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MTG’s collaboration with Avatar isn't set to become widely available in the coming days, but due to early access events this past weekend, a low-cost green spell experienced a surge in price.

From the initial reveals, this small creature garnered widespread focus. A creature with stats 2/2 priced at a single green and one generic mana, it has level 1 earthbending (possibly the best within the four bending abilities in the set). The real boon in its design comes from another power: Whenever a creature is tapped to produce mana, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, this card sold at around $27. Following the early events, though, its value has shot up to nearly $50 including listings for sale at $60.00. Why are we seeing such high costs for this little creature? Primarily due to the explosive mana ramping it can produce.

When it arrives the battlefield, the cub transforms a land into a creature with earthbend. Combined with its other power, if it is not removed, those lands generates double mana — plus any creatures on your side that produce resources.

A clear choice for synergy would be this one-mana elf, a low-cost creature which can be tapped for a green resource. Yet numerous alternative mana dorks available. Druid of the Cowl is a higher-cost choice with stats 1/3 costing two mana instead.

Deploying terrain, mana-producing creatures, alongside this card, you can easily get a massive pricey monster on the battlefield within a few turns. The situation escalates out of control with continued aggression from there.

If you dip into another color with this approach, options such as these mana-fixing creatures work perfectly that generate any color of mana. Additionally, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove enables playing one extra land every round plus transforms your entire land base so they count as all basics. You can also consider for example the enchantment A Realm Reborn, which for six mana provides every card you own the power to produce one mana of any color — which covers any creature under your control.

The cub might seem overpowered when it comes to accelerating your resources, however how do you win for a deck like this? An often-seen solution has been this legendary creature. Its power and toughness match the number of lands you control, plus it turns all of your nontoken creatures to be Forests in addition to their other types. This means, all your creatures you control may generate two green mana by tapping.

Harmonious Grovestrider is a costly, large threat that thrives with a high land count (as with the previous card, P/T match the number of lands you control).

Nissa works perfectly in this deck. One of her abilities allows all Forests produce extra green. (If you have the cub, that means those lands produce triple green.) Her plus ability is essentially a form of land animation, placing counters on a land, a useful effect though it doesn't stack with earthbending. Her ultimate, however, renders your entire land base immune to destruction and allows you to put onto the battlefield every Forest left in the deck. Should you manage to use this power, it’s pretty much you win.

The cub is nearly mandatory in any decks using green and Avatar focusing on earthbend. By including red and green, you can use Bumi. He has earthbend 4, and if he deals combat damage to a player, each animated land become untapped and may attack once more. Although this card has become a popular Commander choice, the cute little Badgermole Cub will surely stay among the top, possibly the popular pick from this expansion.