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Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

Economy-first air build: Aircraft Plant then Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor, making transports and scouts for allies while transitioning into fighters and occasional bombers over the whole game.

Usually transports first (78%)

#eco #air #team support · 1506 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1811 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:24

  1. Open 3 mex and wind, then drop Aircraft Plant early.
  2. Finish Aircraft Plant and start fighters for scouting and defense.
  3. Eat the Aircraft Plant once production needs outgrow it.
  4. Get Advanced Metal Extractor up to scale eco.
  5. Bring Fusion Reactor online and keep feeding transports, scouts, fighters to allies.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 1506 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 ~1:26, middle half 1:14–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (38%)

    By 1:07 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×5
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:38 · typical 1:26
  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
    • Hercules2 Light transport for allies
    • Finch2 Finch for allies
    • Finch1 Finch
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: shuriken (49%) · energy storage (45%) · converter (44%) · light transport (40%)

    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 · 24 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    4. Wind ×2
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Wind
    7. ValiantValiant ×2
    8. Mex
    9. Wind
    10. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Con turret
    14. Wind
    15. Con turret
    16. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    17. Wind ×6
    18. HerculesLight transport
    19. Con turret
    20. Wind ×3
    21. HerculesLight transport
    22. Wind ×2
    23. FinchFinch
    24. Wind ×4
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine21Wind
    • Wind Turbine5Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant
    2. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 19 wind, 18 wind, 7 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret3 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant

    Some games also: shuriken (47%) · fusion (38%) · con aircraft (35%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 25 wind · 20 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 162 steps
    1. Converter
    2. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    3. Wind
    4. Converter
    5. Wind ×2
    6. Converter ×2
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Con turret
    9. Wind
    10. Converter
    11. Wind
    12. Converter
    13. Wind ×5
    14. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:20 · typical 6:54
    15. Wind
    16. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×3
    17. Bot LabBot Labdone 7:55
    18. Con turret ×2
    19. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    20. Wind
    21. Construction BotCon bot
    22. Solar
    23. Construction BotCon bot
    24. Solar ×2
    25. Wind ×2
    26. Solar ×2
    27. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    28. Wind ×2
    29. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    30. Wind
    31. Construction BotCon bot
    32. Wind ×2
    33. Construction BotCon bot
    34. Wind ×5
    35. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:19
    36. Wind ×2
    37. ValiantValiant
    38. Wind ×4
    39. ValiantValiant ×2
    40. Wind ×2
    41. ValiantValiant
    42. Wind ×3
    43. ValiantValiant
    44. Con turret
    45. Wind ×2
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. ValiantValiant
    49. Wind ×3
    50. ValiantValiant
    51. Con turret
    52. Wind
    53. ValiantValiant
    54. Wind
    55. Advanced solar
    56. Wind ×3
    57. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    58. Wind
    59. ValiantValiant
    60. Advanced solar
    61. Wind ×3
    62. ValiantValiant
    63. Wind ×4
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Wind
    66. ValiantValiant
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant
    69. Wind ×2
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Wind ×2
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Wind
    74. ValiantValiant
    75. Wind
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Wind ×2
    78. ValiantValiant ×2
    79. Wind ×2
    80. ValiantValiant
    81. Wind
    82. ValiantValiant
    83. Wind
    84. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    85. Wind ×2
    86. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    87. Wind ×2
    88. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    89. Wind
    90. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    91. Wind ×3
    92. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    93. Wind
    94. Con turret
    95. Wind ×5
    96. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    97. Converter
    98. Wind ×2
    99. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    100. Wind ×4
    101. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    102. Wind ×2
    103. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    104. Converter
    105. Wind ×3
    106. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    107. Wind
    108. Converter
    109. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    110. Converter
    111. Wind ×2
    112. ValiantValiant
    113. Wind ×3
    114. ValiantValiant
    115. Converter
    116. Wind
    117. ValiantValiant
    118. Converter
    119. ValiantValiant
    120. Wind
    121. ValiantValiant
    122. Wind
    123. Converter
    124. Wind ×2
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind ×2
    127. ValiantValiant
    128. Converter
    129. ValiantValiant
    130. Wind
    131. ValiantValiant
    132. Wind
    133. Converter
    134. ValiantValiant
    135. Wind ×4
    136. ValiantValiant
    137. Wind
    138. Converter
    139. ShurikenShuriken
    140. Wind ×2
    141. ShurikenShuriken
    142. Wind ×2
    143. ShurikenShuriken
    144. Converter
    145. ShurikenShuriken
    146. Wind ×2
    147. ShurikenShuriken
    148. Converter
    149. ShurikenShuriken
    150. Wind ×2
    151. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    152. Wind ×2
    153. Converter
    154. ShurikenShuriken
    155. Wind
    156. Converter
    157. ShurikenShuriken
    158. Wind
    159. ShurikenShuriken
    160. Converter
    161. Wind
    162. ShurikenShuriken

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is theogbob's (31 OS, 07/09/2026); 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 Beach seafirst at 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:23 · in 72% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:37 · in 64% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:42 · in 46% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:23 · in 88% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:05 · in 96% 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

01k2k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

01k2k3k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

1811 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039200
2:0092300
3:00145600
4:002052051
5:0027635173
6:003707102124
7:005089146167
8:006902190219
9:009284230270
10:0011758292380
11:0014356369536
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811102
14:002270412641689
15:002573618132420
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard air play wins less than half its games, with very low combat losses and kills since the role mostly supports rather than fights.

  • + Own metal lost stays very low, only 2701 by 15:00.
  • + Metal production reaches 25740 by 15:00, a strong support economy.
  • − Team wins under half of games (47%).
  • − Enemy metal destroyed stays low at 2097 by 15:00, showing little direct impact.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

theogbob

31.1 OS · 07/09/2026

Open source match ↗

10 received units · includes a constructor
337 metal received · 32629 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:26Middle 50%: 1:14–1:35 · n=1811
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1751
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:45–12:17 · n=1159

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildDRM52games of this buildMilkdragon52games of this build
Standard air · Cortex Air build order · BAR Build Atlas