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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 · 8 steps
    1. Tidal ×8for Suicide front
    2. Tidal ×2
    3. Wind ×2for Air
    4. Mex ×4
    5. Wind
    6. Energy storage
    7. Wind ×5
    8. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 3:56 · 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 · 5 steps
    1. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    2. HephaestusHeavy transport
    3. Con turret ×2
    4. FinchFinch
    5. ShurikenShurikendone 5:00
  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 · 105 steps
    1. ShurikenShuriken
    2. Wind
    3. ShurikenShuriken
    4. Wind
    5. ShurikenShuriken
    6. Wind
    7. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    8. Wind
    9. ShurikenShuriken
    10. Wind
    11. ShurikenShuriken
    12. Wind
    13. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    14. Wind ×3
    15. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:49 · typical 8:26
    16. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    17. Wind
    18. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    19. Wind ×3
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    21. Wind ×5
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    23. Con turret
    24. Wind ×2
    25. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Towerfor Geo sea
    26. Wind ×11
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    28. Wind ×3
    29. Mex
    30. Wind ×3
    31. Mex
    32. Wind ×2
    33. Con turret
    34. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    35. Con turret ×4
    36. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 10:46
    37. HerculesLight transport ×6
    38. Bot LabBot Labdone 11:11
    39. Bot LabBot Lab ×2done 11:17
    40. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    41. PawnPawn
    42. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    43. GruntGrunt
    44. PawnPawn
    45. GruntGrunt
    46. PawnPawn
    47. GruntGrunt
    48. PawnPawn
    49. GruntGrunt
    50. PawnPawn
    51. GruntGrunt
    52. PawnPawn
    53. GruntGrunt
    54. PawnPawn
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. PawnPawn
    57. GruntGrunt
    58. PawnPawn
    59. GruntGrunt
    60. PawnPawn
    61. GruntGrunt
    62. PawnPawn
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. PawnPawn
    65. GruntGrunt
    66. PawnPawn
    67. GruntGrunt
    68. PawnPawn
    69. GruntGrunt
    70. PawnPawn
    71. GruntGrunt
    72. PawnPawn
    73. GruntGrunt
    74. PawnPawn
    75. GruntGrunt
    76. PawnPawn
    77. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    78. PawnPawn
    79. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    80. Con turret
    81. Metal storage
    82. Bot LabBot Labdone 12:31
    83. Con turret ×8
    84. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    85. Bot LabBot Labdone 13:13
    86. Construction BotCon bot
    87. CastroCastro
    88. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    89. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 14:07
    90. Con turret ×3
    91. CastroCastro
    92. Con turret
    93. Wind
    94. Con turret
    95. Wind ×7
    96. SkuttleCrawling bombdone 14:27
    97. Wind ×2
    98. SkuttleCrawling bomb
    99. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    100. FiendFiend
    101. Wind ×2
    102. FiendFiend
    103. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00
    104. Wind ×2
    105. FiendFiend

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is WashedGamuer's (41 OS, 08/10/2026); 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

WashedGamuer

41.3 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

25 received units · includes a constructor
110 metal received · 31893 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