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the popular card game’s special Avatar expansion isn't set to get a wider release in the coming days, yet following prerelease weekends recently, an affordable green creature saw a sharp rise in value.

Even during previews, this small creature attracted significant interest. A 2/2 that costs one green and one colorless mana, it has Earthbending 1 (perhaps the strongest among the elemental mechanics available). The major perk in its design lies in its second ability: Each time you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

When first listed, this card was available at around $27. After the pre-release weekend, though, the market price jumped to $49.66 and one seller offering as high as $60. Why are we seeing premium pricing on this adorable card? Mostly due to the explosive mana ramping it provides.

When it arrives the board, the cub turns a terrain card so it becomes a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, as long as it remains on the board, those lands generates double mana — along with mana-producing creatures you have that produce resources.

The obvious go-to for maximum effect includes this one-mana elf, a low-cost creature which can be tapped for one green mana. However many alternative mana dorks available. Another option is a more expensive alternative with stats 1/3 costing two mana in comparison.

Deploying terrain, mana-producing creatures, and Badgermole Cub, it's simple to summon an enormous high-cost monster on the battlefield early in the game. The situation escalates out of control with continued aggression from there.

By incorporating an additional hue using this method, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options that generate any color of mana. And something like this powerful dryad allows you to put another terrain each turn AND turns all of your lands into every basic land type. It's also worth trying something like the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana provides all of your permanents the power to be tapped for any color mana — which covers any creature in play.

Badgermole Cub may be OP when it comes to boosting mana production, yet what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? One obvious and popular answer already is Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Power and toughness match your land count, and it changes all of your nontoken creatures into Forests in addition to other subtypes. In other words, all your creatures you control may generate two green mana by tapping.

Harmonious Grovestrider provides a high-cost, powerful body that thrives with a high land count (as with the previous card, P/T match your land total).

This Planeswalker is an excellent fit as a go-to Planeswalker. Her passive ability makes all Forests tap for one more G. (If you have the cub, that means each one produce triple green.) Her main ability acts as a proto-earthbend, putting +1/+1 counters on terrain, handy but it isn't redundant with the cub's ability. Her -8 ability, on the other hand, renders all of your lands unbreakable enabling you to put onto the battlefield your remaining Forests from your library. Should you manage to use the ultimate, it almost certainly game over.

Badgermole Cub is pretty much essential for all green Avatar deck that use the earthbend mechanic. When branching into red and green, consider Bumi Unleashed. This card features earthbend 4, and if damage is dealt in combat, land creatures untap and can attack again. Even though Bumi is a beloved leader, the cub is definitely going to remain among the top, possibly the sought-after card from this expansion.