Wizards of the Coast’s next Universes Beyond collaboration for Magic: The Gathering is set in the world of the elements with Avatar: The Last Airbender. Wizards of the Coast released loads of new cards from the set and more details about the mechanics, and different boosters and bundles players can choose from. Magic: The Gathering x Avatar: The Last Airbender releases worldwide on November 21, 2025.
As in the ATLA universe itself, bending will play an important role in the set. Each bending is a new keyword that plays with mana in different ways.
Firebending will always include a number. Players add that number’s red mana whenever a creature they control attacks. The mana lasts until that combat ends. They can spend it before blockers are declared, after blockers are declared but before combat damage, or after combat damage is dealt but before combat concludes. It will not be available during the second main phase. Players can spend the mana anywhere they normally could, though, whether that’s on other abilities or even instants.
Airbending is a keyword action. Whenever a player airbends a permanent or a spell, it becomes exiled. As long as the card is exiled, its owner may cast it by paying 2 rather than its mana cost. This doesn’t change when the card can be cast.
Waterbend is a cost and always includes an amount of mana that must be paid. Players can always just pay the requested mana, or, for each 1 in that cost, they can tap an untapped artifact or creature they control rather than paying the mana. You can use a card that just came under your control that turn to help pay the waterbend cost.
Earthbend is another keyword action. Whenever a player Earthbends, they choose a target land they control. As the Earthbend ability resolves, that land becomes a 0/0 creature with haste that’s still a land. Then, the player puts +1/+1 counters equal to the earthbending number.
In addition to the new keywords, MTGxATLA is bringing back double-faced sagas, and the lesson, exhaust, clues, and shrines subtypes.
With the double-faced sagas, players will get to relive the history of the ATLA universe one chapter at a time. When the story is complete, the main character of the story appears on the battlefield.
Lessons will appear on some instant and sorceries. These won’t have any special meeaning other than for other cards to find it and give it meaning. Several other cards will reward players for either casting lesson spells or having lesson cards in their graveyard.
Exhaust abilities give a one-time boost to help players overcome their foes. Exhaust abilities usually give you an easy way to remember they’ve been activated, such as putting counters on the permanent. If a permanent with an exhaust ability leaves the battlefield and returns, it’s a new object with a new instance of the exhaust ability, so that ability can be activated again.
Clues return as a predefined token. It’s a colorless artifact token with 2. Players can sacrifice the token to draw a card.
Shirines are an returning enchantment type that encourges players to control a lot of them. These shirines are all legendary.
Like with the other Universes Beyond set, different types of cards and treatments highlight the specific collab.
Battle Pose cards capture ATLA characters as they prepare for combat. There are 4 textless neon ink foil borderless battle pose cards, complete with a textless treatment to show off the artwork.
Source material cards bring shots from the original series to Magic cards. There’s a grand total of 61 source material cards, one for every episode. Each will list the book and episode that the artwork came from.
Scene cards recreate epic showdowns from the series. There will be three different collections of scene cards, recreating the climax of each book. Book 1 is a 4-card scene, Book 2 is a 6-card scene, and Book 3 will be a 9-card scene, befitting of the series finale.
MTGxATLA will also be getting a Secret Lair Super Drop that releases on November 17. Wizards has not shown off the full Secret Lair drop but revealed everyone’s favorite cabbage merchant will be a part of it.