BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
Beach sea / Armada / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Hovercraft raid

Armada Beach sea build order · Supreme Isthmus

Builds a hovercraft platform before the shipyard and pushes out Seeker hovercraft early to raid, then transitions into the normal destroyer-based sea game.

Hovers first

#raid #naval · 88 distinct matches · 33 players · 12% of Armada Beach sea games · team won 52% of 88 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platform in 100%15% of all Beach sea games by then
  • SeekerSeeker in 99%15% of all Beach sea games by then

Then transitions into destroyer (31% of army), seeker (17% of army), frigate (10% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Hovercraft Platform by 1:10

  1. Open with mex and wind instead of straight shipyard.
  2. Build a Hovercraft Platform right after your initial eco.
  3. Push out a Seeker raid to harass enemy sea entry early.
  4. Put down the shipyard once the raid is out.
  5. Add Corsair and settle into standard sea play from here.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 88 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD BEACH SEA
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
PLAY THE OPENING

Follow the example game's first 6:00 step by step: what to build now, what comes next, and where it goes. At 1× it keeps pace with your own game.

  1. 1

    Up to the Hovercraft Platform

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor3Mex
    • Wind Turbine4Wind+3 vs standard
    Order
    1. Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platform after 3 mex, 4 winddone ~1:41, middle half 1:36–1:52

    Some games also: energy storage (44%) · wind for allies (39%)

    By 1:10 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind (standard 1)

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platformdone 1:10 · typical 1:41
  2. 2

    Hovercraft Platform to Shipyard

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor3Mex
    • Wind Turbine5Wind+4 vs standard
    Order
    1. ShipyardShipyard after 6 mex, 10 winddone ~4:16, middle half 4:00–4:38
    Builders
    • Construction Hovercraft3 Con hovercraft +3 vs standard
    Army
    • Seeker7 Seeker +7 vs standard

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 tidal · 2 con ship · 2 skater · 2 dolphin

    By 3:56 in all: 6 mex · 10 wind (standard 2) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 19 steps
    1. Wind
    2. Construction HovercraftCon hovercraft
    3. Wind ×2
    4. SeekerSeeker
    5. Wind
    6. Windfor Air
    7. SeekerSeeker
    8. Windfor Air
    9. Construction HovercraftCon hovercraft
    10. SeekerSeeker
    11. Mex
    12. SeekerSeeker
    13. Mex
    14. SeekerSeeker
    15. Construction HovercraftCon hovercraft
    16. HarpoonHarpoon
    17. Mex ×2
    18. HarpoonHarpoon
    19. ShipyardShipyarddone 4:17 · typical 4:16
  3. 3

    Shipyard to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Wind Turbine13Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret1 Con turret
    • Grim Reaper1 Grim Reaper
    • Construction Ship1 Con ship
    Army
    • Sentry2 Sentry
    • Dolphin3 Dolphin −2 vs standard
    • Corsair3 Destroyer
    • Skater3 Skater
    Other
    • Naval Radar / Sonar Tower1 Naval Radar / Sonar Tower

    Some games also: Harpoon (49%) · tidal (45%) · Naval Construction Turret (39%) · frigate (38%) · converter (36%)

    By 10:00 in all: 10 mex · 23 wind (standard 16) · 1 energy storage · 1 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 101 steps
    1. Mex
    2. DolphinDolphin
    3. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    4. DolphinDolphin ×2
    5. Wind
    6. Construction ShipCon ship
    7. Wind
    8. Construction ShipCon ship
    9. Naval NettleNaval Nettle
    10. Mex
    11. Naval Construction Turret
    12. Mex
    13. Naval NettleNaval Nettle
    14. Tidal
    15. Mex ×2
    16. Naval Construction Turret ×2
    17. Tidal
    18. SentrySentry
    19. Tidal
    20. Mex
    21. Tidal ×3
    22. SentrySentry
    23. Tidal ×3
    24. SentrySentry
    25. Tidal
    26. NettleNettle
    27. Tidal ×4
    28. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    29. BeamerBeamer
    30. Tidal ×4
    31. NettleNettle
    32. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    33. Naval Energy Converter
    34. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractordone 8:13
    35. Naval Energy Converter ×6
    36. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:28
    37. Naval Energy Converter
    38. StorkLight transport
    39. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractor
    40. StorkLight transport
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:23 · typical 9:24
    42. Naval Construction Turret
    43. BeamerBeamer
    44. Naval Construction Turret
    45. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractor
    46. HarpoonHarpoon
    47. Tidal
    48. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    49. Tidal
    50. Wind
    51. Tidal ×2
    52. Wind
    53. Tidal ×2
    54. Wind ×2
    55. Tidal ×2
    56. CauteriserCauteriser
    57. Tidal ×2
    58. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    59. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractor
    60. Tidal ×3
    61. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    62. Tidal ×11
    63. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractor
    64. Tidal
    65. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    66. Tidal ×4
    67. BeamerBeamer
    68. Tidal
    69. Advanced Underwater Metal ExtractorAdvanced Underwater Metal Extractor
    70. Tidal ×4
    71. Amphibious ComplexAmphibious Complexnot finished by 15:00
    72. Seaplane PlatformSeaplane Platformdone 12:31
    73. BeamerBeamer ×3
    74. TsunamiTsunami ×3
    75. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    76. Tidal
    77. TsunamiTsunami ×2
    78. Tidal
    79. EvisceratorEvisceratordone 14:44
    80. Tidal
    81. TsunamiTsunami
    82. Tidal
    83. TsunamiTsunami
    84. Tidal
    85. TsunamiTsunami
    86. Tidal
    87. TsunamiTsunami
    88. Tidal
    89. Wind
    90. TsunamiTsunami ×2
    91. Tidal
    92. Wind
    93. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    94. TsunamiTsunami
    95. HorizonHorizon
    96. Tidal
    97. Naval Fusion ReactorNaval Fusion Reactornot finished by 15:00
    98. Advanced Radar TowerAdvanced Radar Tower
    99. HorizonHorizon
    100. Tidal
    101. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is ComDelivery's (38 OS, 02/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Wind Turbine2 Wind to Air or Geo seafirst at 1:49 · in 51% of games

You get

  • Finch1 Finch from Airfirst at 1:50 · in 58% of games
  • Lazarus1 Lazarus from Geofirst at 2:01 · in 50% of games
  • Hercules1 Light transport from Airfirst at 2:11 · in 33% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 7:51 · in 81% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build against the role’s standard build, running totals by minute

  • This build
  • Standard beach sea

Metal produced

010k20k30k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02.5k5k7.5k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

88 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard beach seaEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard beach seaOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard beach sea
1:004044040000
2:009389380000
3:00153315890000
4:002381254951515150
5:0037603734411254254125
6:0051305155842568566300
7:006495671012001143821610
8:00805183101699167611261037
9:009663100132242250216861656
10:0011480119153314359620422419
11:0013840142314045454924813242
12:0016436169304857539831584012
13:0018586197585289645738094885
14:0021302224506461726047915761
15:0023846253966927836554246721
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Won more often than the standard build with a similar economy but far more early kills by 5:00.

  • + Enemy metal destroyed hit 444 by 5:00 vs 180 standard.
  • + Own metal lost stayed lower at 15:00 despite the raid.
  • − Metal produced trails standard by 10:00 and 15:00.
  • − Enemy metal destroyed by 15:00 falls behind standard (6667 vs 8279).
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

ComDelivery

38.3 OS · 02/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
867 metal received · 11862 energy received

Allied construction assistance is unknown. Timings are observations, not a promise of solo reproducibility.

Typical milestones

Hovercraft Platform1:41Middle 50%: 1:36–1:52 · n=88
Shipyard4:16Middle 50%: 4:00–4:38 · n=76
Corsair5:52Middle 50%: 5:21–7:17 · n=71
Advanced Metal Extractor9:24Middle 50%: 8:56–10:33 · n=73

Played most by

KingBenjai22games of this buildRysica10games of this buildAdeus6games of this build[ADS]Kackbarren5games of this buildTheGeneraI4games of this build