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MTG fans often embrace tribe-based tactics — what player hasn't assembled an elf deck at some point? — and the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender crossover release is reintroducing 2 popular mechanics that fit seamlessly to its flavor.

Reappearing Tribal Mechanics

One first mechanic, named "Allies," was introduced with the Zendikar set which grants buffs each time additional creatures with this subtype enter the battlefield.

Alternatively, "Shrines" is an enchantment subtype that first appeared with Champions of Kamigawa. Although not exactly a creature tribal theme, Shrines also become power when a player has more Shrines in play.

A Return for the Ally Mechanic

While Shrine cards have been appeared occasionally in newer sets, the Ally subtype has been much rarer — until that changes in Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which the mechanic gets prominently used.

Aang has to gather many allies on his quest to bring back balance across the four nations, and it's no better way to represent this through an Magic: The Gathering set.

Exclusive Cards Showcase

After its first card announcement, here are previews of an Allies and one Shrine card from the upcoming ATLA set.

Teo: A Beloved Character

Teo stands as one popular minor character from Avatar: The Last Airbender, a boy of the Earth Tribe that lived in an Air Temple following his home was ruined by a disaster, which rendered him unable to walk.

Thanks to his father's expertise with engineering, he is able to glide in the air with a flying device, and dares the Avatar to a flying race.

The card Teo, Spirited Glider showcases Teo's passion of flying along with the Earth Tribe's reliance of gliders through letting you draw and discard each time a player attacks with a flying unit, while additionally strengthening your creatures via counters in the process.

The Temple Card: A Powerful Shrine

Regarding his home, this is represented in the card The Northern Air Temple, that reduces an opponent's life upon coming into play, depending on how many Shrine cards you control.

The card furthermore removes an additional point whenever another Shrine enters the battlefield.

It looks like a strong addition, given its low mana cost and good ETB effect.

One big weakness for Shrine strategies in formats besides Commander are that Shrines are typically legendary permanents, however Northern Air Temple can be great when paired alongside Sanctum of Stone Fangs, which deals damage to all opponents at the beginning of your main phase.

The Welcome Collaboration

Currently when crossover products are receiving a lot of backlash from fans, an iconic series such as Avatar: The Last Airbender can be exactly what MTG needs.

Preview period is already here, with the full set set to be launched November 21st.