🔗 Share this article

the popular card game’s Avatar crossover set won’t hit the general market in the coming days, however due to early access events recently, a low-cost green spell experienced a surge in market worth.

Even during previews, this small creature garnered significant interest. This two-power, two-toughness that costs G and 1 mana, Badgermole Cub has level 1 earthbending (possibly the strongest among the elemental mechanics available). The major perk in its design lies in an additional effect: Whenever you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

Initially, Badgermole Cub could be purchased for $26.98. Post-prerelease, yet, the market price escalated to $49.66 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 enables.

As it hits the battlefield, Badgermole Cub turns one land into a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it is not removed, every earthbent land produces twice the mana — in addition to any creatures on your side that generate mana.

A clear choice to combine with is the classic Llanowar Elves, a cheap 1/1 that taps to generate a green resource. However numerous alternative mana dorks out there. Another option costs a bit more a 1/3 creature at a two-mana value instead.

By playing lands, creatures that tap for mana, and Badgermole Cub, you can easily get a very big and very expensive creature on the board by round three or four. Momentum builds rapidly if you keep the pressure on from there.

When adding an additional hue with this approach, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options which produce any color of mana. Additionally, a useful enchantment creature lets you play an additional land per turn AND transforms every land you control so they count as all basics. Another possibility is such as this six-mana enchantment, which for six mana grants each permanent you control the ability to be tapped for one mana of any color — including any creature you have on the board.

This card could be too strong in terms of accelerating your resources, however what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? A common and powerful choice has been Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its stats match your land count, plus it turns your non-token creatures to be Forests as well as other subtypes. This means, every single creature on your board is able to generate two green mana when tapped.

This additional option is a costly, large threat that benefits from many terrain cards (like Ashaya, P/T are equal to the number of lands you control).

This Planeswalker works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. One of her abilities makes every Forest produce extra green. (If you have the cub, so all earthbend forests generate three green mana.) Her plus ability functions like a form of land animation, adding counters on terrain, which is great but does not overlap with earthbend. Her -8 ability, on the other hand, grants each land you control indestructible and allows you to draw out all the remaining forests in the deck. Should you manage to use the ultimate, this typically means the game ends.

The cub is nearly mandatory in any green Avatar deck that use Earthbending. When branching into red and green, you can use Bumi. It possesses level 4 earthbending, plus if damage is dealt to a player, each animated land untap and can attack again. Even though Bumi is a popular Commander choice, the cute little Badgermole Cub will surely stay one of the most, maybe the desired card in the collaboration.