How Final Fantasy CHANGED Magic: The Gathering Forever (w/ Gavin Verhey)
26Magic meets Final Fantasy! In this episode, Wade (ProfNoctis), Evan, and Nick sit down with Magic: The Gathering principal designer Gavin Verhey to unpack how the Final Fantasy collaboration came to life—and why “every card is an invitation.”
What we cover:
-Gavin’s origin story (from 11-year-old aspiring designer to Principal Designer)
-How Universes Beyond brings new players into MTG (and keeps veterans engaged)
-Final Fantasy design gems: Saga Creatures (Bahamut!), Fang & Vanille meld, King Edgar’s coin-flip, and the Gold Saucer date debate
-Keeping Magic fresh: creative worldbuilding + elegant mechanics
-Why Commander builds community (and thoughts on future digital multiplayer)
-The power of Battlebond, Mystery Booster, and the “unknown events”
-SpellTable, on-ramps for beginners, and the heart of the MTG community
Key Lessons:
-“Every card is an invitation.”
-How the team balanced fan-service with avoiding spoilers
-Why losing and still having fun is the secret design
-Community as the real endgame: finding instant friends at college, LGS, and cons
Guest links:
Gavin’s YouTube — Good Morning Magic: @GoodMorningMagic
Gavin on social: BlueSky / Instagram / X / TikTok: @ gavinverhey
Questions for you (no spoilers):
-What Final Fantasy moment do you most want to pull off in a Commander game?
-Which Gold Saucer date card is your canon? 👀
-New to MTG? What helped you get past the first 5 games?
If you enjoyed this convo, hit 👍 , subscribe, and share with a friend who loves FF or MTG. For more deep-dive lectures, interviews, and playthroughs, stay tuned here on ProfNoctis. Walk tall, friends.
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