Among the Avatar-themed cutest collectible cards proves to be a formidable compact force.

the popular card game’s special Avatar expansion isn't set to become widely available before the end of the week, but due to prerelease weekends recently, one cheap green card experienced a surge in market worth.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub attracted widespread focus. A creature with stats 2/2 requiring a single green and one generic mana, the card has Earthbending 1 (perhaps the strongest within the four bending abilities in the set). The real boon here is its second ability: If you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

At its cheapest, the card could be purchased below $30. After the pre-release weekend, yet, the going rate has shot up above $45 including listings for sale at $60.00. Why are we seeing premium pricing for this little creature? Primarily thanks to the explosive mana ramping it can produce.

Upon entering the board, the cub turns a terrain card so it becomes a creature with earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it stays in play, those lands yields two mana instead of one — in addition to mana-producing creatures you have that generate mana.

A clear choice for synergy would be the classic Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for G mana. Yet numerous other mana generation creatures available. This particular druid costs a bit more with stats 1/3 at a two-mana value instead.

Deploying terrain, mana-producing creatures, plus the cub, you can easily get an enormous pricey threat on the board by round three or four. Momentum builds out of control by maintaining dominance from that point.

When adding an additional hue with this approach, options such as Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid work perfectly that generate all five colors. And something like a useful enchantment creature lets you play an additional land every round AND turns your entire land base so they count as all basics. Another possibility is such as a card called A Realm Reborn, which for six mana grants each permanent you control the power to produce one mana of any color — including any creature you have on the board.

The cub could be too strong in terms of ramping up your mana generation, but what closes out the game in such a strategy? A common and powerful choice already is this legendary creature. Its stats are set by how many lands you have, plus it turns your non-token creatures to be Forests in addition to their original types. In other words, all your creatures in play can produce double green when tapped.

Another creature is a costly, large threat that thrives with lots of lands (as with the previous card, its power and toughness are equal to the number of lands you control).

Nissa, Who Shakes the World is an excellent fit as a go-to Planeswalker. Her passive ability allows all Forests produce extra green. (With a Badgermole Cub, that means each one produce triple green.) Her main ability functions like a form of land animation, adding counters to a noncreature land, a useful effect though it doesn't stack with earthbend. Her ultimate, on the other hand, renders all of your lands unbreakable and lets you search for every Forest left in the deck. Once you trigger that ability, this typically means game over.

This card is a must-have for all green Avatar deck built around Earthbending. When branching into Gruul colors, you can use Bumi. This card features earthbend 4, plus if it hits a player in combat, land creatures untap for another attack. While that version has emerged as a beloved leader, the cute little Badgermole Cub is set to be among the top, possibly the sought-after card in the collaboration.