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Magic: The Gathering’s special Avatar expansion won’t become widely available before the end of the week, but due to pre-releases recently, an affordable green creature has already exploded in market worth.

From the initial reveals, the earthbending cub drew significant interest. A 2/2 that costs a single green and one generic mana, the card features Earthbending 1 (possibly the most effective among the elemental mechanics available). Its key advantage here is an additional effect: Whenever you tap a creature for mana, add an additional green mana.

When first listed, this card could be purchased at around $27. Following the early events, though, its value jumped above $45 with at least one listed as high as $60. The reason for such high costs for this little creature? Mainly thanks to the rapid resource generation it can produce.

When it arrives play, this creature converts a land into a creature granting it earthbend. Combined with its other power, as long as it is not removed, every earthbent land generates double mana — along with other creatures you have which tap for mana.

A clear choice for maximum effect includes the classic Llanowar Elves, an inexpensive 1/1 which can be tapped for a green resource. However there are plenty of creatures that make mana out there. Druid of the Cowl is a more expensive alternative that’s a 1/3 costing two mana in comparison.

By playing lands, mana-producing creatures, plus the cub, you may quickly play a massive high-cost threat on the board early in the game. And things just keep spiraling rapidly by maintaining dominance from there.

If you dip into a secondary color with this approach, cards like versatile mana producers are all great options that can make any mana color. Another card, this powerful dryad allows you to put another terrain each turn as well as makes every land you control providing all land types. You can also consider something like this six-mana enchantment, which for six mana grants each permanent you control the ability to produce any color mana — including all creatures you have on the board.

This card could be too strong regarding ramping up your mana generation, but what closes out the game with this archetype? One obvious and popular answer has been Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. Its power and toughness are set by how many lands you have, and it changes each creature you own to be Forests along with their other types. This means, all your creatures in play is able to generate two green mana when tapped.

Another creature provides a high-cost, powerful body which gains from lots of lands (like Ashaya, its stats are based on how many lands you have).

This Planeswalker works perfectly as a go-to Planeswalker. Her passive ability causes all Forests produce extra green. (If you have the cub, this results in all earthbend forests yield three G.) Her main ability is essentially an early earthbend, placing counters on terrain, which is great though it doesn't stack with earthbending. Her ultimate, on the other hand, makes all of your lands immune to destruction and allows you to search for every Forest left from your library. Once you trigger this power, it’s pretty much the game ends.

The cub is nearly mandatory for all green-based Avatar strategies focusing on earthbend. By including red-green, there’s Bumi. He has level 4 earthbending, and if he deals combat damage to an opponent, land creatures are ready again and can attack again. While that version has become a beloved leader, the cub is set to be one of, if not the most popular pick in the Avatar set.