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Magic: The Gathering fans often enjoy tribal decks — who has not assembled a goblin strategy before? — while the forthcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond release brings back 2 well-known mechanics which fit perfectly with its theme.

Returning Tribe-Supporting Abilities

One initial ability, called "Ally," was introduced with the Zendikar set and gives buffs each time additional creatures with this type come onto the battlefield.

Meanwhile, "Shrine" is an enchantment-based subtype which originated with Champions of Kamigawa. While not a creature tribe, Shrines also become power when you has additional Shrines in play.

A Return of Allies Ability

While Shrine cards have appeared here and there across recent releases, the Ally subtype has been seldom seen — until that changes with ATLA, where the mechanic is central.

The protagonist Aang has to gather many friends on the journey to bring back balance across the four nations, and there's no better method to show that through an Magic expansion.

Exclusive Cards Preview

After its initial set reveal, below is a look of an Ally plus a Shrines cards in the new Avatar: The Last Airbender set.

Teo: The Fan-Favorite Figure

This character is a cherished supporting figure in Avatar: The Last Airbender, a young man from Earth Kingdom that lived in the Northern Air Temple following his village was destroyed by a disaster, an event that rendered him paraplegic.

Thanks to his dad's prowess in mechanics, Teo can soar in the air using his glider, and challenges Aang to an aerial race.

The card Teo, Spirited Glider reproduces his love for the skies and his tribe's reliance on gliders by letting you loot each time a player attacks using an airborne creature, while additionally strengthening your team via counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: The Powerful Shrine

Speaking of his home, it appears in a card named Northern Air Temple, that drains an opponent's life total when coming into play, depending on how many of Shrines you have.

It also drains one more point whenever a Shrine comes onto the battlefield.

This appears to be a strong card, given its cheap cost and valuable ETB ability.

One major weakness for Shrine strategies in formats besides Commander are that these cards are typically legendary permanents, however Northern Air Temple is great when paired alongside Sanctum of Stone Fangs, which deals damage to all opponents during the start of your main phase.

The Timely Crossover

At a time when Universes Beyond sets have been garnering a lot of hate from the community, a beloved franchise like Avatar could be precisely what MTG requires.

Spoiler season has begun, with the full set set to be released November 21st.