🔗 Share this article

Magic: The Gathering enthusiasts consistently adopt tribal decks — what player has not built a zombie strategy once or twice? — while the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond release is reintroducing 2 beloved mechanics that fit perfectly with its theme.

Returning Tribal Mechanics

The first ability, called "Allies," was debuted with a Zendikar which grants bonuses each time additional permanents bearing this subtype come onto play.

On the other hand, "Shrine" represents an enchantment type that originated in Kamigawa. Although not creature-based tribe, Shrines also become abilities as a player controls more Shrines in play.

The Return for Allies Mechanic

While Shrine cards have shown up here and there across recent releases, Allies mechanic was much rarer — but this ends in Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which this mechanic gets heavily featured.

Aang must gather many allies during the journey to restore balance to the world, and it's no better method to represent this in an Magic expansion.

Exclusive Cards Preview

After its initial card reveal, below are a look at an Allies plus one Shrine cards from the upcoming ATLA release.

Teo, Spirited Glider: A Beloved Character

Teo is one beloved supporting character in ATLA, a boy from the Earth Tribe who resided at an Air Temple following his home was ruined by a disaster, an event that left him paraplegic.

Because of his dad's expertise in engineering, Teo can soar through the skies using a flying device, and challenges the Avatar in a flying race.

This card Teo, Spirited Glider showcases his passion of the skies and the Earth Tribe's reliance of gliders by letting the player loot each time a player attacks using an airborne unit, while also strengthening your team via +1/+1 counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: A Strong Shrine

Regarding his home, this is represented as the card Northern Air Temple, which drains your opponent's life total when entering the battlefield, based on how many of Shrines you control.

The card also removes an additional point whenever another Shrine enters the field.

This appears to be an impactful addition, considering its cheap mana cost and valuable ETB ability.

One major drawback for Shrine-based decks outside of EDH are the fact that these cards are always Legendary, but Northern Air Temple can be great in combination with another Shrine, which deals damage to every opponent during the start of your turn.

A Welcome Collaboration

Currently while crossover sets are garnering significant backlash by the community, an iconic series such as Avatar: The Last Airbender could be precisely what Magic: The Gathering requires.

Preview period is already here, with all cards will be launched on Nov. 21.