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MTG fans frequently embrace tribe-based strategies — who has not built a goblin strategy before? — while this new Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond set is reintroducing two well-known examples that align seamlessly with the theme.

Reappearing Tribe-Supporting Mechanics

The initial mechanic, known as "Allies," was debuted in a Zendikar set which grants boosts whenever additional creatures bearing the Ally type come onto the field.

On the other hand, "Shrine" is an enchantment-based subtype that originated in Champions of Kamigawa. While not exactly a creature tribe, Shrines likewise gain strength as a player has additional Shrines on the battlefield.

The Return of Allies Ability

While Shrine cards have shown up sporadically in newer sets, the Ally subtype has been far less common — until this changes with Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which this feature gets central.

Aang must recruit numerous friends on the quest to bring back peace across the four nations, and there's no better method to reflect that through a Magic expansion.

Revealed Card Showcase

After its initial set reveal, below are previews at one Ally and a Shrine cards from the upcoming ATLA release.

Teo: The Fan-Favorite Figure

This character stands as one beloved supporting character from Avatar: The Last Airbender, a young man of the Earth Tribe that resided at an Air Temple following his village was destroyed in a flood, an event that rendered him unable to walk.

Thanks to his father's prowess in engineering, he can fly in the air using a flying device, even challenges the Avatar to a flying race.

The card Teo represents his passion for the skies and his tribe's use of flying machines by letting the player draw and discard whenever a player attacks using a flying unit, and also strengthening your team with counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: A Powerful Shrine

Regarding his home, it appears as the card The Northern Air Temple, which drains an opponent's life total upon coming into play, depending on how many of Shrines you have.

The card furthermore removes an additional point anytime another Shrine enters the battlefield.

It looks like an impactful card, given its low mana cost and valuable enter the battlefield effect.

A big drawback of Shrine-based strategies in formats besides Commander are the fact that Shrines are always Legendary, but Northern Air Temple is effective in combination alongside another Shrine, which drains every opponent during the start of your main phase.

A Welcome Crossover

At a time when crossover sets are garnering a lot of backlash by the community, an iconic franchise like Avatar can be exactly what Magic: The Gathering requires.

Spoiler season is already here, and the full set will be released November 21st.