Gatta and LuzzuGatta and Luzzu | Art by Takeuchi Moto

Welcome back to Wombo Combo, the article series where we fantasize about EDH's best combo cards using data from EDHREC and Commander Spellbook. This edition, we're diving into the sprawling collaboration between Magic and Final Fantasy by looking at the best combo cards from Final Fantasy and its Commander set.

Final Fantasy started as a franchise in 1987 with the release of the original Final Fantasy, and has since become one of gaming's most recognizable franchises. The series has released sixteen main numbered entries (ending at XVI, or 16 in Roman numerals), alongside several spinoffs and remasters, including the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy VII (7) Rebirth released in 2024. The Magic x Final Fantasy crossover has brought hundreds of iconic cards and characters from the Final Fantasy franchise, and gives us a plethora of new combo potential. Let's take a look at Final Fantasy's best combo cards and see what we come across.

#10: Ultimecia, Time Sorceress // Ultimecia, Omnipotent

Number of Combos: 27

Ultimecia, Time SorceressUltimecia, Time Sorceress joins an exclusive club of creatures that can give you extra turns directly, alongside cards like Sage of HoursSage of Hours and Medomai the AgelessMedomai the Ageless. When Ultimecia transforms into its back side, you take an extra turn after this one. The key to an Ultimecia combo is being able to turn it to its front face and then also transform it to its back face each turn.

There are a plethora of creatures that have activated abilities to transform themselves, like Aetherblade AgentAetherblade Agent, whose abilities can be given to Ultimecia thanks to Agatha's Soul CauldronAgatha's Soul Cauldron. You can also sacrifice Ultimecia, Omnipotent to Altar of DementiaAltar of Dementia, giving you enough cards for the front face's transform ability, and then recast it via Muldrotha, the GravetideMuldrotha, the Gravetide. This also provides an opportunity for MoonmistMoonmist, a quirky card that can be used to transform Ultimecia without needing to use its ability.

#9: PuPu UFO

Number of Combos: 30

PuPu UFOPuPu UFO, despite having a humorous name, is a strong inclusion for Landfall decks. It serves as a functional reprint of Walking AtlasWalking Atlas and similar cards, enabling a host of landfall-related combos involving Retreat to CoralhelmRetreat to Coralhelm.

Let's be honest - there's something funny about a UFO shooting out a Rakdos CarnariumRakdos Carnarium and then the Carnarium bouncing back, all while getting infinite landfall triggers for a SabotenderSabotender win condition. If you don't have a bounceland like Carnarium, you can improvise one using Cloudstone CurioCloudstone Curio, Trench BehemothTrench Behemoth, or Storm CauldronStorm Cauldron.

#8: Squall, SeeD Mercenary

Number of Combos: 30

Squall has a simple ability that returns a permanent card with mana value three or less from your graveyard to the battlefield when it deals combat damage. When coupled with cards like Fear of Missing OutFear of Missing Out or Combat CelebrantCombat Celebrant, this can easily lead to having infinite combat phases, so long as Squall survives each combat. With Fear of Missing Out, you also get to infinitely rummage and find combo pieces you may need for ending the game.

If Squall isn't your commander, you can copy its trigger using The Peregrine DynamoThe Peregrine Dynamo, and then sacrifice Dynamo and return it via the copied trigger. Squall can also be good for exalted decks, assuming they have black in their identity, by giving the lone attacker double strike.

#7: Tromell, Seymour's Butler

Number of Combos: 32

Tromell, Seymour's ButlerTromell, Seymour's Butler has both an activated and static ability that have combo potential. The static ability causes nontoken creatures you control to enter with a +1/+1 counter on them, perfect for counteracting persist abilities. This also helps modify creatures, which can be useful for cards like Together ForeverTogether Forever.

The activated ability allows you to proliferate a number of times equal to the number of creatures you had enter the battlefield this turn. This proliferating can be turned into mana using Crystalline CrawlerCrystalline Crawler or Cryptic TrilobiteCryptic Trilobite, which can then be used to untap Tromell (via a card like Pemmin's AuraPemmin's Aura) and pay for its next activation. You can easily win the game by also having a Walking BallistaWalking Ballista or similar card out to benefit from the proliferating.

#6: Matoya, Archon Elder

Number of Combos: 33

Matoya, Archon ElderMatoya, Archon Elder takes scrying and surveilling to a whole new level by allowing you to draw a card afterwards. This effect turns good cards, like Viscera SeerViscera Seer, into amazing cards that not only provide great value, but also provide combo potential.

The Locust GodThe Locust God is a perfect inclusion, where you create a token on drawing a card, and then sacrifice it to Viscera Seer to draw a card and make another token. You can also turn a mundane Sigiled StarfishSigiled Starfish into a combo piece, using Mind Over MatterMind Over Matter to untap it. If you wish to run Matoya as a commander, you can use Nadir KrakenNadir Kraken instead of The Locust God, and simply have a way to recoup the spent each loop.

#5: Celes, Rune Knight

Number of Combos: 45

Similar to Tromell, Celes, Rune KnightCeles, Rune Knight puts a +1/+1 counter on each creature you control when you have a creature enter the battlefield from your graveyard, or cast a creature from your graveyard. Celes is limited to your graveyard, unlike Tromell, but it gives all your creatures a +1/+1 counter instead of just the creature that entered. A great way to take advantage of this is, of course, by using persist creatures, where the counter counteracts the persist ability while also buffing the rest of your creatures.

Another method is to use cards that allow you to cast them or return them from your graveyard, like GravecrawlerGravecrawler. You can put a counter on a creature like Crystalline Crawler to pay for the mana needed to cast Gravecrawler again.

#4: Gatta and Luzzu

Number of Combos: 50

Gatta and LuzzuGatta and Luzzu is included in the Commander set, and provides a VigorVigor-style effect to a creature until end of turn. In the Commander precon deck that Gatta and Luzzu is in, Counter Strike, there's an already included infinite combo that's easy to execute. You cast Gatta and Luzzu, and target Walking BallistaWalking Ballista with the ability. Then, make sure you have a +1/+1 counter increaser on the battlefield, which in the precon is Hardened ScalesHardened Scales. From here, you remove a +1/+1 counter from Walking Ballista, and target itself, causing two +1/+1 counters to be put on it due to the increaser and Gatta and Luzzu. Repeat this as many times as you want, and then remove +1/+1 counters to deal infinite damage.

Similar variants can use Walking Ballista substitutes, like TriskelionTriskelion, and other counter increasers like Lae'zel, Vlaakith's ChampionLae'zel, Vlaakith's Champion.

#3: Emet-Selch, Unsundered // Hades, Sorcerer of Eld

Number of Combos: 51

Emet-Selch, UnsunderedEmet-Selch, Unsundered is another double-faced card whose back side packs a combo filled punch. The back side (Hades, Sorcerer of Eld), has a contained Rest in PeaceRest in Peace style effect, exiling cards that would go to your graveyard instead. This is meant to keep Hades from casting the same cards repeatedly (although, of course, we have ways around that!), but it can be an advantage for cards like Eternal ScourgeEternal Scourge to easily cast them over and over again.

Hades allowing you to cast cards from your graveyard provides a great opportunity to cast extra turn spells; we just need to get around them being exiled. While the extra turn spell is on the stack, you can phase out Hades, causing its replacement effect to no longer apply, thanks to Auras like VanishingVanishing. You can also blink Hades, turning it back into Emet-Selch, by using Displacer KittenDisplacer Kitten.

#2: Ancient Adamantoise

Number of Combos: 121

Ancient AdamantoiseAncient Adamantoise is a uniquely strong martyr for your deck to absorb some damage - but for combo purposes, we really admire its last ability, where it creates ten tapped Treasures when it dies and has you exile it. A key observation about this ability is that you create the Treasures whether you exile it or not, because it does not contain the language "...exile it. When you do...". We can get around exiling it by simply having it leave the graveyard before the ability resolves.

There are several options to accomplish this, like Enduring RenewalEnduring Renewal, MortuaryMortuary, and GravewakerGravewaker, to name a few. Since the Treasures are tapped, we can untap them with Archelos, Lagoon MysticArchelos, Lagoon Mystic or a similar card, or in some cases simply sacrifice the Treasures to Krark-Clan IronworksKrark-Clan Ironworks.

#1: The Wandering Minstrel

Number of Combos: 143

The Wandering MinstrelThe Wandering Minstrel is a five-color commander built for Landfall and solely to take advantage of the new Town subtype introduced in Final Fantasy. These types of commanders are not new, and existing examples such as Hazezon, Shaper of SandHazezon, Shaper of Sand for Deserts do exist, but The Wandering Minstrel also has the massive benefit of untapping lands that would normally enter tapped. This affects Towns, essentially turning them into dual lands minus the subtypes, but also affects many other combo friendly lands, like Simic Growth ChamberSimic Growth Chamber and other bouncelands, MirrorpoolMirrorpool, and tokens created by Overlord of the HauntwoodsOverlord of the Hauntwoods.

Having this effect in the command zone for only two mana is also incredibly useful, and ensures you'll always have it early and accessible when needed. Whether you want to run a Landfall deck or a Town-focused deck, so long as you're okay with five-color decks, it doesn't get much better than The Wandering Minstrel for a strong Landfall combo commander.

Honorable Mentions

If none of these cards give you that Ultima feeling, perhaps some of these cards can help:

1. The Crystals: A cycle of five cards (one of each color), all with varying combo abilities. All serve as cost reducers for spells, while The Fire CrystalThe Fire Crystal can create tokens and gives haste to creatures, and The Earth CrystalThe Earth Crystal increases +1/+1 counters that are placed.

2. Stiltzkin, Moogle MerchantStiltzkin, Moogle Merchant: A convenient way to donate cards to an opponent, like Archfiend of the DrossArchfiend of the Dross.

3. SOLDIER Military ProgramSOLDIER Military Program: Perfectly pairs with Breath of FuryBreath of Fury and a haste enabler (like The Fire Crystal).

4. Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER: The hallmark of the franchise also serves as a strong Blood ArtistBlood Artist-style effect. Creating an emblem makes it impossible to remove the effect as well.

5. Jumbo CactuarJumbo Cactuar: A creature with an insane power buff, and allows you to gain a large benefit from cards like Elemental MasteryElemental Mastery or Swords to PlowsharesSwords to Plowshares.

Thank you very much for reading this edition of Wombo Combo, and don't forget to check out Commander Spellbook for more EDH combos and visit the Commander Spellbook Discord to submit your own EDH combos. Until next time, happy comboing!