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MTG enthusiasts frequently embrace tribe-based strategies — who hasn't constructed a goblin strategy at some point? — while the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender crossover set revives two beloved examples which align seamlessly to the flavor.

Returning Tribe-Supporting Abilities

The first ability, known as "Ally," was debuted in the Zendikar and provides buffs whenever more permanents bearing the Ally subtype enter the field.

Alternatively, "Shrine" is another enchantment-based type that first appeared with Champions of Kamigawa. While not exactly a creature tribe, these enchantments likewise gain strength as you owns additional Shrines in play.

A Return for the Ally Mechanic

While Shrines have shown up sporadically across recent sets, Allies mechanic was much rarer — until that ends with Avatar: The Last Airbender, where the mechanic gets central.

The protagonist Aang must assemble a lot of companions during his journey to restore balance to the four nations, and there's no more fitting method to show this in a Magic expansion.

Exclusive Card Preview

After its first set announcement, here are previews of an Ally and one Shrines card from the new ATLA set.

Teo, Spirited Glider: A Beloved Figure

This character is one popular minor figure in ATLA, a young man from the Earth Tribe who resided at an Air Temple following his village was ruined by a disaster, which rendered him paraplegic.

Thanks to his father's skill with engineering, he is able to glide through the skies using a flying device, even dares the Avatar to a flying contest.

The card Teo showcases his passion of flying along with the Earth Tribe's reliance of flying machines through allowing you loot each time a player attacks using an airborne creature, while additionally strengthening your team via +1/+1 counters in the process.

Northern Air Temple: The Strong Shrine

Regarding his home, this is represented as the card The Northern Air Temple, which reduces an opponent's life upon entering play, based on the number of Shrines you have.

The card furthermore removes an additional life anytime another Shrine enters the field.

This appears to be an impactful addition, considering its low cost and good enter the battlefield ability.

A big weakness of Shrine decks in formats besides EDH are the fact that these cards are always Legendary, but Northern Air Temple is great in combination with Sanctum of Stone Fangs, which drains every opponent at the beginning of your turn.

A Timely Collaboration

Currently while Universes Beyond products are receiving a lot of hate from the community, a beloved franchise like Avatar: The Last Airbender could be precisely what Magic: The Gathering requires.

Preview period is already here, with the full set will be released on Nov. 21.