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the popular card game’s special Avatar expansion won’t hit the general market before the end of the week, but following pre-releases this past weekend, an affordable green creature saw a sharp rise in value.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub garnered widespread focus. A creature with stats 2/2 that costs G and 1 mana, the card features Earthbending 1 (perhaps the best of the four bending abilities in the set). The real boon in its design lies in another power: Each time a creature is tapped to produce mana, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, this card was available for $26.98. After the pre-release weekend, yet, its value has shot up to nearly $50 with at least one listed priced at sixty dollars. Why are we seeing Vivi prices on this adorable card? Primarily because of the explosive mana ramping it can produce.

Upon entering play, the cub turns a land into a creature with earthbend. And with that second ability, if it stays in play, every earthbent land generates double mana — in addition to any creatures in your control that generate mana.

The obvious go-to for synergy is the classic Llanowar Elves, a low-cost creature that taps to generate a green resource. However many other mana generation creatures out there. This particular druid is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 costing two mana in comparison.

Using land cards, creatures that tap for mana, and Badgermole Cub, you may quickly play a very big and very expensive threat on the battlefield early in the game. Momentum builds exponentially if you keep the pressure on from that point.

If you dip into another color in this strategy, cards like Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options that can make any mana color. Additionally, this powerful dryad lets you play one extra land each turn as well as transforms your entire land base so they count as all basics. It's also worth trying for example the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana gives all of your permanents the capacity to tap and generate a mana of any type — including each creature in play.

Badgermole Cub may be OP regarding ramping up your mana generation, yet what closes out the game with this archetype? An often-seen solution already is this legendary creature. Its power and toughness match your land count, plus it turns all of your nontoken creatures Forests along with their original types. In other words, each creature you control may produce double green when tapped.

Harmonious Grovestrider provides a high-cost, powerful body that benefits from many terrain cards (similar to Ashaya, P/T are based on your land total).

Nissa, Who Shakes the World fits really well in this deck. One of her abilities allows every Forest generate an additional green mana. (With a Badgermole Cub, so each one yield three G.) Her plus ability acts as a proto-earthbend, adding counters to a noncreature land, handy but does not overlap with earthbending. Her -8 ability, however, renders all of your lands unbreakable and lets you put onto the battlefield your remaining Forests in the deck. Should you manage to use the ultimate, this typically means the game ends.

This card is nearly mandatory for all green-based Avatar strategies built around Earthbending. By including red-green, there’s this legendary card. This card features earthbend 4, and if damage is dealt in combat, each animated land become untapped and may attack once more. Although this card has emerged as a beloved leader, the cub is set to be one of, if not the most desired card in the collaboration.