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the popular card game’s special Avatar expansion will not become widely available in the coming days, but following early access events recently, one cheap green card experienced a surge in price.

Even during previews, this small creature attracted widespread focus. A creature with stats 2/2 that costs G and 1 mana, it includes the Earthbend 1 ability (possibly the best of the four bending abilities in the set). The real boon in its design lies in an additional effect: If you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

When first listed, Badgermole Cub could be purchased below $30. After the pre-release weekend, yet, the market price escalated to nearly $50 and one seller offering priced at sixty dollars. Why are we seeing premium pricing on this adorable card? Primarily because of the incredible mana acceleration it can produce.

As it hits the battlefield, this creature turns a terrain card to a creature land that has earthbending. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it is not removed, every earthbent land yields two mana instead of one — plus other creatures on your side which tap for mana.

The obvious go-to for maximum effect would be Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 that produces one green mana. Yet numerous alternative mana dorks available. This particular druid is a higher-cost choice a 1/3 creature costing two mana as an alternative.

Deploying terrain, creatures that tap for mana, alongside this card, it's simple to summon a very big high-cost creature on the battlefield early in the game. Momentum builds out of control if you keep the pressure on after that.

If you dip into a secondary color using this method, cards like versatile mana producers are excellent picks which produce any color of mana. Another card, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove lets you play another terrain every round AND turns your entire land base providing all land types. You can also consider something like the enchantment A Realm Reborn, at a six-mana investment provides every card you own the power to produce a mana of any type — even any creature in play.

The cub could be too strong when it comes to 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 stats are set by how many lands you have, and it changes all of your nontoken creatures Forests in addition to their other types. In other words, each creature you control may tap for two G when tapped.

Harmonious Grovestrider is a costly, large threat that benefits from many terrain cards (similar to Ashaya, its stats are based on your land total).

Nissa works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. One of her abilities makes all Forests generate an additional green mana. (If you have the cub, this results in each one yield three G.) Her plus ability acts as a proto-earthbend, putting +1/+1 counters on a land, a useful effect though it doesn't stack with earthbend. The minus ability, on the other hand, grants all of your lands immune to destruction enabling you to put onto the battlefield every Forest left in your deck. If you can actually activate that ability, it’s pretty much you win.

Badgermole Cub is nearly mandatory for all decks using green and Avatar focusing on Earthbending. By including red and green, you can use Bumi. This card features earthbend 4, plus if he deals combat damage to a player, all land creatures untap and can attack again. Although this card has emerged as a beloved leader, the cute little Badgermole Cub is definitely going to remain among the top, possibly the popular pick in the Avatar set.