A standout from Avatar's cutest MTG cards is a nasty small force.

MTG’s Avatar crossover set won’t get a wider release in the coming days, however due to pre-releases this past weekend, one cheap green card saw a sharp rise in value.

Throughout the spoiler season, the earthbending cub garnered widespread focus. This two-power, two-toughness priced at a single green and one generic mana, the card includes level 1 earthbending (perhaps the most effective among the four bending abilities in the set). Its key advantage here is another power: Each time you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

When first listed, this card sold at around $27. Following the early events, though, its value has shot up to nearly $50 with at least one listed for sale at $60.00. The reason for Vivi prices on this adorable card? Primarily because of the rapid resource generation it provides.

Upon entering the board, the cub turns one land so it becomes a creature granting it earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it remains on the board, each affected land produces twice the mana — along with mana-producing creatures on your side that generate mana.

An ideal partner for synergy is this one-mana elf, a cheap 1/1 which can be tapped for G mana. But numerous alternative mana dorks available. This particular druid costs a bit more that’s a 1/3 costing two mana instead.

Deploying terrain, creatures that tap for mana, alongside this card, it's simple to summon a massive and very expensive threat on the board by round three or four. The situation escalates out of control by maintaining dominance after that.

If you dip into a secondary color using this method, cards like 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 each turn as well as makes all of your lands providing all land types. Another possibility is for example the enchantment A Realm Reborn, at a six-mana investment provides each permanent you control the capacity to be tapped for one mana of any color — including all creatures you have on the board.

The cub may be OP when it comes to accelerating your resources, but what closes out the game for a deck like this? One obvious and popular answer is Ashaya. Its power and toughness are both equal to the number of lands you control, and it makes each creature you own Forests as well as their other types. This means, all your creatures in play is able to tap for two G when tapped.

This additional option is a costly, large threat that thrives with many terrain cards (like Ashaya, its stats are equal to your land total).

Nissa, Who Shakes the World works perfectly as a staple. Her static effect allows all Forests generate an additional green mana. (Combined with earthbend, so those lands generate three green mana.) Her main ability functions like a form of land animation, placing counters on a land, which is great but does not overlap with earthbending. The minus ability, however, renders each land you control immune to destruction and lets you draw out your remaining Forests in your deck. If you can actually activate this power, it’s pretty much game over.

This card is a must-have for any kind of green-based Avatar strategies focusing on earthbend. By including red-green, there’s Bumi. He has earthbend 4, plus if it hits a player in combat, all land creatures untap and may attack once more. Even though Bumi is a beloved leader, this small creature is definitely going to remain one of the most, maybe the sought-after card in the Avatar set.

Katherine Wise
Katherine Wise

Elara is a seasoned gaming analyst with a passion for demystifying online betting strategies and casino trends for enthusiasts worldwide.