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Magic: The Gathering’s Avatar crossover set will not get a wider release before the end of the week, yet after prerelease weekends this past weekend, one cheap green card has already exploded in market worth.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub attracted a lot of attention. This two-power, two-toughness priced at one green and one colorless mana, the card includes the Earthbend 1 ability (possibly the best of the four bending abilities in the set). Its key advantage here comes from its second ability: Whenever mana is generated by tapping a creature, it provides bonus green mana.

When first listed, Badgermole Cub could be purchased at around $27. Post-prerelease, however, the market price jumped to nearly $50 with at least one listed priced at sixty dollars. Why are we seeing such high costs for this cute lil guy? Mainly because of the rapid resource generation it can produce.

Upon entering the board, this creature turns one land so it becomes a creature that has earthbending. And with that second ability, as long as it remains on the board, every earthbent land produces twice the mana — along with mana-producing creatures on your side that produce resources.

The obvious go-to for synergy includes this one-mana elf, a low-cost creature that taps to generate a green resource. However numerous other mana generation creatures in the game. This particular druid is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 at a two-mana value instead.

Deploying terrain, dorks that generate resources, alongside this card, you may quickly play a very big high-cost monster into play by round three or four. Momentum builds out of control with continued aggression from that point.

If you dip into an additional hue in this strategy, options such as these mana-fixing creatures are all great options that can make any color of mana. Additionally, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove allows you to put an additional land per turn AND turns every land you control so they count as all basics. You can also consider something like this six-mana enchantment, which for six mana provides each permanent you control the ability to be tapped for any color mana — including all creatures you have on the board.

Badgermole Cub may be OP regarding accelerating your resources, yet how do you win with this archetype? An often-seen solution already is this legendary creature. Its power and toughness match how many lands you have, and it makes all of your nontoken creatures to be Forests as well as their original types. In other words, each creature in play can produce double green if used for mana.

Another creature is another expensive, beefy creature that benefits from many terrain cards (like Ashaya, its stats are based on how many lands you have).

Nissa, Who Shakes the World fits really well as a go-to Planeswalker. Her passive ability allows Forest lands 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 terrain, handy but it isn't redundant with earthbending. Her -8 ability, though, grants your entire land base unbreakable and lets you search for every Forest left in the deck. Should you manage to use the ultimate, it almost certainly you win.

The cub is pretty much essential for all decks using green and Avatar built around earthbend. By including red and green, consider Bumi. This card features earthbend 4, and when he deals combat damage to an opponent, land creatures untap and can attack again. Even though Bumi is a fan favorite Commander, the cub is definitely going to remain among the top, possibly the desired card from this expansion.