A standout from the Avatar-themed most charming collectible cards is a formidable small contender.

Magic: The Gathering’s special Avatar expansion isn't set to hit the general market in the coming days, yet due to early access events recently, one cheap green card has already exploded in price.

Even during previews, the earthbending cub garnered widespread focus. A 2/2 that costs G and 1 mana, the card includes level 1 earthbending (arguably the most effective within the elemental mechanics available). Its key advantage in its design lies in another power: Whenever a creature is tapped to produce mana, it provides bonus green mana.

When first listed, Badgermole Cub was available at around $27. Post-prerelease, however, its value has shot up to $49.66 and one seller offering priced at sixty dollars. What explains such high costs on this adorable card? Primarily due to the rapid resource generation it provides.

As it hits play, Badgermole Cub transforms a land so it becomes a creature that has earthbending. And with that second ability, as long as it stays in play, those lands produces twice the mana — in addition to any creatures on your side that produce resources.

A clear choice to combine with would be this one-mana elf, a low-cost creature that produces one green mana. Yet many alternative mana dorks out there. This particular druid is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 costing two mana instead.

Using land cards, mana-producing creatures, alongside this card, it's simple to summon a very big high-cost monster on the battlefield early in the game. Momentum builds exponentially with continued aggression after that.

When adding an additional hue with this approach, cards like these mana-fixing creatures are excellent picks that generate all five colors. Another card, a useful enchantment creature allows you to put an additional land per turn as well as turns every land you control into every basic land type. It's also worth trying such as the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana grants all of your permanents the power to be tapped for a mana of any type — even each creature under your control.

The cub may be OP in terms of ramping up your mana generation, however how do you win for a deck like this? One obvious and popular answer is Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Power and toughness match how many lands you have, and it changes each creature you own Forests as well as other subtypes. This means, each creature in play is able to tap for two G by tapping.

This additional option is a costly, large threat that thrives with lots of lands (as with the previous card, its power and toughness are equal to your land total).

This Planeswalker is an excellent fit in this deck. One of her abilities makes Forest lands produce extra green. (With a Badgermole Cub, this results in all earthbend forests yield three G.) One loyalty ability functions like a form of land animation, placing counters on terrain, which is great but does not overlap with earthbending. Her ultimate, on the other hand, renders all of your lands unbreakable enabling you to draw out all the remaining forests in your deck. If you can actually activate this power, this typically means you win.

Badgermole Cub is a must-have for all green Avatar deck built around earthbend. When branching into red and green, you can use Bumi. It possesses earthbend 4, and when he deals combat damage to an opponent, each animated land are ready again and can attack again. Even though Bumi has emerged as a beloved leader, the cub will surely stay one of, if not the most desired card in the Avatar set.