Avatar: the Last Airbender Limited Guide

Hey everyone, how’s it going?

It’s november already, and the year is almost over, but first we have another new set to have fun with: Avatar: The Last Airbender is here, with all its iconic characters, in our beloved Magic: the Gathering.

Today we’ll talk about the mechanics, limited archetypes, manabase, removals, and all you need to know for Draft, Sealed, and Prerelease events.

Unlike Marvel's Spider-Man, Avatar: The Last Airbender will not have a special digital-only set, meaning all cards’ names are the same.

So first on our analysis, let’s talk about the set’s mechanics. If you want a more in-depth look, here’s an article by judge Antonio Faillace on it.

Avatar Mechanics

Following Avatar’s flavor, we have a new mechanic for each of the four elements, and also two returning mechanics.

Exhaust

One of the returning mechanics, exhaust is an activated ability that can only be used once for that permanent (remember that, when leaving and returning to the battlefield, it is considered as a new object, and exhaust can be activated again).

Its predominant colors are red, blue, and green, but it can also be found in black.

Lesson

Unlike Strixhaven, which had the Learn ability, allowing you to search for a lesson in the sideboard, Avatar only has abilities and effects that care about Lessons.

Here are some of those cards that care about the Lesson type.

And here are some Lessons:

Airbending

Airbending lets you exile a creature from the field, and it can be cast from exile by its controller for the cost of .

An excellent mechanic to remove blockers and put damage through, all while delaying your opponent.

Waterbending

Waterbending is an alternative cost that can be paid in a way that blends convoke and improvise, meaning we can tap creatures and artifacts to reduce the mana cost.

It's an interesting way to take advantage of artifacts on the field, generating mana advantages.

Firebending

Firebending is a mechanic where its value represents the amount of red mana that will be generated by the ability, which triggers when the creature attacks. This mana remains in reserve until the end of combat, going away afterwards.

This mechanic is extremely useful for paying ability costs, casting instant spells, or even using combat tricks.

Earthbending

Earthbending is also an ability with a numbered value, where a land becomes a creature with Haste and 0/0 stats, receiving counters equal to the ability's indicated number.

If the land dies or is exiled, it returns to the battlefield tapped, becoming just a land.

Now that we know the set’s mechanics, let’s explore the archetypes!

Azorius Flying

In blue and white colors, we have an archetype that cares about evasive creatures.

What we're looking for are creatures with flying or that have synergies with flying creatures, thus abusing evasion to connect more damage.

Cards like Momo, Friendly Flier are good signs to play this archetype, being an aggressive option and a card that accelerates the archetype's creatures.

Air Nomad Legacy is another relevant piece, creating an artifact that can be used with Waterbend and strengthening creatures related to the archetype.

Aang, the Last Airbender allows us to open up space for attacks. With some Lesson spells, it’ll gain lifelink, which can be a very relevant ability in limited.

Glider Staff is a way to complement the archetype if you lack evasive creatures, transforming your other threats into flying creatures.

Appa, Loyal Sky Bison despite a high cost, has good abilities, with the possibility of evading another creature or removing an opponent's creature from the way. It's an interesting top-of-curve card for the archetype.

Benevolent River Spirit can be an aggressive alternative if we have an artifact setup with creatures to accelerate their entry onto the battlefield.

Teo, Spirited Glider grants card selection, boosting our hand. When we discard a non-land card, it further increases the power of our creatures that don't need flying.

Wan Shi Tong, Librarian is a creature that makes excellent use of late-game mana, replenishing our hand in the process.

Aang, Swift Savior besides delaying removal with its ability, also allows us to use excess mana in the late game to transform, becoming a significant creature on the battlefield that strengthens others.

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Orzhov Sacrifice

In black and white, we have an archetype focused on sacrificing permanents. To achieve this, we'll need four types of cards:

- Cards that care about sacrifices or destroyed/dead permanents, allowing us to take advantage of the archetype's synergy;

- Cards that sacrifice other permanents, activating the archetype's strategy;

- Cards that create multiple permanents, to conserve our board and avoid running out of material for sacrifices;

- Cards that have death triggers, adding another layer of synergy to the archetype.

Tolls of War is an essential piece for the archetype. It self-sacrifices, creates 2 permanents, and also generates tokens when we sacrifice permanents on our turn.

Hei Bai, Spirit of Balance is an excellent way to activate the sacrifice mechanic, and is also a possible sacrifice target, as it transfers its counters upon death.

To replenish the board, we have Pretending Poxbearers, which leaves behind another body upon death, making it an efficient sacrificial item.

Fire Navy Trebuchet is another good option for using the sacrifice mechanic with a more aggressive style, as it allows you to attack and create tokens.

June, Bounty Hunter allows you to use sacrifice to create Clue Tokens, which can be sacrificed to generate card advantage and keep the archetype functioning.

Phoenix Fleet Airship is another way to create sacrifice options. Its exponential: the longer it's on the field while the mechanic is active, the more efficient it becomes. With the sacrifice setup ready, this card can win the game in one turn.

Sandbender Scavengers is another interesting piece that, within the archetype's mechanics, can grow rapidly. And, if removed, it can still bring another creature from the graveyard back to the field, reducing the efficiency of the opponent's cards.

Obsessive Pursuit is a double-edged sword. It gives us an aggressive game plan, placing counters on our creatures as we sacrifice permanents during the turn. Additionally, it places Clue Tokens at the end of the turn and gives lifelink to a creature if three or more permanents have been sacrificed during the turn. It's important to mitigate the self-damage when creating Clue Tokens, making life gain essential.

Deadly Precision is the type of removal the archetype needs.

Curious Farm Animals is an alternative that offers life gain and the possibility of removing enchantments or artifacts from the battlefield.

Barrels of Blasting Jelly is interesting as a mana fix and also as a removal spell that acts as a filter. Its ability allows you to adjust mana in the early turns, functioning as efficient support while we’re setting up.

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Boros Aggro

In red and white, we have an aggro archetype that focuses on quickly populating the battlefield to finish the game as soon as possible. For this strategy, we prioritize low-cost creatures that apply pressure early in the game and cards that enhance the overall power of the board.

Invasion Reinforcements is a good option for the early game, bringing two bodies to the field. It can be cast on the opponent's turn or by using the mana generated with Firebending during combat.

Momo, Playful Pet is an interesting creature due to its evasion and leaves-the-battlefied abilities.

Yuyan Archers is an aggressive option that allows you to punish slower strategies. However, it's important to have removal for small creatures to avoid losing against smaller blockers due to low toughness. Its ability is useful for discarding excess lands or finding an answer to problems on the board.

Suki, Courageous Rescuer is one of the key pieces of the archetype, boosting the entire board. It holds everything together when we perform attacks that result in trades or when we use Airbending on our own creature for a new ETB, as in the case of Invasion Reinforcements.

Water Tribe Captain is an interesting piece when combined with creatures that have Firebending. This provides extra mana to activate its ability, making our attacks even more powerful.

Sun Warriors is an excellent top-of-curve card, with a decent body that's difficult to remove. Its ability is interesting for expanding our battlefield while boosting Firebending, which can be used to create more creatures.

Cards with Airbending, such as Aang, the Last Airbender, are capable of removing blockers, allowing us to deal the necessary damage to end the game. An efficient strategy is to conserve these cards to deal with problematic blockers, such as lifelink blockers, after the starting setup.

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Selesnya Allies

In green and white, we have a strategy focused on the Ally subtype. Here we want to activate the synergies between these cards, looking for creatures that empower other creatures[.

Earth King’s Lieutenant is a copy of Thalia’s Lieutenant for Ally creatures.

White Lotus Reinforcements is a very strong piece in the archetype, empowering the entire board.

Creatures that put more than one ally onto the battlefield are also important to our strategy, such as Invasion Reinforcements, Kyoshi Warriors, and Suki, Courageous Rescuer.

South Pole Voyager, in addition to offering a significant life gain to the archetype, also provides card advantage by putting two creatures onto the battlefield in the same turn.

United Front is the most potential card in the archetype, especially when combined with Great Divide Guide, creating the maximum number of tokens possible.

Hakoda, Selfless Commander is a way to protect our key pieces or creatures from mass removal (except in sacrifices).

Avatar Enthusiasts is another threat in the archetype, with the potential to scale quickly.

Jasmine Dragon Tea Shop is an excellent land to fix the colors of the archetype, with the ability to create tokens in the late game.

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Dimir Second Draw

In blue and black, we have an archetype focused on interactions with the second card drawn on the turn. Here we will progress our strategy from the mid to the late game, seeking resources and creating small advantages, midrange-style.

We look for cards that synergize with the second card drawn for the turn, such as Foggy Swamp Spirit Keeper. It has the potential to pave the way for constant damage, without the possibility of being blocked by the opponent. With a significant amount of removal and the card's lifelink, the strategy becomes very effective.

Raven Eagle is a very strong card for the archetype. It controls the opponent's graveyard, but can also use ours. It also creates conditions to draw the second card of the turn and provides material to enhance Waterbending with the Clue Token. In addition, when we draw the second card, it drains the opponent and, being a creature with evasion, can connect good damage.

The Unagi of Kyoshi Island is a strong piece in its own right, making it a great finisher for the deck.

Otter-Penguin by maintaining a consistent purchase frequency, becomes a threat that forces the opponent to respond, otherwise they may lose the game.

Foggy Swamp Hunters plays an important role in maintaining our life points with its lifelink, in addition to being a great blocker due to its 4 toughness. This makes it difficult for the opponent to attack, especially without knowing if we will have lifelink.

The rest of the archetype relies on a strong removal package such as: Heartless Act, Epic Downfall and Swampsnare Trap. In addition to tempo plays like Boomerang Basics, Invasion Submersible or Lost Days.

Rowdy Snowballers also helps to delay the opponent, removing blockers to connect damage and prevent any counter strikes.

Azula, On the Hunt is a way to generate Clue Token while pressuring the opponent's life points.

June, Bounty Hunter has the same function, but uses the sacrifice mechanic.

Sold Out is the permanent removal of the archetype, and can create a Clue Token if the target has taken damage.

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Izzet Combat Lessons

In blue and red, we have an archetype focused on spells and Lessons. So we’ll also use cards that synergize well with all the spellslinging.

Ran and Shaw is a great example of this, checking the graveyard to count the number of Lessons.

Dragonfly Swarm is also part of the strategy, but requires a balance between creature and non-creature cards, as using few spells can weaken its effectiveness.

Gran-Gran significantly speeds up the game in archetypes with many Lessons, reducing the cost of your spells. It can also be used to cast Waterbend spells, such as Crashing Wave or Waterbending Lesson, helping with card selection.

The Mechanist, Aerial Artisan conserves resources, creating Clue Token to keep our hand full while we search for more spells. These tokens can also be used as creatures to block or attack.

Boar-q-pine is the classic creature that grows when you cast spells. In this set, it can respond to spells like Heartless Act by adding a counter that protects it from being destroyed.

Sokka, Bold Boomeranger is reminiscent of the hand-cycling effect when entering the battlefield.

Serpent of the Pass plays a similar role to Tolarian Terror, being essential for its Flash and potential reduced cost to 2 mana. Its difficulty lies in finding more copies, as it is uncommon.

Professor Zei, Anthropologist works well in the early turns, protecting your life points and fixing your hand.

Creatures with Firebending combine very well with prowess abilities. Fire Nation Cadets and Fire Sages are good additions. Another option is Firebending Student, which has a variable level of firebending. It has prowess, allowing for increased power and mana to cast more instants in combat.

Mai, Jaded Edge creates a significant threat when combined with firebending creatures, potentially dealing lethal damage quickly.

The archetype searches for spells that cycle the hand or increase available resources.

Accumulate Wisdom is especially efficient in decks with many Lessons.

With the same idea, but applicable to removals, we have Combustion Technique, which gains strength with Lessons in the graveyard.

Cunning Maneuver makes good use of the excess mana generated by Firebending.

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Simic Ramp Lessons

In green and blue, we have an archetype geared towards ramp, focusing on Lesson cards. Creatures will typically have better effects if there are Lesson cards in the graveyard. Unlike Izzet, the strategy here is to increase mana availability.

Hermitic Herbalist is a good mana acceleration option, particularly strong when used with Lessons.

Shared Roots is another option that helps progress our mana and feed the graveyard with Lessons.

Aang’s Journey is interesting for mana fixing.

Due to the difficulty of removal in the archetype's colors, Zuko’s Exile, despite its high cost, emerges as a good alternative.

Origin of Metalbending offers versatility, being able to remove important enchantments or artifacts from the opponent, as well as protecting our creatures.

Bumi, King of Three Trials makes good use of the archetype by adjusting the top of the deck, increasing its own power and creating another creature, as long as at least 3 Lessons are in the graveyard.

Guru Pathik replenishes itself by searching for Lessons, Shrines, or Sagas, and places counters on creatures when spells of those types are cast. An important detail is that the spells must be of these three types, not just noncreature.

Watery Grasp is another removal option, being relatively easy to shuffle the opponent's creature.

Giant Koi is one of the top-of-curve options in the deck. It's a strong creature with evasion that can be decisive in finishing games. It also has Islandcycling, which allows you to not miss on your land drops.

Saber-Tooth Moose-Lion is a finisher alternative, standing out for its Forestcycling ability, useful for searching for lands when needed. It combines well with True Ancestry.

Planetarium of Wan Shi Tong is a valuable card for the archetype's ramp, allowing spells to be cast without paying their cost, using its scry as payment.

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Rakdos Fire Nation Aggro

In black and red, we have an aggressive archetype that seeks to pressure the opponent with constant attacks. The focus is on creatures with Firebending or that utilize the mana generated by this ability.

Zuko, Exiled Prince is excellent for generating mana and also taking advantage of our excess mana.

Azula, On the Hunt also generates mana and pays the activation cost of the Clue Token it creates, guaranteeing more resources in hand.

Fated Firepower enhances our damage, taking advantage of the mana generated by Firebending. With a good setup, it's easy to achieve a 3 or 4 damage increase.

Firebending Student combined with spells that increase power, such as Cunning Maneuver, can generate more mana than was initially spent.

Cruel Administrator is an efficient creature that produces tokens with Firebending and has a considerable body.

Vindictive Warden complements the direct damage, being even more effective with the Firebending present in the archetype.

Ozai, the Phoenix King is very strong on its own and, if it untaps, can win the game by itself.

Twin Blades adds double strike to a creature, and can be played with the mana from Firebending thanks to Flash. This disrupts the opponent's calculations, ending games quickly.

Zhao, Ruthless Admiral works well in sacrifice strategies, empowering creatures. It can be combined with a splash for white, amplifying these synergies.

Removal spells like Heartless Act and Lightning Strike are essential to take advantage of the mana generated by Firebending in order to remove blockers and guarantee direct damage to the opponent.

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Golgari Counters

In black and green, we have an archetype with synergy in counters. We seek creatures with either Earthbending or place-counter effects on other creatures, as well as cards that take advantage of these counters, such as Dai Li Agents.

The strategy is simple: transform lands into creatures and deal damage with massive attacks.

Long Feng, Grand Secretariat balances the losses by reusing counters.

Toph, the Blind Bandit works very well within the archetype, dealing significant damage through lands.

Rebellious Captives uses excess mana to strengthen itself and transform lands into creatures.

Badgermole grants trample to creatures with counters, making it difficult for the opponent to block.

Azula Always Lies is useful as a combat trick, preventing unfavorable trades.

Heartless Act and Epic Downfall help deal with opposing creatures while maintaining pressure.

Dai Li Indoctrination solves the problem of untargeted discards, creating an additional threat when the opponent has no more cards in hand.

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Gruul Earthbending Ramp

In red and green, we have an archetype focused on heavy spells, using ramp to increase our mana availability.

Shared Roots and Cycle of Renewal are excellent for manipulating lands. By sacrificing a land under the effect of Earthbending with Cycle of Renewal, it returns to the battlefield, offering an extra land.

Great Divide Guide and Raucous Audience are also great ramp options, with Raucous Audience working best for cards with power 4 or higher.

With the ramp established, we look for high-impact cards:

Bumi, Unleashed is the most powerful card in the archetype. It represents 9 power on the battlefield for 5 mana and adds a combat phase for lands with Earthbending.

Bitter Work helps replenish your resources when attacking with creatures of power 4 or more, in addition to creating a creature land with 4 counters.

Toph, the Blind Bandit synergizes well by transforming lands into creatures.

The Legend of Kyoshi is a powerful saga within the archetype, replenishing your hand, creating creatures, and forcing responses from your opponent.

[Tiger-Dillo] offers aggressiveness, reaching the attack on turn 3 with 4 power.

[Flopsie, Bumi's Buddy] is ideal in the late game, strengthening our board and making it difficult for the opponent to block, as they cannot use more than one blocker against the same creature.

[Earthbending Lesson] can be used in decks with Lessons, combining with cards like [Toph, Hardheaded Teacher] that strengthen your Earthbending.

[Uncle Iroh] reduces spell costs, anticipating important plays and functioning as a creature with 4 power on turn three.

[The Earth King] adds 6 power for 4 mana and helps with ramp when attacking, decreasing the chances of drawing lands and ensuring more consistent spellcasting.

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Let’s see now which options can be found in the set!

Lands

The set has a 10 dual-land cycle, and also utility lands to help.

Artifact / Colorless

Barrels of Blasting Jelly is both a mana fixer, even if for just one turn, and a nice removal, all in one package.

Bender’s Waterskin is a way to correct colors and increase our mana availability, being untapped during the untap step.

Another way to adjust colors and guarantee a land drop is with Aang’s Journey, which searches our deck for a basic land and puts it into our hand.

Energybending emerges as a way to adjust the mana our lands produce. It is especially efficient when used in conjunction with Firebending during combat, allowing us to reach the second main with all lands available to use in the desired color.

Creatures

The Earth King is capable of adjusting any mana color in the deck while ramping, with the correct setup.

Other good options are The Lion-Turtle and Hermitic Herbalist in the blue and green combination, as well as Great Divide Guide in green.

Among them, only Hermitic Herbalist is not rare, making it the main available alternative for color correction. Thus, dual lands remain the best way to adjust colors.

One of the most important parts of any Limited review, let’s analyze each color’s main options.

Colorless

Zuko's Exile is a good alternative if you lack removal options or are concerned about having the right mana colors to remove it. Its cost, while high, is viable in limited, but it provides the opponent with a Clue Token, which can facilitate the use of Waterbending or generate a draw advantage in the Second Draw archetype.

Meteor Sword functions like a Meteor Golem in equipment. Although expensive, it can be the solution for specific threats on the field.

White

For all intents and purposes, we will not include Airbending cards as removal spells, since, although they delay the opponent and remove creatures at key moments, they are not permanent.

Aang’s Iceberg is a classic white removal spell. Its extra abilities justify its rarity, but follow the expected pattern in Limited.

Airbender’s Reversal can be useful for temporarily removing an opponent's piece, especially at crucial moments.

Avatar’s Wrath is a good way to delay the opponent, particularly against archetypes that flood the board with creatures. When used well, it can even end games, removing obstacles to deal lethal damage.

Destined Confrontation is ideal for aggressive archetypes, allowing you to remove blockers and maintain your battlefield.

Sandbenders’ Storm brings versatility, removing major threats and creating a new creature to strengthen the board.

Blue

In blue, Honest Work is effective at "shutting down" a key opponent's creature, removing its abilities in exchange for generating colorless mana.

Watery Grasp presents an innovative form of removal in blue, shuffling the opponent's creature into the deck. It's the closest thing to true removal that other color offers.

Black

Heartless Act is one of the most efficient removal spells in the format, but should be used with caution due to the large number of counters in the set.

Day of Black Sun is a board wipe that can be used to build a strategy around it. Because it is rare, it is difficult to play thinking of this card as a threat.

Epic Downfall hits about 69% of the creatures in the set, being well positioned against higher-cost threats.

The Fire Nation Drill removes approximately 91% of creatures in the format. However, combat tricks can be used by the opponent to prevent removal, increasing the creature's power at the right moment.

Swampsnare Trap is effective against approximately 65% ​​of creatures in the set, and can be used to deal with major threats and prevent attacks.

Sold Out is a permanent removal spell that exiles the target creature, justifying its 4 mana cost.

Red

[Bumi Bash] is an interesting removal spell in the format because it targets lands. Its second option is more relevant in constructed than in limited.

[Combustion Technique] depends directly on the number of Lessons in the deck, but can be very efficient in decks that use it.

[Firebending Lesson] has the same reach as [Combustion Technique], but improves significantly when its kicker is paid, hitting approximately 94% of the creatures in the collection.

[The Last Agni Kai] depends on our creatures, being essential to use when the opponent is out of mana or available answers.

[Lightning Strike] is a classic removal spell, dealing damage to the player or creature. In the format, it hits about 65% of creatures, being excellent in the early game.

Green

In green, all removals depend on other creatures. Earth Rumble deviates slightly from this by first creating a creature with Earthbending.

Origin of Metalbending adds versatility to artifact or enchantment removals, also protecting our creatures. The card works well in the main deck, regardless of whether it's just a sideboard answer or not.

The set turned out very well. The new mechanics bring an interesting complexity to the game, making it difficult to read the best option at times.

Firebending seems to be one of the strongest mechanics in the collection, and I believe many players will seek to explore this playstyle. Those who make the best use of the extra mana will likely achieve the best results.

Which archetype do you think it’s the best?

Personally, I believe in Rakdos Fire Nation Aggro, since the deck has great potential and can also help with extra mana, putting you very ahead in races.

Hope you enjoyed it!

Remember to leave a comment if you have any questions. See you next time!