Preparing for the Avatar: The Last Airbender Prerelease

With Avatar: The Last Airbender on our doorstep, my hope is to outline how to properly tackle this set during the Prerelease. A Prerelease is a special tournament where everyone is playing with the cards in a set for the first time, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a leg up on the competition! Reviewing the spoiler, understanding the mechanics, what the main archetypes are trying to accomplish, and some of the individual standout cards are all part of successful preparation. Fortunately, I’m going to provide all of that information in this article.  

The primary Prerelease experience is playing Sealed Deck. However, the packs aren’t all traditional Play Booster packs. In this case, players will receive 5 Play Booster packs, and one Character Booster pack. The Character Booster highlights a specific color and character from Avatar: The Last Airbender. The Character Booster is an extremely important part of your sealed pool.

Each character booster is based on a specific character in Avatar: The Last Airbender.  

White will be Aang.  

Blue will be Katara.  

Black will be Azula 

Red will be Zuko 

Green will be Toph 

My advice is to play the color that is associated with your Character Booster. I personally really like the power level and synergy offered in white, as well as the Aang character cards, so that would be my pick. Each color has a specific mechanic associated with Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Airbending (I will get into exactly what this is) seems quite strong in white. White also has a lot of strong removal, like Pacifism sort of effects to deal with opposing creatures. However, if there is a particular color you like the most or want to play with definitely go with that, as I think all the Character Boosters should be similar in power level. Also, keep in mind there is a watermark symbol on many of the cards that is associated with one of the elements (like Airbending in white.) 

When building a 40-card sealed deck, you have a very limited pool of cards to choose from. One of the six packs primarily featuring one color will likely mean that there are more cards of that color when compared to the other colors within your total pool of cards. While it isn’t mandatory to play the color of your Character Booster, I expect almost all players to do so.  

Here are some basic rules for building a successful 40-card Sealed Deck: 

• Play 40 cards. The idea here is to maximize the chances of drawing your best cards and increase consistency.  
• Be aware of your mana curve, and more specifically, play 4-6 two-mana creatures. Two-drop creatures are easily the most important point in your curve.  
• Most decks should be two colors, or base two colors with a splash. There is a clear temptation to play lots of colors in a sealed deck, but this will lead to mana problems. 
• Try to include powerful rares or uncommons that have a big impact on the game.  
• Removal spells are the most important noncreature spells, as they answer troublesome opposing threats.  

I’m not going to go too in-depth on general sealed strategy, as I understand for many players this isn’t going to be the first time playing Sealed Deck. Let’s get into the mechanics in Avatar: The Last Airbender that make this set unique.  

New Mechanics: 

Firebending

Firebending is a keyword that also comes with an associated number attached. The number signifies the amount of red mana generated when the creature with Firebending attacks. This mana is temporary, as it is only available during combat. Having creatures with activated abilities, or alternative ways to use mana at instant speed, is valuable, to use the mana produced due to Firebending.   

Airbending

Airbending is a keyword, that will exile a permanent or spell, and then that card can be cast for two colorless mana, rather than its original mana cost. While it is possible to use Airbending on a land or token, when this happens, those cards cannot be replayed. Airbending is particularly valuable when exiling a spell with a high mana cost, making the cost reduction quite significant when being recast. 

Waterbending

A card with Waterbend has a specific cost attached to it in order to gain the Waterbend effect. This cost can be paid with mana, though for each artifact or creature tapped while paying this cost, the amount of mana needed is reduced by one colorless for each artifact or creature you elect to tap. 

Earthbending

Earthbend is another keyword action that uses a given number provided on the card. The number in the case of Earthbend, signifies how mana +1+1 counters will be put on a chosen land, which also becomes a creature with haste.  

Returning Mechanics and Card Types: 

Double Faced Sagas: These are powerful enchantments with chapters, that trigger based on the given chapter. The chapter will change during your first main phase or when entering play, as a lore counter is added to the Saga. Double-Faced Sagas can transform into a new card on the back.  

Lesson: The last time we saw the lesson subtype, there were also cards with the ability to Learn. Learn isn’t featured in Avatar: The Last Airbender, instead there are cards that benefit from casting a Lesson or having them in your graveyard.  

Exhaust: This is an ability that can be used only once.  

Raid: A bonus provided when entering the battlefield that depends on whether you attacked this turn.  

Clues: An artifact that can be sacrificed for two colorless mana to draw a card.  

Shrines: A specific subtype of enchantment that provides a benefit based on the number of Shrines you control.  

Key Archetypes 

Here we will discuss what each color pair is trying to prioritize.  

Blue-Green

This color pair wants ramp during the early turns, in order to play big payoff spells later on. Hermitic Herbalist is the perfect two drop creature in this deck. Not only does Blue-Green ramp into big spells, it wants to prioritize Lessons, and cards that benefit from them.  

Red-White

As is traditionally the case, this is an aggressive color pair. The creatures with Firebending play nicely here, as this is a deck that wants to be attacking each turn, and the extra mana can be used for combat tricks or for activated abilities. The creatures may not be large, but this deck can go wide by getting lots of creatures on the battlefield. Sun Warriors helps demonstrate exactly what this deck wants to be doing.  

Black-Green

This deck uses Earthbend to great effect, and relies on putting counters on creatures to buff them up. Creatures like Badgermole that Earthbend when entering the battlefield are staples here.  

Blue-Red

Blue-red is an archetype that wants to have lots of noncreature spells. Spells like Waterbending Lesson that provide card advantage while also being a Lesson are perfect. To pair with card advantage, cheap removal like Lightning Strike is at a premium here to slow down the opponent in the early turns.  

White-Black

White-Black can play to a sacrifice theme, with cards like Pirate Peddlers benefiting  from sacrificing a permanent, and permanents like Path to Redemption that may be sacrificed for additional value in the late game.  

Green-White

One of the key creature types in Avatar: The Last Airbender is Allies. The green-white deck often wants to play as many Allies as it can, with cards like White Lotus Reinforcements tying this theme together.  

Red-Green

This is a color combination that can be built in a couple of different ways. From pure beatdown, to ramp, to Earthbend, to benefiting off four power creatures, red-green has a few different themes at work.  

Red-Black

This is another color combination that wants to be attacking as often as possible to benefit off cards with Raid or Firebending. Zhao, Ruthless Admiral is a flexible creature that can go into the red-black deck, and is especially synergistic alongside permanents that can sacrifice themselves like Clue tokens.  

Blue-Black

Blue-Black tends to be a bit more controlling, and focused on drawing cards. Specifically, this deck wants to be able to draw two cards per turn to benefit from cards like Foggy Swamp Spirit Keeper.  

White-Blue

White-blue wants to attack in the air with creatures like Momo, Playful Pet, or Teo, Spirited Glider. Air Nomad Legacy is an example of a card that specifically provides a bonus to flying creatures.  

My Predictions: 

While I haven’t played Avatar: The Last Airbender yet, that won’t stop me from making predictions about some of the best cards to be on the lookout for, at the common and uncommon rarity.  

Common Top Picks: 

Lightning Strike- This one is a reprint so I already know it’s a good bread and butter removal spell, for a very reasonable mana cost, and automatically goes into any red deck.  

Path to Redemption- Sticking with removal, this is a Pacifism with an added bonus when sacrificed, that plays well with a sacrifice theme.  

First-Time Flyer- There are plenty of Lessons in this format to help make this creature larger. Being an Ally and having flying are both very important, so don’t sleep on First-Time Flyer, and if you have this card prioritize Lessons more than usual.  

Sold Out- Sold out is a premier removal spell, and on occasion you also will get a Clue token when using it, though most of the time it will simply be four mana to exile a creature.  

Raucous Audience- Raucous Audience is a form of ramp that only costs two mana, and even has the potential to generate two additional mana, which is a powerful effect for a two drop mana dork.  

Uncommon Top Picks: 

Aang, the Last Airbender: This card has a lot going on. Keep in mind it is able to Airbend either one of your permanents, or a permanent an opponent controls. This means that Aang, the Last Airbender can be temporary removal, while also having the added lifelink bonus on occasion.  

Knowledge Seeker: Knowledge Seeker is a really strong two drop, as it does get larger fairly easily since blue decks draw lots of cards, and it converts into a Clue token when dying.  

Heartless Act: If paying four mana to deal with a creature is good, well then paying two is better. While there are more ways to add counters to creatures in Avatar: The Last Airbender, compared to most other sets, Heartless Act can also remove counters from creatures, which gives it a lot of added versatility.  

Jeong Jeong, the Deserter: Here is an example of a powerful creature with Firebending. Being able to copy a Lesson is pretty powerful, and the extra mana provided by Firebending is helpful when activating Jeong Jeong, the Deserter.  

Toph, the Blind Bandit: Green has lots of cards with Earthbend so Toph, the Blind Bandit will often have quite a high power. Being able to Earthbend, while being a significant threat on its own, is quite a deal for the cost of three mana.  

Have fun bending at the prerelease! 

-Seth Manfield