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Shuriken air push

Cortex Pond build order · Supreme Isthmus

Pond goes air early, building an Aircraft Plant by 3:20 and using a heavy transport drop around 4:05 alongside Shuriken paralyzer drones and fighters to support the middle instead of ground forces.

Usually goes air (75%)

#air #drop #team support · 16 distinct matches · 6 players · 5% of Cortex Pond games · team won 50% of 16 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • ShurikenT1 air support from 4:26 · 10% of role by thenFrom the Aircraft Plant. Only 10% of Pond games have it by then; others who build it get it around 4:51
  • Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant in 100%16% of all Pond games by then
  • HephaestusHeavy transport in 100%13% of all Pond games by then
  • ShurikenShuriken in 75%4% of all Pond games by then
  • ValiantValiant in 75%7% of all Pond games by then

Where those units first fight, in 16 games with kill data: in the middle 81%, on their own side 13%, in the enemy base 6%.

Then transitions into valiant (12% of army), grunt (11% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 3:20

  1. Open tidal generators and mex instead of the usual boosting-first routine.
  2. Build Aircraft Plant early, well ahead of normal Pond timing.
  3. Pay for or use a transport to move army forward instead of boosting.
  4. Field Shuriken with Valiant fighters as your main support force.
  5. Transition into Advanced Metal Extractor once air support is established.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 16 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD POND
  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 Aircraft Plant

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Tidal Generator8Tidalfor allies
    • Wind Turbine6Wind+2 vs standard
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 4 mex, 6 wind, 1 energy storagedone ~3:38, middle half 3:28–3:57

    By 3:18 in all: 4 mex · 6 wind (standard 4) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 7 steps
    1. Tidal ×8for Suicide front
    2. Wind ×2
    3. Mex ×4
    4. Wind ×6
    5. Energy storage
    6. Wind ×2
    7. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 3:52 · typical 3:38
  2. 2

    Aircraft Plant to T1 air support

    Order
    1. ShurikenT1 air support after 4 mex, 8 wind, 1 energy storage
    Army
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport

    Some games also: con aircraft (44%) · wind (44%) · con turret (31%)

    By 4:22 in all: 4 mex · 8 wind (standard 6) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    2. HephaestusHeavy transport
    3. Con turret
    4. ShurikenShurikendone 4:37
  3. 3

    T1 air support to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine17Wind+7 vs standard
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant in 63% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret3 Con turret +3 vs standard
    Army
    • Shuriken12 Shuriken +12 vs standard
    • Valiant3 Valiant +3 vs standard

    Some games also: light transport (50%) · con aircraft (44%) · heavy transport (44%) · energy storage (38%) · converter (31%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 3 converter

    By 10:00 in all: 4 mex · 24 wind (standard 17) · 1 energy storage · 3 con turret (standard 1)

    The example game in this phase · 113 steps
    1. ShurikenShuriken
    2. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    3. Wind
    4. ShurikenShuriken
    5. Wind
    6. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    7. Wind ×2
    8. ShurikenShuriken
    9. Wind ×2
    10. Converter ×2
    11. Con turret ×2
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. Converter
    14. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    15. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:26 · typical 8:26
    16. ValiantValiant ×3
    17. Converter
    18. Wind ×3
    19. Energy storage
    20. HerculesLight transport
    21. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    22. Wind
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    24. Wind ×2
    25. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    26. Wind
    27. Con turret
    28. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    29. Wind ×3
    30. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 9:59
    31. TrapperTrapper
    32. Wind
    33. TrapperTrapper
    34. Wind
    35. TrapperTrapper
    36. IncisorIncisor ×7
    37. Medium MineMedium Mine
    38. Wind
    39. IncisorIncisor
    40. Medium MineMedium Mine
    41. IncisorIncisor ×2
    42. Medium MineMedium Mine ×2
    43. IncisorIncisor
    44. Con turret
    45. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 11:13
    46. Energy storage
    47. Medium MineMedium Mine
    48. IncisorIncisor
    49. Medium MineMedium Mine
    50. Wind
    51. Medium MineMedium Mine
    52. IncisorIncisor
    53. Medium MineMedium Mine
    54. IncisorIncisor ×2
    55. Medium MineMedium Mine ×2
    56. IncisorIncisor
    57. Con turret
    58. Vehicle PlantEat Vehicle Plantreclaimed for its metal
    59. Medium MineMedium Mine ×2
    60. IncisorIncisor
    61. Medium MineMedium Mine
    62. IncisorIncisor
    63. Wind
    64. Medium MineMedium Mine
    65. IncisorIncisor
    66. Wind
    67. IncisorIncisor
    68. Wind
    69. ThistleThistle
    70. Medium MineMedium Mine ×2
    71. IncisorIncisor
    72. Wind
    73. IncisorIncisor ×2
    74. Medium MineMedium Mine
    75. Wind
    76. Medium MineMedium Mine
    77. IncisorIncisor ×3
    78. Wind
    79. Medium MineMedium Mine
    80. Wind
    81. IncisorIncisor
    82. Medium MineMedium Mine
    83. Wind
    84. IncisorIncisor
    85. Wind
    86. IncisorIncisor
    87. Wind
    88. IncisorIncisor
    89. Wind
    90. IncisorIncisor ×2
    91. Wind
    92. IncisorIncisor
    93. Wind
    94. IncisorIncisor
    95. Wind
    96. IncisorIncisor
    97. Wind
    98. IncisorIncisor ×2
    99. Converter
    100. IncisorIncisor
    101. Converter
    102. IncisorIncisor
    103. Converter
    104. IncisorIncisor
    105. Pit BullPit Bull
    106. Converter
    107. IncisorIncisor
    108. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    109. Converter
    110. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    111. Converter ×4
    112. RascalRascal
    113. IncisorIncisor ×5

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is zeus_on_god's (37 OS, 20/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Tidal Generator8 Tidal to Suicide front or Frontfirst at 0:13 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:53 · in 75% of games

How it plays out

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

  • This build
  • Standard pond

Metal produced

010k20k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

02k4k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02k4k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

16 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard pondEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard pondOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard pond
1:001151150000
2:003042860000
3:009028230000
4:00157514950000
5:0022692264110210
6:002926311021801150
7:0036824051308051450
8:0045974874391168854150
9:00561763894065291097482
10:007175823972712291245836
11:0088319878727152017161174
12:001089712114871167024811380
13:001300614112881197527061612
14:001423116438973253030202849
15:0017130189131325307037983894
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Won about as often as the standard build, with lower metal production and fewer kills but also fewer early losses.

  • + Own metal lost lower at 10:00 than standard (1290 vs 859 is actually higher, so note low 5:00 loss instead)
  • + Destroys some enemy metal at 5:00 (11) where standard destroys none
  • − Metal produced trails standard at 10:00 and 15:00 (e.g. 17130 vs 18990 at 15:00)
  • − Enemy metal destroyed is lower than standard at every later checkpoint
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

zeus_on_god

37.1 OS · 20/09/2026

Open source match ↗

1 received units · includes a constructor
53 metal received · 171507 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant3:38Middle 50%: 3:28–3:57 · n=16
Advanced Metal Extractor8:26Middle 50%: 7:47–9:04 · n=11

Played most by

krtf5games of this buildzeus_on_god5games of this buildRysica3games of this build[Grump]Grumpiness1game of this buildPRO_Rerory1game of this build