep their creatures at bay, but end up losing to the Cutters that stick around. The other main reason is that it stops your opponent from flashing in a creature or getting value out of their death triggers on cards like Heartfire Hero. I really hope we get a Quicken effect in the near future to make Ultima truly devastating for your opponent.

Dark Confidant

Dark Confidant is a card that has seen tons of play in its Standard and Modern life cycles, that is, until it was power crept out of the format. As it Standard I don't think this card is remotely playable - maybe sideboardable against Control or Domain? I can't imagine ever wanting to resolve this card in the face of a Red deck, but I do think there will be Standards where this card might see play in a smaller Golgari deck, akin to the Modern Jund deck of seasons past. I think until Cutter loses its grip on the format (which might not be for a long time) you can relegate this one to your trade binder, but I might keep it around just in case. Nostalgia is a heck of a drug.

Esper Origins

This is a card that I'm unsure how to evaluate in the current Standard. I like that it gains life - I think due to the format's current speed if you're playing a card that isn't impacting the board it has to gain you value in another tangible way. I also don't think you play this in a heavy aggressive deck, as you'd rather play a mana dork or a threat in this two-drop slot. It doesn't fit into a Control shell either, as the first chapter of Summon: Esper Maduin cares about permanent cards, not instants or sorceries.

This begs the question, where does this card actually fit into Standard? The only good Standard card I can think of that cares about cards leaving your graveyard (that aren't explicitly creatures) is Defiled Crypt // Cadaver Lab. Ultimately, this is a card that maybe won't see immediate play, but it just has so many lines of text on it that it should show up somewhere. Maybe it slots into Sultai Up the Beanstalk decks, as they already play self-mill cards like Cache Grab and Seed of Hope.

Summon: Bahamut

Definitely an expensive card that still dies to a random kill spell, but I think it has legs in the right Ugin, Eye of the Storm deck. Ugin is a card I was excited for in Tarkir, but the issue with it is that it doesn't actually kill your opponent. Bahamut is just the kind of card I like to turn a game around, as it can attack while also setting back your opponent's board. If you're lucky enough, it can stick around for its final chapter, hopefully winning you the game if you have an Ugin and a few other permanents lying around. This has me interested in a Colorless or Colorless-White Ramp deck.

Adventurer's Inn

Another card I think could see play for this reason alone. I'm not sure how many strictly Colorless lands you want in a deck like this, especially if your second color is white for wrath effects or a token theme with Caretaker's Talent. But with FINAL FANTASY I think you now have enough cards to cover an Ugin-based Ramp deck.

Some cards that I think could build out this shell:

• Ugin, Eye of the Storm
• Summon: Bahamut
• Solemn Simulacrum
• Adventurer's Inn
• The Irencrag
• Sire of Seven Deaths
• Mazemind Tome
• Fountainport

Jill, Shiva's Dominant & Joshua, Phoenix's Dominant

Jill and Joshua are two cards that feel powerful enough in Standard, that feel like they slot into a number of already existing archetypes. Both feel powerful enough to see play in Jeskai Oculus, perhaps as one-ofs, but I also think they have relevance in Shiko, Paragon of the Way decks. You can't flip them in Shiko decks, if you are making token copies of them, but I think getting their ETB abilities when they come into play is enough value. They have flexible effects that I like having access to in a deck like Jeskai.

What I mean by "making it to the long game" is that Jeskai Shiko is a deck that fundamentally is favored the longer the game goes on. Control decks usually operate on this axis of getting to a point where you have a bunch of lands in play and you're doing multiple powerful things that will draw you ahead of your opponent before they can do anything to you. You get to this point by drawing cards and basically preventing your opponent from killing you.

Jill and Joshua both help out in this regard, with Jill acting as a way to slow down your opponent's onslaught, and Joshua helping you curate your hand by discarding dead cards in a given matchup to find cards that better suit your needs. If you're against an aggro deck you probably want to discard some counterspells for cards that stabilize you, like Lightning Helix or Day of Judgment. If you're against a Combo deck you'd much rather have a Three Steps Ahead than a Torch the Tower. Also when you have so much mana at your disposal you can flip these two creatures with ease - Joshua especially being helpful as he gains you life.

Again, these both cards may already have homes in Standard, but I think they do enough that they'll see play in some form or another during their Standard lifespan.

Self-Destruct

While I'm not sure how many copies you want of this card, I am pretty scared of it due to its interaction with Heartfire Hero and Screaming Nemesis. Because it targets, this card triggers Valiant, and with a Screaming Nemesis in play this not only deals 6 damage to your opponent, but it locks them out from gaining life for the rest of the game. It doesn't combo with Leyline of Resonance, thankfully, but I do think this could show up as a one or two-of in certain Red decks, especially ones that play Turn Inside Out.

Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER

Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER is another card that feels very powerful but might only have a specific home in Standard. Off the top of my head this card slots into Raise the Past decks, as you can flip Sephirtoh pretty easily with Bartolome del Presidio and fodder like Nesting Bot and Infestation Sage. Since you can't actually buy back Sephiroth with Raise the Past, or get a trigger off Enduring Innocence or Snarling Gorehound, this makes me believe you only want one or two copies of this card as a value engine to close out games.

Overall, I think FINAL FANTASY proves to be a pretty unique Magic set. There are certainly some themes present in this expansion, but because of the sixteen games in the series, it feels like the cards are all designed to do various weird and unique things, at the cost of them being rather weak in power level. It's hard to gauge how much impact this set will have on Standard, as the format is already so large with so many broken and bannable cards in it.

While there are cards I personally like and I think will make an impact, ultimately it will depend on how things in Standard shake out over the next two months. I'm hopeful we'll see a ban of some kind push the more cheaply-costed aggressive decks to the wayside, as Monstrous Rage and Cori-Steel Cutter have had their hold on the format for months now. I would even be interested to see cards like Nurturing Pixie and Stormchaser's Talent also see a ban, as I think it would lead to more diversity and creativity in the format.

FINAL FANTASY may not have as high of an impact as sets like Aetherdrift or Tarkir Dragonstorm, but I'm hopeful numerous cards will see play in Standard, especially once rotation hits and shrinks the format late July. As a FFXVI fan I'm personally excited to slot Ultima, Jill, Shiva's Dominant, and Joshua, Phoenix's Dominant into my Jeskai Shiko deck. There are a number of cards I think have potential, but a lot is going to depend on rotation, potential bans, and how powerful the upcoming three Standard sets of this year will be.