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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

The usual Cortex air game: Aircraft Plant just after the start, Advanced Metal Extractor around 7 minutes and Fusion Reactor around 11 minutes, making transports and fighters for the team while scaling economy normally.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 547 distinct matches · 115 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 615 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:23

  1. Take 3 mex and open straight into Aircraft Plant.
  2. Finish Aircraft Plant, start pumping Valiant for escort duty.
  3. Get T2 constructor going to scale eco alongside air production.
  4. Add Advanced Metal Extractor to keep pace with team's economy.
  5. Bring Fusion Reactor online, keep making Hercules and Finch for allies.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 547 GAMES
  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 Extractor3Mex
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 3 mex, 4 winddone ~1:22, middle half 1:13–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (38%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×6
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:46 · typical 1:22
  2. 2

    Aircraft Plant to 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine9Wind
    • Wind Turbine3Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret
    • Construction Aircraft1 Con aircraft
    Army
    • Valiant5 Valiant
    • Finch2 Finch for allies
    • Hercules2 Light transport for allies
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken

    Some games also: energy storage (45%) · light transport (44%) · converter (39%) · con turret (33%)

    By 5:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 13 wind · 3 wind · 1 energy storage · 2 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 28 steps
    1. FinchFinch
    2. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    3. FinchFinch
    4. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    5. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    6. Con turret
    7. HerculesLight transport
    8. Mex
    9. Con turret
    10. Wind
    11. Con turret
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. Con turret
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Con turret
    18. Converter ×2
    19. Wind
    20. Converter
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Converter
    23. Wind ×2
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    26. Wind ×6
    27. ValiantValiant
    28. Wind
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine5Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken

    Some games also: con aircraft (36%) · fusion (33%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 24 wind · 20 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 118 steps
    1. Wind ×2
    2. ValiantValiant
    3. Wind ×2
    4. ValiantValiant
    5. Wind ×11
    6. Converter
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Converter
    9. Wind ×2
    10. Converter
    11. Wind ×2
    12. Converter
    13. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:37 · typical 6:50
    14. Wind ×2
    15. Converter ×2
    16. Wind ×3
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    18. Wind ×2
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    20. Wind
    21. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    22. Wind ×3
    23. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:01
    24. Wind
    25. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    26. Wind
    27. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    28. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 9:04 · typical 10:56
    29. Wind ×2
    30. Fusion ReactorFusion
    31. Wind
    32. Con turret
    33. Wind
    34. Con turret
    35. Wind ×3
    36. Converter ×2
    37. Wind ×2
    38. Converter ×2
    39. Wind ×2
    40. Converter
    41. Wind ×2
    42. Converter ×4
    43. Wind ×2
    44. Converter ×2
    45. Wind
    46. Converter ×2
    47. Wind
    48. Converter ×2
    49. Wind
    50. Converter
    51. Wind
    52. Converter ×2
    53. Wind
    54. Converter
    55. Wind
    56. Advanced Aircraft PlantAdvanced Aircraft Plantdone 11:19
    57. Wind ×5
    58. NighthawkNighthawk
    59. Wind
    60. NighthawkNighthawk ×2
    61. Con turret ×3
    62. NighthawkNighthawk
    63. Wind
    64. Con turret
    65. Wind ×2
    66. Con turret
    67. NighthawkNighthawk
    68. Con turret
    69. Wind
    70. Con turret
    71. ArbalestArbalest
    72. NighthawkNighthawk
    73. Wind
    74. NighthawkNighthawk ×2
    75. Con turret
    76. NighthawkNighthawk
    77. Wind ×2
    78. Con turret ×3
    79. Wind
    80. NighthawkNighthawk
    81. Con turret
    82. NighthawkNighthawk
    83. Con turret
    84. NighthawkNighthawk
    85. Wind ×3
    86. Con turret
    87. Con turret
    88. NighthawkNighthawk
    89. Wind
    90. ArbalestArbalest
    91. NighthawkNighthawk
    92. Wind
    93. NighthawkNighthawk ×4
    94. Advanced Construction AircraftT2 con aircraft
    95. Con turret
    96. NighthawkNighthawk ×2
    97. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 13:36
    98. NighthawkNighthawk
    99. Con turret
    100. NighthawkNighthawk ×2
    101. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    102. NighthawkNighthawk
    103. Con turret
    104. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    105. NighthawkNighthawk ×11
    106. PrevailerPrevailernot finished by 15:00
    107. NighthawkNighthawk
    108. NemesisNemesis
    109. NighthawkNighthawk
    110. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 14:43
    111. NighthawkNighthawk
    112. Converter ×3
    113. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    114. Converter
    115. NighthawkNighthawk
    116. Converter ×3
    117. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    118. Converter

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is [MooDeng]NongJohn's (41 OS, 29/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · in 96% of games
  • Hercules3 Light transport to Tech or Geo sea or Geofirst at 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:25 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:40 · in 65% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:44 · in 48% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:20 · in 84% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:03 · in 94% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build, running totals by minute

Metal produced

010k20k30k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

01k2k3k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

01k2k3k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

615 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145800
4:002052051
5:00276573109
6:003755125167
7:005136190219
8:007019220290
9:009335250341
10:0011795327471
11:0014399439641
12:0017100619962
13:00199489301269
14:002264113951807
15:002553020492701
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

This is the role's standard support job, winning less than half its games while producing little combat impact but reliably feeding transports and scouts to teammates.

  • + Reaches Aircraft Plant almost immediately (1:23), fast T2 constructor by 5:58.
  • + Keeps own losses low (2789 by 15:00) versus other roles.
  • − Destroys only 2027 enemy metal by 15:00, minimal combat contribution.
  • − Fusion Reactor only completes in 57% of games, some games stall on eco.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

[MooDeng]NongJohn

41.2 OS · 29/09/2026

Open source match ↗

2 received units · includes a constructor
155 metal received · 267083 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:35 · n=615
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:21–7:26 · n=590
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:03–12:14 · n=375

Played most by

DRM36games of this buildAdeus33games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildNutzz28games of this buildImmort26games of this build