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Magic: The Gathering enthusiasts consistently adopt tribal strategies — what player hasn't constructed an elf deck at some point? — and this upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond set revives two beloved mechanics which fit perfectly to its flavor.

Reappearing Tribal Mechanics

One initial ability, named "Ally," first introduced with the Zendikar which gives buffs whenever additional creatures with this type come onto the field.

On the other hand, "Shrine" is an enchantment subtype which originated in Champions of Kamigawa. Although not creature-based tribal theme, Shrines likewise become strength as you has additional Shrines in play.

The Return of Allies Ability

Although Shrine cards have been appeared occasionally in recent sets, the Ally subtype was far less common — until this ends in ATLA, where this feature is central.

The protagonist Aang has to gather a lot of companions on his quest to bring back balance to the four nations, so there's no more fitting method to represent this in an Magic set.

Exclusive Cards Showcase

After its first card reveal, here are previews of one Ally and a Shrines card from the upcoming ATLA set.

Teo: The Beloved Figure

This character is one popular minor character from Avatar: The Last Airbender, a young man from Earth Kingdom who lived at an Air Temple following his home was destroyed by a flood, which left him paraplegic.

Because of his father's expertise with mechanics, he is able to soar through the skies using his glider, even challenges the Avatar in a flying race.

The card Teo represents Teo's passion for the skies along with his tribe's use on flying machines through allowing you draw and discard whenever you attack using a flying creature, while also strengthening your creatures via +1/+1 counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: A Strong Shrine

Speaking of Teo's dwelling, this appears as the card Northern Air Temple, that drains an opponent's life when coming into play, depending on the number Shrine cards you have.

It furthermore drains an additional point anytime another Shrine comes onto the field.

This appears to be a strong card, given the card's low mana cost plus valuable ETB effect.

One major weakness for Shrine-based strategies outside of Commander are that Shrines are typically Legendary, however Northern Air Temple can be great in combination alongside Sanctum of Stone Fangs, that drains every opponent at the beginning of your main phase.

A Timely Collaboration

Currently while Universes Beyond products have been receiving significant backlash from fans, an iconic franchise like Avatar: The Last Airbender could be exactly what MTG requires.

Spoiler season is already here, with the full set set to be launched November 21st.