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the popular card game’s Avatar crossover set will not get a wider release in the coming days, but after pre-releases this past weekend, one cheap green card experienced a surge in market worth.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub drew significant interest. A 2/2 that costs one green and one colorless mana, the card has the Earthbend 1 ability (perhaps the most effective among the elemental mechanics available). The real boon here is its second ability: Each time a creature is tapped to produce mana, it provides bonus green mana.

At its cheapest, this card was available at around $27. After the pre-release weekend, however, its value escalated to $49.66 and one seller offering for sale at $60.00. What explains such high costs for this little creature? Mainly due to the incredible mana acceleration it provides.

As it hits play, Badgermole Cub converts a land so it becomes a creature with earthbend. And with that second ability, as long as it is not removed, every earthbent land generates double mana — in addition to other creatures on your side which tap for mana.

An ideal partner to combine with would be the classic Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for a green resource. However there are plenty of creatures that make mana in the game. Another option is a higher-cost choice that’s a 1/3 for two mana instead.

By playing lands, dorks that generate resources, plus the cub, you may quickly play a massive and very expensive monster on the battlefield within a few turns. The situation escalates exponentially with continued aggression after that.

If you dip into an additional hue in this strategy, examples including these mana-fixing creatures are excellent picks that can make all five colors. And something like a useful enchantment creature allows you to put an additional land per turn as well as turns all of your lands providing all land types. Another possibility is such as a card called A Realm Reborn, which for six mana grants each permanent you control the ability to produce any color mana — including all creatures under your control.

This card could be too strong regarding ramping up your mana generation, yet what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? A common and powerful choice is Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its power and toughness are both equal to your land count, and it changes all of your nontoken creatures into Forests as well as their original types. In other words, each creature in play can produce double green if used for mana.

Harmonious Grovestrider provides a high-cost, powerful body that benefits from lots of lands (like Ashaya, its power and toughness are based on your land total).

Nissa fits really well as a staple. Her passive ability makes Forest lands generate an additional green mana. (Combined with earthbend, so each one produce triple green.) Her plus ability acts as a form of land animation, placing counters on terrain, which is great but it isn't redundant with earthbend. The minus ability, however, grants your entire land base indestructible and allows you to draw out your remaining Forests in the deck. Once you trigger the ultimate, it’s pretty much you win.

Badgermole Cub is pretty much essential for any kind of decks using green and Avatar focusing on the earthbend mechanic. By including red-green, you can use Bumi. This card features earthbend 4, and if it hits a player to an opponent, each animated land are ready again for another attack. While that version has emerged as a popular Commander choice, this small creature is definitely going to remain among the top, possibly the desired card in the collaboration.