Exclusive: How Magic's Avatar Set Brings Back Two Popular Tribal Mechanics

MTG enthusiasts frequently embrace tribal decks — what player has not constructed an elf deck once or twice? — and this upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender crossover release brings back 2 popular mechanics that fit seamlessly with the theme.

Reappearing Tribe-Supporting Mechanics

One first mechanic, named "Ally," first debuted with a Zendikar which grants boosts whenever more creatures bearing the Ally subtype enter play.

Alternatively, "Shrines" represents an enchantment type which first appeared in Kamigawa. While not exactly a creature tribal theme, Shrines also gain power as you has more Shrines in play.

The Return of Allies Ability

While Shrines have been shown up occasionally across newer releases, Allies subtype was far less common — but this ends in Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which the feature gets central.

Aang must recruit a lot of companions during the quest to restore peace to the four nations, so there's no better method to reflect that in an Magic expansion.

Revealed Cards Showcase

Following the first card reveal, here are a look at an Allies and one Shrine cards from the new ATLA release.

Teo, Spirited Glider: The Beloved Character

This character is one cherished minor character in ATLA, a young man of Earth Kingdom that resided at the Northern Air Temple after his village was destroyed in a flood, which rendered him unable to walk.

Thanks to his father's prowess with engineering, Teo is able to soar through the skies using a flying device, even challenges Aang to a flying contest.

The card Teo, Spirited Glider showcases his love for flying along with his tribe's reliance of flying machines through allowing the player draw and discard each time you attack with an airborne unit, while additionally pumping your team via counters at the same time.

Northern Air Temple: The Powerful Shrine Enchantment

Speaking of his dwelling, it is represented in a card named The Northern Air Temple, that drains your opponent's life upon entering the battlefield, depending on the number of Shrines you have.

The card also removes one more point whenever another Shrine enters the battlefield.

It appears to be a strong addition, considering its cheap mana cost and good enter the battlefield ability.

A major weakness of Shrine-based strategies outside of EDH are the fact that Shrines are always legendary permanents, however Northern Air Temple can be effective in combination with Sanctum of Stone Fangs, that drains all opponents at the beginning of your turn.

The Timely Crossover

Currently while Universes Beyond sets have been garnering significant backlash by the community, an iconic series like Avatar: The Last Airbender can be precisely what Magic: The Gathering requires.

Spoiler season is already here, and the full set will be released November 21st.