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the popular card game’s Avatar crossover set will not hit the general market until later this week, yet following prerelease weekends this past weekend, one cheap green card saw a sharp rise in market worth.

Throughout the spoiler season, the earthbending cub drew significant interest. This two-power, two-toughness that costs one green and one colorless mana, Badgermole Cub includes the Earthbend 1 ability (arguably the strongest among the elemental mechanics available). Its key advantage here lies in another power: Whenever mana is generated by tapping a creature, it provides bonus green mana.

When first listed, this card could be purchased below $30. After the pre-release weekend, however, the market price has shot up above $45 including listings as high as $60. Why are we seeing Vivi prices on this adorable card? Mainly thanks to the explosive mana ramping it enables.

When it arrives the board, Badgermole Cub turns a land so it becomes a creature with earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it remains on the board, every earthbent land generates double mana — plus mana-producing creatures on your side that produce resources.

An ideal partner for synergy includes this one-mana elf, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for G mana. However there are plenty of creatures that make mana available. Another option is a more expensive alternative a 1/3 creature at a two-mana value instead.

By playing lands, dorks that generate resources, plus the cub, you may quickly play an enormous and very expensive monster on the battlefield by round three or four. Momentum builds exponentially by maintaining dominance from that point.

When adding another color with this approach, options such as versatile mana producers are all great options that can make all five colors. Additionally, this powerful dryad enables playing one extra land each turn AND makes every land you control so they count as all basics. Another possibility is something like this six-mana enchantment, at a six-mana investment gives all of your permanents the power to be tapped for a mana of any type — even each creature you have on the board.

Badgermole Cub may be OP in terms of boosting mana production, however what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? One obvious and popular answer has been Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its power and toughness match the number of lands you control, and it changes each creature you own to be Forests as well as their original types. In other words, all your creatures on your board may produce double green if used for mana.

This additional option is a costly, large threat which gains from many terrain cards (as with the previous card, P/T are equal to how many lands you have).

Nissa is an excellent fit as a go-to Planeswalker. Her static effect causes all Forests produce extra green. (With a Badgermole Cub, so each one produce triple green.) One loyalty ability acts as an early earthbend, adding counters to a noncreature land, which is great though it doesn't stack with the cub's ability. The minus ability, however, makes all of your lands immune to destruction and lets you search for all the remaining forests in your deck. Once you trigger that ability, it almost certainly game over.

The cub is nearly mandatory for all decks using green and Avatar focusing on the earthbend mechanic. By including Gruul colors, you can use Bumi Unleashed. It possesses earthbend 4, and if damage is dealt to an opponent, each animated land untap and can attack again. Although this card has become a fan favorite Commander, the cub will surely stay among the top, possibly the desired card in the collaboration.