Among the Avatar-themed most charming MTG cards proves to be a powerful little powerhouse.
MTG’s collaboration with Avatar won’t get a wider release until later this week, but following prerelease weekends recently, one cheap green card has already exploded in value.
Throughout the spoiler season, Badgermole Cub attracted significant interest. A 2/2 priced at one green and one colorless mana, the card has level 1 earthbending (possibly the best among the elemental mechanics available). The major perk with this card comes from another power: 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, however, its value jumped to $49.66 and one seller offering priced at sixty dollars. The reason for premium pricing on this adorable card? Primarily thanks to the rapid resource generation it provides.
As it hits play, this creature transforms a terrain card into a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it stays in play, those lands generates double mana — plus mana-producing creatures on your side that generate mana.
The obvious go-to to combine with would be this one-mana elf, an inexpensive 1/1 which can be tapped for a green resource. But numerous creatures that make mana in the game. Another option is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 for two mana as an alternative.
Using land cards, mana-producing creatures, alongside this card, you may quickly play an enormous high-cost monster on the board early in the game. And things just keep spiraling exponentially by maintaining dominance from there.
If you dip into another color using this method, examples including Fuel Tank Feaster, Ilysian Caryatid, and Paradise Druid are all great options that can make any color of mana. Another card, this powerful dryad lets you play an additional land every round as well as turns every land you control providing all land types. Another possibility is such as the enchantment A Realm Reborn, at a six-mana investment grants all of your permanents the power to be tapped for any color mana — even each creature in play.
Badgermole Cub might seem overpowered in terms of boosting mana production, but what’s the endgame finisher in such a strategy? An often-seen solution is Ashaya. Its power and toughness are set by your land count, and it changes all of your nontoken creatures Forests in addition to other subtypes. Essentially, every single creature you control may generate two green mana by tapping.
This additional option is a costly, large threat that thrives with a high land count (like Ashaya, its power and toughness match your land total).
Nissa fits really well in this deck. One of her abilities makes all Forests produce extra green. (With a Badgermole Cub, this results in each one yield three G.) Her plus ability is essentially a proto-earthbend, placing counters to a noncreature land, a useful effect but does not overlap with earthbending. The minus ability, however, renders each land you control indestructible and lets you draw out every Forest left in your deck. If you can actually activate this power, this typically means you win.
The cub is a must-have for all green-based Avatar strategies focusing on the earthbend mechanic. When branching into Gruul colors, consider Bumi Unleashed. This card features earthbend 4, and when damage is dealt in combat, all land creatures are ready again and may attack once more. Even though Bumi is a beloved leader, this small creature is set to be among the top, possibly the desired card in the collaboration.