Didact Echo MTG Card


Didact Echo - The Lost Caverns of Ixalan
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Spirit Cleric
Abilities Descend
Released2023-11-17
Set symbol
Set nameThe Lost Caverns of Ixalan
Set codeLCI
Power 3
Toughness 2
Number53
Frame2015
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byIrina Nordsol

Key Takeaways

  1. Provides a unique card advantage by tripling spell impact and enhancing board tactics.
  2. Instant speed casting allows for strategic depth and surprise gameplay moments.
  3. Requires careful consideration of hand resources and mana distribution within decks.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Didact Echo MTG card by a specific set like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Didact Echo and other MTG cards:

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Text of card

When Didact Echo enters the battlefield, draw a card. Descend 4 — Didact Echo has flying as long as there are four or more permanent cards in your graveyard.

The folk of the Sun Empire respect their ancestors. The Oltec go further, communing with spirits of esteemed elders after death.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Didact Echo provides a unique twist on card advantage by creating two copies of the next instant or sorcery spell you cast within the same turn. This essentially triples the spell’s impact, offering a potential boost in board presence, removal capabilities, or other valuable effects.

Resource Acceleration: While Didact Echo itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, the ability to copy spells may lead to significant gains. The RIGHT spell duplicated can effectively speed up your game plan, adding extra creatures to the board, searching for more lands, or even doubling up on ramp spells.

Instant Speed: Didact Echo can be cast at instant speed, making it an exceptionally flexible tool in your arsenal. With the ability to wait until the very last moment of your turn, it maximizes the surprise factor and tactical depth, allowing you to adapt to the developing game and making it harder for opponents to predict and counter your strategy.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Didact Echo necessitates discarding a card to activate its ability. This requirement can deplete your hand, leaving you at a disadvantage, particularly if you’re already struggling to maintain card advantage over your opponent.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a dedicated slot in blue mana-intensive decks due to its specific blue mana cost. The necessity for blue mana can hinder deck-building flexibility and potentially render Didact Echo incompatible with decks that run a more varied color palette.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Didact Echo comes with a relatively high mana cost which could slow down your gameplay. In situations where tempo is crucial, the costs involved might outweigh the benefits, as the game may offer alternative cards that provide a similar effect or greater impact at a lower mana investment.


Reasons to Include Didact Echo in Your Collection

Versatility: Didact Echo is a dynamic addition to decks that focus on spell copying. It’s flexible enough to be slotted into various archetypes, potentially enhancing strategies that hinge on the replication of key spells.

Combo Potential: With its ability to copy instant or sorcery spells, Didact Echo can act as a linchpin in combinations that aim to magnify effects or generate multiple outcomes from a single spell. Its interaction with other cards can unlock new levels of gameplay and strategy.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where spell-slinging decks are prevalent, Didact Echo is a relevant piece that can keep pace with the meta. Its compatibility with popular spells makes it a strong consideration for players aiming to stay competitive.


How to beat

Didact’s Echo presents players with a unique challenge within the realms of Magic: The Gathering. It operates as a potent countermeasure, delaying an opponent’s spell and potentially disrupting their carefully laid plans. When faced with Didact’s Echo, the key to overcoming it is to anticipate the delay in your spell’s execution and to plan accordingly. Flexibility in your strategy becomes essential. One effective method is to bait out the Echo with a less crucial spell, protecting your game-changing spells from being ensnared by this delaying tactic.

Additionally, keeping track of the suspended cards allows you to adjust your approach as the suspended spells build up for their eventual release. Employing instant-speed spells and abilities can help you adapt to the shifts in the game state that Didact’s Echo induces. Lastly, utilizing cards that can remove or exile it directly from the battlefield or interrupt its trigger can nullify its effects, leaving your opponent without their expected advantage. Always stay mindful of the evolving board state and be ready to adjust on the fly—this is, after all, the essence of mastering Magic: The Gathering.


Cards like Didact Echo

Didact Echo stands out in the realm of Magic: The Gathering as a traditionally styled sorcery card, with parallels to a few notable cards. Comparable at first glance to See Beyond, both cards allow players to draw two cards for a similar mana cost. However, Didact Echo distinguishes itself with its anticipatory echo ability, which provides an extra cast from exile, amplifying its influence across successive turns. See Beyond lacks this iterative potential, offering just a single, initial benefit.

Then there is Telling Time, another card offering foresight into upcoming plays. Telling Time allows for a peek at the top three cards of the library, granting a mix of instant card advantage and deck manipulation. While Telling Time doesn’t offer the raw card draw power that Didact Echo provides, it does have the advantage of instant speed. This gives players a more reactionary tool in their arsenals, contrasting with Didact Echo’s preparatory nature.

Ultimately, Didact Echo’s unique echo ability situates it as a versatile player in Magic: The Gathering, perfect for deck strategies that capitalize on spell recursion and progressive tactical advantage driven by knowledge of what’s to come.

See Beyond - MTG Card versions
Telling Time - MTG Card versions
See Beyond - MTG Card versions
Telling Time - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Didact Echo by color, type and mana cost

Vesuvan Doppelganger - MTG Card versions
Water Elemental - MTG Card versions
Air Elemental - MTG Card versions
Sandbar Crocodile - MTG Card versions
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Timin, Youthful Geist - MTG Card versions
Geology Enthusiast - MTG Card versions
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Azami, Lady of Scrolls - MTG Card versions
Cloudhoof Kirin - MTG Card versions
Drelnoch - MTG Card versions
Adarkar Windform - MTG Card versions
Infiltrator il-Kor - MTG Card versions
Mulldrifter - MTG Card versions
Chasm Drake - MTG Card versions
Belltower Sphinx - MTG Card versions
Vesuvan Doppelganger - MTG Card versions
Water Elemental - MTG Card versions
Air Elemental - MTG Card versions
Sandbar Crocodile - MTG Card versions
Pirate Ship - MTG Card versions
Segovian Leviathan - MTG Card versions
Sun Ce, Young Conquerer - MTG Card versions
Mawcor - MTG Card versions
Timin, Youthful Geist - MTG Card versions
Geology Enthusiast - MTG Card versions
Coastal Hornclaw - MTG Card versions
Meloku the Clouded Mirror - MTG Card versions
Azami, Lady of Scrolls - MTG Card versions
Cloudhoof Kirin - MTG Card versions
Drelnoch - MTG Card versions
Adarkar Windform - MTG Card versions
Infiltrator il-Kor - MTG Card versions
Mulldrifter - MTG Card versions
Chasm Drake - MTG Card versions
Belltower Sphinx - MTG Card versions

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Didact Echo has restrictions

FormatLegality
StandardLegal
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
AlchemyLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
FutureLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
BrawlLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Didact Echo card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2023-11-10 Cards with the ability word "descend N" have abilities that care if you have at least N permanent cards in your graveyard.
2023-11-10 Some descend triggered abilities include intervening "if" clauses (i.e. "if you have
-our or eight] permanent cards in your graveyard" in the middle of the ability). Each of these abilities checks your graveyard at the moment it would trigger to see if it does. If you don't have the required number of permanent cards in your graveyard at that time, the ability doesn't trigger at all. If it does trigger, it will check again as it tries to resolve. If you don't have the required number of permanent cards in your graveyard at that time, the ability won't resolve and none of its effects will happen.