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MTG’s special Avatar expansion will not get a wider release in the coming days, but due to pre-releases over the last few days, an affordable green creature has already exploded in market worth.

Even during previews, Badgermole Cub drew a lot of attention. A creature with stats 2/2 requiring one green and one colorless mana, Badgermole Cub has the Earthbend 1 ability (arguably the strongest among the set’s four “bending” mechanics). The real boon in its design is another power: Each time mana is generated by tapping a creature, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, the card sold at around $27. Post-prerelease, though, its value jumped to nearly $50 with at least one listed for sale at $60.00. The reason for such high costs for this cute lil guy? Primarily thanks to the explosive mana ramping it provides.

As it hits play, Badgermole Cub transforms a terrain card to a creature land with earthbend. Combined with its other power, as long as it is not removed, those lands produces twice the mana — in addition to other creatures on your side that produce resources.

A clear choice for maximum effect would be this one-mana elf, an inexpensive 1/1 that produces one green mana. Yet numerous alternative mana dorks out there. Another option is a higher-cost choice a 1/3 creature at a two-mana value as an alternative.

By playing lands, mana-producing creatures, and Badgermole Cub, it's simple to summon an enormous pricey creature on the board within a few turns. The situation escalates out of control with continued aggression after that.

If you dip into a secondary color in this strategy, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are excellent picks which produce any color of mana. Another card, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove lets you play an additional land per turn plus turns your entire land base so they count as all basics. You can also consider such as the enchantment A Realm Reborn, at a six-mana investment grants all of your permanents the power to tap and generate a mana of any type — including any creature in play.

Badgermole Cub might seem overpowered regarding accelerating your resources, however how do you win in such a strategy? An often-seen solution already is Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its power and toughness are set by how many lands you have, plus it turns all of your nontoken creatures to be Forests as well as their other types. Essentially, every single creature on your board may produce double green by tapping.

This additional option is a costly, large threat that benefits from a high land count (like Ashaya, its power and toughness are equal to your land total).

This Planeswalker works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. One of her abilities causes all Forests generate an additional green mana. (Combined with earthbend, this results in each one yield three G.) Her plus ability acts as a form of land animation, adding counters on terrain, handy but does not overlap with earthbend. Her ultimate, however, grants all of your lands unbreakable and lets you draw out all the remaining forests from your library. If you can actually activate this power, it almost certainly game over.

This card is nearly mandatory for any kind of decks using green and Avatar focusing on the earthbend mechanic. By including red-green, you can use this legendary card. He has level 4 earthbending, plus if damage is dealt in combat, all land creatures are ready again for another attack. While that version has emerged as a popular Commander choice, this small creature is set to be among the top, possibly the sought-after card from this expansion.