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the popular card game’s collaboration with Avatar won’t get a wider release before the end of the week, however following prerelease weekends recently, an affordable green creature has already exploded in value.

Throughout the spoiler season, the earthbending cub attracted significant interest. A 2/2 requiring one green and one colorless mana, the card has Earthbending 1 (arguably the strongest within the set’s four “bending” mechanics). Its key advantage with this card is its second ability: If you tap a creature for mana, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, Badgermole Cub could be purchased below $30. Post-prerelease, yet, its value has shot up to nearly $50 and one seller offering for sale at $60.00. Why are we seeing Vivi prices on this adorable card? Mostly due to the rapid resource generation it can produce.

As it hits the battlefield, Badgermole Cub turns one land to a creature land with earthbend. Combined with its other power, while it remains on the board, each affected land yields two mana instead of one — along with mana-producing creatures in your control that generate mana.

The obvious go-to to combine with includes Llanowar Elves, a low-cost creature that produces one green mana. But numerous alternative mana dorks available. Druid of the Cowl is a more expensive alternative with stats 1/3 at a two-mana value instead.

Deploying terrain, dorks that generate resources, plus the cub, it's simple to summon an enormous pricey threat on the board within a few turns. The situation escalates rapidly if you keep the pressure on from that point.

When adding a secondary color with this approach, cards like these mana-fixing creatures are all great options that can make all five colors. Another card, this powerful dryad allows you to put another terrain each turn plus transforms all of your lands so they count as all basics. You can also consider for example the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana gives every card you own the capacity to be tapped for any color mana — which covers any creature under your control.

Badgermole Cub could be too strong in terms of ramping up your mana generation, but what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? An often-seen solution already is this legendary creature. Its power and toughness are both equal to the number of lands you control, plus it turns your non-token creatures to be Forests along with their other types. In other words, all your creatures on your board can tap for two G when tapped.

Harmonious Grovestrider provides a high-cost, powerful body that thrives with many terrain cards (as with the previous card, P/T are based on how many lands you have).

This Planeswalker fits really well as a go-to Planeswalker. One of her abilities causes Forest lands produce extra green. (With a Badgermole Cub, so those lands generate three green mana.) Her plus ability is essentially a form of land animation, placing counters to a noncreature land, a useful effect though it doesn't stack with the cub's ability. Her -8 ability, though, grants all of your lands unbreakable and lets you search for all the remaining forests in your deck. Once you trigger that ability, this typically means the game ends.

This card is a must-have for any kind of decks using green and Avatar that use the earthbend mechanic. By including Gruul colors, there’s Bumi Unleashed. This card features earthbend 4, and if damage is dealt in combat, land creatures become untapped and may attack once more. Although this card has emerged as a fan favorite Commander, the cub is set to be among the top, possibly the popular pick in the Avatar set.