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MTG’s Avatar crossover set won’t become widely available until later this week, yet following early access events recently, a low-cost green spell has already exploded in value.

Throughout the spoiler season, the earthbending cub attracted significant interest. A creature with stats 2/2 priced at one green and one colorless mana, it has level 1 earthbending (perhaps the best of the set’s four “bending” mechanics). The major perk with this card comes from another power: Whenever a creature is tapped to produce mana, it provides bonus green mana.

Initially, the card was available at around $27. Post-prerelease, though, the market price jumped above $45 and one seller offering for sale at $60.00. The reason for premium pricing on this adorable card? Mostly thanks to the incredible mana acceleration it provides.

When it arrives play, the cub converts a terrain card so it becomes a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, while it is not removed, each affected land yields two mana instead of one — in addition to other creatures you have that generate mana.

An ideal partner for synergy includes the classic Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for one green mana. But there are plenty of other mana generation creatures out there. This particular druid is a higher-cost choice a 1/3 creature at a two-mana value instead.

Using land cards, creatures that tap for mana, plus the cub, you may quickly play an enormous pricey monster into play within a few turns. Momentum builds rapidly by maintaining dominance from there.

When adding an additional hue in this strategy, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid work perfectly that can make all five colors. And something like Dryad of the Ilysian Grove lets you play one extra land per turn as well as makes all of your lands into every basic land type. You can also consider such as the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana grants every card you own the ability to be tapped for any color mana — including all creatures under your control.

This card could be too strong when it comes to boosting mana production, yet what closes out the game in such a strategy? A common and powerful choice is Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its stats are set by your land count, plus it turns all of your nontoken creatures to be Forests in addition to their other types. Essentially, all your creatures on your board may tap for two G when tapped.

Harmonious Grovestrider is another expensive, beefy creature that thrives with many terrain cards (similar to Ashaya, P/T are based on the number of lands you control).

Nissa works perfectly as a staple. Her passive ability allows Forest lands produce extra green. (If you have the cub, so all earthbend forests yield three G.) Her main ability acts as an early earthbend, placing counters on a land, handy though it doesn't stack with earthbending. Her -8 ability, though, makes each land you control indestructible enabling you to draw out every Forest left in the deck. If you can actually activate this power, it’s pretty much game over.

Badgermole Cub is pretty much essential in any green-based Avatar strategies focusing on Earthbending. When branching into Gruul colors, there’s this legendary card. It possesses earthbend 4, and when damage is dealt to a player, land creatures are ready again for another attack. Even though Bumi has become a fan favorite Commander, the cute little Badgermole Cub will surely stay one of the most, maybe the desired card in the Avatar set.