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Magic: The Gathering’s collaboration with Avatar will not hit the general market before the end of the week, but due to prerelease weekends recently, an affordable green creature experienced a surge in market worth.

Even during previews, Badgermole Cub garnered significant interest. A creature with stats 2/2 priced at a single green and one generic mana, it includes Earthbending 1 (arguably the most effective among the elemental mechanics available). Its key advantage with this card lies in an additional effect: Whenever you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

At its cheapest, Badgermole Cub was available below $30. Following the early events, though, its value escalated to nearly $50 and one seller offering priced at sixty dollars. Why are we seeing such high costs for this little creature? Mainly due to the incredible mana acceleration it provides.

As it hits the battlefield, Badgermole Cub converts a terrain card into a creature that has earthbending. And with that second ability, if it stays in play, each affected land produces twice the mana — in addition to any creatures on your side which tap for mana.

An ideal partner for synergy is the classic Llanowar Elves, a low-cost creature that taps to generate G mana. However many alternative mana dorks available. This particular druid costs a bit more with stats 1/3 for two mana instead.

Using land cards, creatures that tap for mana, and Badgermole Cub, you can easily get a massive and very expensive monster into play within a few turns. Momentum builds exponentially by maintaining dominance from there.

When adding a secondary color with this approach, cards like Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options which produce any color of mana. Additionally, this powerful dryad allows you to put one extra land each turn plus turns every land you control providing all land types. Another possibility is such as the enchantment A Realm Reborn, at a six-mana investment gives each permanent you control the power to produce one mana of any color — even each creature you have on the board.

Badgermole Cub could be too strong regarding boosting mana production, however how do you win with this archetype? A common and powerful choice has been Ashaya. Its stats match how many lands you have, plus it turns all of your nontoken creatures to be Forests along with their other types. In other words, each creature you control may tap for two G by tapping.

This additional option is a costly, large threat that thrives with many terrain cards (like Ashaya, P/T match how many lands you have).

Nissa is an excellent fit in this deck. Her static effect makes every Forest generate an additional green mana. (With a Badgermole Cub, this results in each one produce triple green.) One loyalty ability acts as an early earthbend, putting +1/+1 counters to a noncreature land, handy though it doesn't stack with the cub's ability. Her ultimate, though, makes all of your lands unbreakable and allows you to put onto the battlefield every Forest left in your deck. Should you manage to use the ultimate, it almost certainly the game ends.

This card is nearly mandatory for any kind of green-based Avatar strategies focusing on earthbend. By including red-green, there’s this legendary card. It possesses level 4 earthbending, and if it hits a player in combat, land creatures untap and can attack again. Although this card has emerged as a popular Commander choice, the cute little Badgermole Cub will surely stay one of, if not the most desired card in the Avatar set.