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MTG fans consistently adopt tribal decks — who hasn't built a zombie strategy once or twice? — while this forthcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender crossover release is reintroducing two popular examples that match perfectly to its theme.

Reappearing Tribe-Supporting Mechanics

One first ability, called "Allies," was debuted in a Zendikar set and grants bonuses whenever additional creatures with the Ally subtype come onto play.

Meanwhile, "Shrine" represents another enchantment type that originated in Champions of Kamigawa. Although not exactly creature-based tribal theme, Shrines likewise become strength as you owns more Shrines on the battlefield.

A Return for the Ally Mechanic

Although Shrine cards have been shown up here and there in recent releases, Allies subtype was seldom seen — until this ends with ATLA, in which this feature is central.

The protagonist Aang has to assemble numerous companions during his quest to bring back peace across the four nations, and there's no better method to reflect this in an Magic: The Gathering expansion.

Revealed Card Preview

After the initial card reveal, below is previews of an Allies plus one Shrine card from the upcoming ATLA release.

Teo: A Beloved Figure

This character stands as one beloved minor figure in Avatar: The Last Airbender, a boy of Earth Kingdom that lived in an Air Temple following his home was destroyed by a disaster, which rendered him paraplegic.

Due to his dad's expertise with engineering, he can glide in the air with his glider, even dares Aang to a flying contest.

This card Teo, Spirited Glider showcases his fondness of the skies and the Earth Tribe's use of gliders by letting the player loot each time you attack with an airborne unit, while additionally boosting your creatures via counters in the process.

Northern Air Temple: The Strong Shrine

Regarding Teo's dwelling, it appears in a card named The Northern Air Temple, that drains an opponent's life total upon coming into the battlefield, depending on the number of Shrines you have.

It also drains one more life whenever another Shrine comes onto the field.

It appears to be a powerful addition, considering its cheap cost plus good ETB ability.

A big drawback of Shrine-based decks outside of EDH is the fact that Shrines are always legendary permanents, however Northern Air Temple is great when paired with another Shrine, which drains all opponents during the start of your main phase.

The Timely Collaboration

At a time while Universes Beyond products are garnering significant backlash from the community, a beloved franchise like Avatar can be exactly what MTG needs.

Preview period is already here, with all cards set to be released November 21st.