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MTG fans consistently embrace tribal strategies — who has not built a zombie strategy before? — while the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Universes Beyond set is reintroducing two popular mechanics which align seamlessly with the setting.

Returning Tribe-Supporting Mechanics

One first mechanic, named "Ally," first introduced in a Zendikar set which provides buffs each time additional creatures with the Ally subtype come onto the field.

Alternatively, "Shrines" is another enchantment-based subtype that originated in Champions of Kamigawa. While not creature-based tribe, Shrines likewise gain strength when a player has additional Shrines on the battlefield.

A Comeback of Allies Mechanic

While Shrine cards have shown up sporadically in recent sets, the Ally mechanic has been seldom seen — but this changes with Avatar: The Last Airbender, where this mechanic is prominently used.

Aang has to gather a lot of allies on the quest to bring back balance across the four nations, so there's no more fitting way to show this through an Magic: The Gathering set.

Revealed Cards Preview

Following its initial set announcement, below are a look at an Ally plus one Shrine cards in the upcoming ATLA set.

Teo: A Beloved Figure

Teo stands as a popular minor character from Avatar: The Last Airbender, a young man of Earth Kingdom who resided in an Air Temple after his home was ruined by a flood, which left him paraplegic.

Because of his dad's prowess in engineering, Teo is able to fly through the skies using his glider, and dares the Avatar to a flying contest.

The card Teo reproduces Teo's love of flying and his tribe's use on gliders by letting the player draw and discard whenever a player attacks with a flying unit, and also strengthening your team with +1/+1 counters in the process.

Northern Air Temple: A Powerful Shrine

Regarding Teo's dwelling, this is represented in a card named Northern Air Temple, that reduces your opponent's life when coming into play, based on the number of Shrines you have.

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

It appears to be an impactful addition, considering the card's cheap mana cost plus good enter the battlefield effect.

One big drawback for Shrine-based decks outside of EDH are that these cards are always legendary permanents, but Northern Air Temple can be effective in combination alongside another Shrine, that deals damage to all opponents at the beginning of your main phase.

A Welcome Crossover

Currently when crossover products are garnering significant criticism by fans, a beloved series such as Avatar: The Last Airbender could be precisely what MTG needs.

Spoiler season is already here, and all cards will be released November 21st.