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Magic: The Gathering’s Avatar crossover set won’t get a wider release until later this week, but due to pre-releases over the last few days, an affordable green creature saw a sharp rise in price.

Even during previews, this small creature attracted widespread focus. A 2/2 priced at G and 1 mana, the card features level 1 earthbending (perhaps the best within the elemental mechanics available). The real boon here is another power: Each time a creature is tapped to produce mana, it provides bonus green mana.

At its cheapest, this card was available below $30. After the pre-release weekend, however, the going rate has shot up to nearly $50 including listings as high as $60. Why are we seeing such high costs on this adorable card? Primarily thanks to the explosive mana ramping it provides.

Upon entering play, the cub converts a terrain card into a creature granting it earthbend. Combined with its other power, if it is not removed, those lands yields two mana instead of one — along with mana-producing creatures on your side which tap for mana.

An ideal partner for synergy includes Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for one green mana. But many alternative mana dorks in the game. Another option is a higher-cost choice that’s a 1/3 for two mana as an alternative.

Deploying terrain, mana-producing creatures, plus the cub, you may quickly play a massive high-cost creature into play within a few turns. The situation escalates out of control with continued aggression from that point.

When adding a secondary color with this approach, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options that generate any mana color. And something like Dryad of the Ilysian Grove enables playing an additional land every round as well as transforms your entire land base providing all land types. You can also consider something like a card called A Realm Reborn, which for six mana grants each permanent you control the ability to be tapped for any color mana — even each creature under your control.

The cub may be OP when it comes to boosting mana production, yet what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? A common and powerful choice has been Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Power and toughness match how many lands you have, plus it turns your non-token creatures to be Forests in addition to other subtypes. This means, all your creatures in play may produce double green by tapping.

Harmonious Grovestrider is a costly, large threat that benefits from lots of lands (as with the previous card, its power and toughness are equal to how many lands you have).

Nissa works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. Her passive ability makes all Forests produce extra green. (If you have the cub, so each one yield three G.) Her main ability is essentially a form of land animation, adding counters on terrain, a useful effect but does not overlap with the cub's ability. The minus ability, on the other hand, renders each land you control immune to destruction and lets you put onto the battlefield your remaining Forests in your deck. If you can actually activate the ultimate, this typically means the game ends.

This card is pretty much essential in any green-based Avatar strategies built around earthbend. If you dip into Gruul colors, there’s Bumi. He has earthbend 4, and if he deals combat damage to a player, land creatures become untapped and can attack again. Even though Bumi has emerged as a beloved leader, the cute little Badgermole Cub is set to be among the top, possibly the popular pick in the Avatar set.