One of the Avatar-themed cutest MTG cards turns out to be a nasty little force.

the popular card game’s Avatar crossover set won’t hit the general market in the coming days, but due to early access events this past weekend, a low-cost green spell has already exploded in value.

From the initial reveals, Badgermole Cub attracted a lot of attention. A 2/2 priced at one green and one colorless mana, Badgermole Cub features Earthbending 1 (arguably the most effective of the set’s four “bending” mechanics). Its key advantage here comes from another power: If you tap a creature for mana, you gain one extra green mana.

Initially, Badgermole Cub could be purchased below $30. Following the early events, yet, the market price jumped above $45 with at least one listed priced at sixty dollars. Why are we seeing Vivi prices for this little creature? Primarily thanks to the explosive mana ramping it can produce.

As it hits the battlefield, this creature turns a land into a creature granting it earthbend. Combined with its other power, while it is not removed, every earthbent land generates double mana — along with mana-producing creatures you have that produce resources.

A clear choice for maximum effect would be Llanowar Elves, an inexpensive 1/1 that taps to generate one green mana. But numerous alternative mana dorks in the game. This particular druid is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 at a two-mana value instead.

By playing lands, creatures that tap for mana, and Badgermole Cub, you may quickly play a very big and very expensive creature on the battlefield early in the game. Momentum builds rapidly by maintaining dominance from that point.

By incorporating an additional hue in this strategy, examples including these mana-fixing creatures work perfectly which produce any mana color. And something like a useful enchantment creature lets you play one extra land each turn plus turns every land you control providing all land types. You can also consider for example this six-mana enchantment, at a six-mana investment provides all of your permanents the capacity to tap and generate one mana of any color — including all creatures you have on the board.

Badgermole 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 already is Ashaya. Its stats match how many lands you have, and it makes each creature you own into Forests in addition to their original types. Essentially, all your creatures on your board may generate two green mana if used for mana.

This additional option is another expensive, beefy creature that thrives with lots of lands (as with the previous card, its stats are based on the number of lands you control).

This Planeswalker works perfectly in this deck. Her static effect causes Forest lands tap for one more G. (Combined with earthbend, that means those lands generate three green mana.) One loyalty ability acts as an early earthbend, putting +1/+1 counters on a land, handy but does not overlap with earthbend. Her ultimate, however, makes all of your lands unbreakable enabling you to draw out every Forest left in the deck. Should you manage to use the ultimate, this typically means the game ends.

The cub is pretty much essential in any decks using green and Avatar built around earthbend. By including red and green, there’s Bumi Unleashed. He has earthbend 4, and if it hits a player to a player, all land creatures untap and may attack once more. Even though Bumi has become a popular Commander choice, the cub will surely stay one of, if not the most popular pick in the collaboration.

Heather Morris
Heather Morris

Elara is a historian and writer passionate about uncovering the stories behind ancient civilizations and their legacies.

January 2026 Blog Roll

Popular Post