Reveal: How Magic's Avatar: The Last Airbender Set Reintroduces Two Popular Tribal Gameplay Features

Magic: The Gathering fans consistently embrace tribal decks — who hasn't built a zombie deck at some point? — while this upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender crossover set brings back 2 popular examples which match perfectly to the flavor.

Returning Tribe-Supporting Mechanics

One initial mechanic, called "Allies," first introduced with a Zendikar set which gives bonuses whenever more creatures with the Ally subtype enter the battlefield.

Meanwhile, "Shrine" is another enchantment-based type which first appeared in Kamigawa. While not exactly a creature tribe, Shrines also become strength as you has more Shrines on the battlefield.

The Return for Allies Mechanic

While Shrine cards have been shown up here and there in newer releases, Allies subtype has been far less common — but this changes with Avatar: The Last Airbender, where the mechanic gets heavily featured.

The protagonist Aang has to gather many friends during the journey to bring back peace across the world, so there's no better method to represent that through an Magic: The Gathering set.

Exclusive Card Showcase

Following the first card reveal, here are a look at an Allies and one Shrine card from the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender release.

Teo: A Beloved Character

Teo is a cherished minor character in Avatar: The Last Airbender, a boy from Earth Kingdom that lived at an Air Temple after his home was destroyed by a disaster, an event that rendered him unable to walk.

Thanks to his father's prowess with engineering, Teo is able to glide in the air with a flying device, and dares Aang to an aerial contest.

The card Teo showcases Teo's fondness for flying and the Earth Tribe's use on gliders by letting you loot each time a player attacks using an airborne unit, and additionally strengthening your creatures via counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: The Strong Shrine Enchantment

Regarding his dwelling, this appears in a card named The Northern Air Temple, that reduces your opponent's life total when entering play, depending on how many Shrine cards you have.

It also removes one more point anytime a Shrine comes onto the field.

It looks like an impactful card, considering its low mana cost and good ETB ability.

A major drawback for Shrine strategies outside of Commander is that these cards are typically legendary permanents, however this card is great in combination alongside another Shrine, which deals damage to every opponent during the start of your main phase.

A Welcome Collaboration

At a time while Universes Beyond products are garnering significant backlash from fans, a beloved franchise like Avatar can be precisely just what Magic: The Gathering needs.

Spoiler season has begun, and the full set will be released on Nov. 21.