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Magic: The Gathering’s Avatar crossover set isn't set to hit the general market before the end of the week, but due to prerelease weekends this past weekend, a low-cost green spell saw a sharp rise in market worth.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub attracted significant interest. A 2/2 priced at a single green and one generic mana, it has the Earthbend 1 ability (perhaps the strongest of the set’s four “bending” mechanics). The major perk with this card lies in an additional effect: If a creature is tapped to produce mana, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, this card sold below $30. After the pre-release weekend, though, the going rate jumped to $49.66 with at least one listed priced at sixty dollars. What explains premium pricing on this adorable card? Mainly due to the incredible mana acceleration it provides.

As it hits the battlefield, this creature turns a land into a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, as long as it is not removed, those lands yields two mana instead of one — plus any creatures you have that produce resources.

A clear choice for maximum effect is the classic Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 that produces G mana. However there are plenty of alternative mana dorks available. This particular druid is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 at a two-mana value as an alternative.

By playing lands, dorks that generate resources, and Badgermole Cub, you can easily get a very big pricey monster on the board within a few turns. The situation escalates out of control with continued aggression from there.

By incorporating a secondary color with this approach, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid work perfectly that can make any color of mana. Another card, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove lets you play an additional land per turn plus transforms your entire land base so they count as all basics. Another possibility is such as this six-mana enchantment, at a six-mana investment gives all of your permanents the power to produce one mana of any color — which covers any creature you have on the board.

The cub may be OP when it comes to ramping up your mana generation, however what closes out the game in such a strategy? A common and powerful choice has been Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its stats are both equal to your land count, and it changes all of your nontoken creatures into Forests along with their original types. This means, all your creatures in play may generate two green mana when tapped.

Another creature provides a high-cost, powerful body which gains from a high land count (similar to Ashaya, P/T match how many lands you have).

This Planeswalker is an excellent fit as a staple. One of her abilities makes all Forests tap for one more G. (If you have the cub, so all earthbend forests yield three G.) One loyalty ability functions like a form of land animation, placing counters to a noncreature land, a useful effect but it isn't redundant with earthbending. Her -8 ability, though, makes your entire land base immune to destruction and lets you put onto the battlefield your remaining Forests in your deck. Once you trigger that ability, it almost certainly you win.

This card is pretty much essential in any decks using green and Avatar that use Earthbending. When branching into red and green, there’s this legendary card. He has earthbend 4, and when he deals combat damage to a player, all land creatures untap and can attack again. Even though Bumi has emerged as a beloved leader, this small creature is set to be among the top, possibly the desired card in the Avatar set.