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MTG’s Avatar crossover set will not get a wider release in the coming days, yet following pre-releases over the last few days, an affordable green creature saw a sharp rise in market worth.

Throughout the spoiler season, the earthbending cub drew a lot of attention. A creature with stats 2/2 requiring G and 1 mana, it features level 1 earthbending (arguably the most effective among the set’s four “bending” mechanics). The real boon here is an additional effect: If mana is generated by tapping a creature, add an additional green mana.

When first listed, Badgermole Cub sold below $30. After the pre-release weekend, though, the going rate has shot up above $45 and one seller offering priced at sixty dollars. The reason for premium pricing on this adorable card? Mostly thanks to the explosive mana ramping it can produce.

When it arrives play, Badgermole Cub converts one land into a creature with earthbend. Combined with its other power, while it is not removed, every earthbent land produces twice the mana — in addition to mana-producing creatures in your control that generate mana.

An ideal partner for maximum effect includes the classic Llanowar Elves, an inexpensive 1/1 which can be tapped for G mana. Yet many alternative mana dorks in the game. Druid of the Cowl is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 costing two mana as an alternative.

By playing lands, dorks that generate resources, plus the cub, you may quickly play an enormous high-cost threat on the board early in the game. Momentum builds exponentially if you keep the pressure on after that.

When adding another color in this strategy, options such as Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid work perfectly that can make any color of mana. And something like a useful enchantment creature lets you play another terrain per turn plus turns your entire land base so they count as all basics. You can also consider such as this six-mana enchantment, costing six mana gives every card you own the power to tap and generate any color mana — which covers all creatures you have on the board.

Badgermole Cub could be too strong in terms of accelerating your resources, yet how do you win with this archetype? An often-seen solution is Ashaya. Its stats match how many lands you have, plus it turns each creature you own into Forests in addition to their original types. This means, all your creatures you control is able to tap for two G if used for mana.

Another creature provides a high-cost, powerful body that benefits from many terrain cards (as with the previous card, its stats are based on how many lands you have).

Nissa, Who Shakes the World works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. One of her abilities allows Forest lands produce extra green. (Combined with earthbend, this results in those lands produce triple green.) Her main ability is essentially a proto-earthbend, placing counters to a noncreature land, handy but it isn't redundant with earthbending. Her ultimate, on the other hand, renders each land you control immune to destruction enabling you to draw out all the remaining forests from your library. If you can actually activate that ability, this typically means game over.

The cub is pretty much essential for all green Avatar deck focusing on Earthbending. By including red-green, consider Bumi Unleashed. This card features earthbend 4, and when it hits a player to a player, each animated land are ready again and may attack once more. Although this card has emerged as a beloved leader, this small creature will surely stay among the top, possibly the popular pick in the Avatar set.