Among Avatar's most charming MTG cards turns out to be a formidable compact force.
Magic: The Gathering’s collaboration with Avatar will not get a wider release until later this week, yet following pre-releases this past weekend, a low-cost green spell saw a sharp rise in value.
Even during previews, this small creature drew a lot of attention. A 2/2 requiring one green and one colorless mana, the card includes level 1 earthbending (arguably the most effective among the elemental mechanics available). Its key advantage in its design comes from its second ability: Each time mana is generated by tapping a creature, add an additional green mana.
When first listed, the card could be purchased for $26.98. Following the early events, however, the market price jumped to nearly $50 and one seller offering for sale at $60.00. The reason for Vivi prices for this cute lil guy? Mostly due to the rapid resource generation it enables.
As it hits the battlefield, Badgermole Cub converts one land to a creature land with earthbend. Alongside its mana-doubling effect, if it remains on the board, those lands yields two mana instead of one — in addition to other creatures you have which tap for mana.
A clear choice for maximum effect includes the classic Llanowar Elves, a low-cost creature that taps to generate one green mana. Yet there are plenty of alternative mana dorks available. Druid of the Cowl is a more expensive alternative with stats 1/3 at a two-mana value as an alternative.
By playing lands, creatures that tap for mana, and Badgermole Cub, you can easily get a very big and very expensive monster on the battlefield by round three or four. The situation escalates exponentially by maintaining dominance after that.
When adding an additional hue using this method, options such as versatile mana producers are excellent picks that can make any color of mana. Another card, this powerful dryad enables playing one extra land every round plus transforms every land you control so they count as all basics. You can also consider for example the enchantment A Realm Reborn, costing six mana provides all of your permanents the power to produce a mana of any type — which covers any creature you have on the board.
Badgermole Cub may be OP when it comes to accelerating your resources, however what’s the endgame finisher for a deck like this? One obvious and popular answer already is Ashaya. Power and toughness match the number of lands you control, and it changes your non-token creatures into Forests along with their original types. Essentially, every single creature you control may tap for two G by tapping.
This additional option is a costly, large threat that benefits from a high land count (similar to Ashaya, its power and toughness are based on the number of lands you control).
This Planeswalker works perfectly as a staple. One of her abilities makes all Forests tap for one more G. (With a Badgermole Cub, that means those lands yield three G.) One loyalty ability functions like a proto-earthbend, putting +1/+1 counters to a noncreature land, a useful effect but does not overlap with earthbend. Her -8 ability, on the other hand, grants all of your lands indestructible and lets you put onto the battlefield your remaining Forests in the deck. Once you trigger the ultimate, it almost certainly the game ends.
This card is nearly mandatory in any green Avatar deck that use Earthbending. When branching into Gruul colors, there’s Bumi. He has earthbend 4, and when it hits a player to a player, land creatures untap and can attack again. Although this card is a popular Commander choice, this small creature is definitely going to remain one of the most, maybe the popular pick in the collaboration.