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MTG players consistently embrace tribal decks — who hasn't assembled an elf deck at some point? — while the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond set is reintroducing two popular mechanics which align seamlessly to its setting.

Reappearing Tribal Abilities

The initial mechanic, called "Allies," first debuted in a Zendikar which provides buffs whenever additional permanents with this subtype come onto play.

Meanwhile, "Shrine" represents another enchantment-based subtype which first appeared with Champions of Kamigawa. While not creature-based tribe, Shrines likewise gain abilities when a player controls additional of them on the battlefield.

A Return for the Ally Ability

Although Shrine cards have appeared sporadically across newer sets, Allies mechanic has been far less common — but this changes in ATLA, where the feature gets heavily featured.

Aang must assemble a lot of allies on the quest to bring back balance across the world, and it's no more fitting method to reflect that through a Magic expansion.

Exclusive Cards Showcase

Following the initial set reveal, here is a look of one Ally and one Shrine card in the upcoming ATLA set.

Teo: A Fan-Favorite Figure

This character stands as one popular minor figure from Avatar: The Last Airbender, a boy of Earth Kingdom that resided in an Air Temple after his home was ruined in a flood, which rendered him paraplegic.

Thanks to his dad's expertise in mechanics, Teo is able to soar in the air using a flying device, even dares Aang to a flying race.

This card Teo represents Teo's love of flying along with the Earth Tribe's reliance on gliders by letting the player draw and discard whenever a player attacks using a flying unit, and also boosting your creatures with +1/+1 counters at the same time.

The Temple Card: A Strong Shrine

Regarding his dwelling, it appears as the card The Northern Air Temple, that drains your opponent's life total when entering the battlefield, depending on how many Shrine cards you control.

The card also removes an additional life anytime another Shrine enters the battlefield.

This appears to be a strong addition, considering the card's cheap mana cost plus good ETB ability.

One big drawback of Shrine strategies outside of EDH is that Shrines are always Legendary, but Northern Air Temple can be effective when paired with Sanctum of Stone Fangs, which deals damage to all opponents at the beginning of your turn.

A Welcome Crossover

At a time when crossover sets have been garnering a lot of criticism by fans, a beloved series such as Avatar: The Last Airbender can be precisely just what MTG requires.

Preview period is already here, and all cards set to be launched on Nov. 21.