🔗 Share this article Exclusive: The Way Magic's Avatar: The Last Airbender Expansion Revives Two Popular Tribal Mechanics Magic: The Gathering enthusiasts frequently adopt tribe-based tactics — what player hasn't assembled a goblin strategy at some point? — and this forthcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond release brings back 2 popular examples which match seamlessly with its setting. Returning Tribal Abilities One initial ability, known as "Ally," first introduced in a Zendikar and gives boosts whenever more permanents with this subtype come onto play. Meanwhile, "Shrines" represents another enchantment type which originated with Champions of Kamigawa. Although not creature-based tribal theme, these enchantments likewise become power as you has additional of them on the battlefield. The Comeback of the Ally Mechanic Although Shrine cards have shown up sporadically in newer releases, Allies subtype has been seldom seen — until that ends with ATLA, where the feature gets heavily featured. Aang has to recruit numerous companions on his quest to restore balance across the world, so it's no better way to reflect this through an Magic: The Gathering expansion. Exclusive Card Showcase After the first set reveal, below are previews at one Ally plus a Shrine cards from the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender release. Teo, Spirited Glider: The Beloved Figure This character is one popular minor character in ATLA, a boy of Earth Kingdom who lived in an Air Temple following his village was ruined in a disaster, an event that rendered him unable to walk. Thanks to his father's skill in engineering, Teo can glide through the skies with a flying device, and challenges the Avatar in an aerial race. This card Teo, Spirited Glider reproduces his passion of flying and his tribe's reliance of gliders through allowing the player draw and discard whenever a player attacks with a flying creature, and also strengthening your creatures with +1/+1 counters in the process. The Temple Card: A Powerful Shrine Enchantment Regarding Teo's home, this is represented in the card Northern Air Temple, that drains an opponent's life when entering the battlefield, based on the number of Shrines you control. The card furthermore removes an additional point anytime another Shrine comes onto the field. It looks like a strong card, given the card's cheap cost and valuable ETB effect. A major drawback of Shrine strategies outside of EDH is that these cards are always legendary permanents, however this card is effective when paired with another Shrine, which drains every opponent during the start of your main phase. A Timely Crossover At a time while Universes Beyond products are receiving a lot of hate from fans, an iconic franchise like Avatar can be exactly just what MTG requires. Spoiler season is already here, with all cards set to be released on Nov. 21.