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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 · 501 distinct matches · 111 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 559 · 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 501 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 1:13–1:33

    Some games also: energy storage (37%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Solarfor Tech
    3. Wind ×4
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:25 · 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
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: energy storage (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · con turret (31%)

    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 · 33 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    2. Wind
    3. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    4. Wind ×3
    5. Mex
    6. Wind ×2
    7. HerculesLight transport
    8. Wind
    9. Wind
    10. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    11. Wind
    12. Con turretfor Geo sea
    13. Wind
    14. Wind
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Wind ×2
    17. Wind
    18. Wind ×2
    19. ValiantValiant
    20. Wind ×2
    21. Wind
    22. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    23. Wind
    24. Con turret
    25. HerculesLight transport ×2
    26. Wind
    27. Con turret ×2
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    31. Con turretfor Geo sea
    32. Wind
    33. Con turretfor Geo sea
  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 · 217 steps
    1. Con turret ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Wind ×17
    4. Wind
    5. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2done 5:56 · typical 6:50
    6. Wind
    7. Wind
    8. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    9. Wind ×2
    10. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    11. Wind ×13
    12. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    13. Wind ×3
    14. Converter ×6
    15. Energy storage
    16. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:03
    17. HerculesLight transport ×2
    18. Con turret ×2
    19. Wind
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Wind
    22. ValiantValiant
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Wind
    26. ValiantValiant
    27. Wind
    28. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    29. Wind
    30. ValiantValiant ×2
    31. Wind
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind ×2
    34. ValiantValiant
    35. Wind
    36. ValiantValiant
    37. Wind ×2
    38. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    41. Wind
    42. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    43. Wind ×2
    44. ValiantValiant
    45. Wind
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind ×2
    48. ValiantValiant
    49. Wind
    50. ValiantValiant
    51. Wind ×2
    52. ValiantValiant
    53. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    54. Wind
    55. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    56. Wind ×2
    57. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    58. Wind
    59. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    60. Wind
    61. ValiantValiant
    62. Wind
    63. ValiantValiant
    64. Wind ×2
    65. ValiantValiant
    66. Wind
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Wind ×2
    69. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    70. Wind
    71. ValiantValiant
    72. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    73. Wind ×2
    74. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    75. Converter
    76. Wind ×2
    77. ValiantValiant
    78. Wind
    79. Converter ×2
    80. ValiantValiant
    81. Wind
    82. Wind
    83. Converter
    84. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00 · typical 10:56
    85. Wind
    86. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    87. Wind
    88. Wind
    89. Converter
    90. Wind
    91. ValiantValiantfor Geo sea
    92. Wind
    93. Converter
    94. Fusion ReactorFusionfor Geo sea
    95. ValiantValiant
    96. Wind
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Converter
    100. Wind
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant
    103. Wind
    104. Wind
    105. Converter ×2
    106. ValiantValiant
    107. Wind
    108. Wind
    109. Converter
    110. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    111. Wind
    112. Wind
    113. Wind
    114. Converter
    115. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    116. Wind
    117. Wind
    118. Converter
    119. Fusion ReactorFusionfor Geo sea
    120. Wind
    121. Wind
    122. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    123. Converter
    124. Wind
    125. Wind
    126. Wind
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Converter
    130. T2 converterfor Geo sea
    131. Wind
    132. ValiantValiant
    133. Wind
    134. Wind
    135. Converter ×2
    136. Wind
    137. ValiantValiant
    138. Converter
    139. Wind
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. Wind
    142. Converter
    143. Wind ×3
    144. Con turret
    145. Wind
    146. T2 converterfor Geo sea
    147. Wind
    148. Converter
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Wind
    151. Con turret
    152. Wind
    153. T2 converterfor Geo sea
    154. Wind
    155. Converter
    156. Wind
    157. ValiantValiant
    158. Wind
    159. Con turret
    160. Wind
    161. Converter
    162. Con turret
    163. Wind ×3
    164. Converter
    165. ValiantValiant
    166. Wind
    167. Wind
    168. Con turret
    169. Wind
    170. ValiantValiant
    171. Converter
    172. Wind
    173. Con turret
    174. Wind
    175. Converter
    176. Con turret
    177. Wind
    178. ValiantValiant
    179. Wind ×2
    180. Converter
    181. Con turret
    182. Wind ×2
    183. Wind
    184. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 14:32
    185. ValiantValiant
    186. Wind ×2
    187. Converter
    188. Wind ×2
    189. ValiantValiant ×2
    190. Wind ×2
    191. ValiantValiant
    192. Converter
    193. ValiantValiant
    194. Converter
    195. Wind ×2
    196. ValiantValiant
    197. Wind
    198. ValiantValiant
    199. Wind ×2
    200. Wind
    201. Converter
    202. ValiantValiant ×2
    203. Wind
    204. Converter
    205. Wind
    206. ValiantValiant
    207. Wind
    208. ValiantValiant
    209. Wind
    210. Converter
    211. ValiantValiant
    212. Wind ×2
    213. ValiantValiant
    214. Converter
    215. ValiantValiant
    216. Wind ×2
    217. ValiantValiant

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is WaterBoy's (37 OS, 23/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:50 · in 96% of games
  • Hercules3 Light transport to Tech or Geo sea or Geofirst at 2:05 · in 98% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:26 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · in 66% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:45 · in 48% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:19 · in 84% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:04 · 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

559 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092400
3:00145700
4:002052051
5:00276573102
6:003779124147
7:005128176219
8:007036220281
9:009352250341
10:0011841314464
11:0014395439635
12:0017109605955
13:00199329071256
14:002261913911819
15:002548920592748
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

WaterBoy

36.6 OS · 23/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
20 metal received · 28427 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:33 · n=559
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:23–7:27 · n=536
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:02–12:19 · n=338

Played most by

DRM35games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildAdeus28games of this buildNutzz25games of this buildhaaven24games of this build