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Magic: The Gathering enthusiasts consistently adopt tribal decks — what player hasn't built a goblin strategy once or twice? — and the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond set brings back 2 popular mechanics which fit perfectly to the setting.

Reappearing Tribal Abilities

The initial ability, named "Ally," first introduced with a Zendikar which gives bonuses whenever more permanents with the Ally subtype enter the battlefield.

Alternatively, "Shrines" is an enchantment-based type that first appeared in Kamigawa. While not exactly creature-based tribe, these enchantments likewise gain strength when you has more Shrines on the battlefield.

The Return of Allies Mechanic

Although Shrines have shown up sporadically in newer releases, the Ally mechanic has been far less common — until this ends in Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which the mechanic gets heavily featured.

Aang must assemble a lot of allies on the journey to restore peace to the four nations, so it's no more fitting method to reflect this in an Magic expansion.

Exclusive Cards Preview

Following its first card announcement, below are previews of an Allies and one Shrines cards in the upcoming ATLA set.

Teo, Spirited Glider: The Beloved Character

Teo is one beloved supporting character in ATLA, a young man of the Earth Tribe that lived at an Air Temple after his village was destroyed in a disaster, an event that rendered him unable to walk.

Thanks to his dad's expertise in engineering, he can soar through the skies using his glider, even challenges Aang in an aerial contest.

The card Teo showcases Teo's love of flying and the Earth Tribe's reliance on gliders by letting the player draw and discard whenever you attack using a flying creature, while also strengthening your creatures with +1/+1 counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: A Strong Shrine

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

It furthermore removes an additional point whenever another Shrine comes onto the field.

This looks like a powerful addition, considering the card's cheap cost and good ETB effect.

A big weakness for Shrine decks in formats besides Commander are that these cards are always legendary permanents, however Northern Air Temple is effective in combination with another Shrine, that drains every opponent during the start of your main phase.

A Timely Crossover

Currently when Universes Beyond sets are garnering significant backlash by the community, a beloved franchise like Avatar can be exactly just what Magic: The Gathering requires.

Preview period has begun, with all cards set to be launched on Nov. 21.