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the popular card game’s collaboration with Avatar isn't set to hit the general market until later this week, yet due to prerelease weekends over the last few days, a low-cost green spell has already exploded in market worth.

Throughout the spoiler season, Badgermole Cub attracted a lot of attention. This two-power, two-toughness priced at a single green and one generic mana, Badgermole Cub has the Earthbend 1 ability (possibly the strongest among the set’s four “bending” mechanics). Its key advantage with this card is another power: Whenever a creature is tapped to produce mana, add an additional green mana.

Initially, this card could be purchased below $30. Post-prerelease, yet, the market price jumped above $45 and one seller offering for sale at $60.00. The reason for Vivi prices for this cute lil guy? Mostly thanks to the incredible mana acceleration it can produce.

As it hits the battlefield, Badgermole Cub turns one land so it becomes a creature granting it earthbend. Combined with its other power, if it stays in play, every earthbent land yields two mana instead of one — along with mana-producing creatures you have that generate mana.

A clear choice for synergy includes Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 that taps to generate G mana. However many other mana generation creatures out there. Druid of the Cowl is a higher-cost choice a 1/3 creature for two mana as an alternative.

Using land cards, mana-producing creatures, and Badgermole Cub, it's simple to summon a very big high-cost monster on the battlefield by round three or four. Momentum builds exponentially by maintaining dominance after that.

By incorporating a secondary color in this strategy, options such as Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options that generate any mana color. And something like a useful enchantment creature allows you to put one extra land per turn as well as turns every land you control into every basic land type. You can also consider for example this six-mana enchantment, costing six mana grants each permanent you control the capacity to tap and generate one mana of any color — including all creatures in play.

The cub may be OP in terms of ramping up your mana generation, but how do you win in such a strategy? An often-seen solution has been Ashaya. Its stats match the number of lands you control, and it changes your non-token creatures to be Forests in addition to their original types. In other words, all your creatures on your board is able to generate two green mana when tapped.

Another creature is a costly, large threat that benefits from a high land count (as with the previous card, its stats are based on the number of lands you control).

Nissa fits really well in this deck. Her passive ability allows Forest lands generate an additional green mana. (Combined with earthbend, this results in all earthbend forests generate three green mana.) One loyalty ability functions like an early earthbend, placing counters to a noncreature land, handy though it doesn't stack with earthbend. The minus ability, however, renders each land you control indestructible and lets you draw out all the remaining forests in the deck. Once you trigger the ultimate, this typically means the game ends.

This card is pretty much essential in any green-based Avatar strategies that use earthbend. By including Gruul colors, there’s this legendary card. This card features level 4 earthbending, and when it hits a player to an opponent, each animated land untap and can attack again. While that version has become a popular Commander choice, this small creature is set to be one of the most, maybe the desired card in the Avatar set.