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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

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 · 1508 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1813 · 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 1508 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 · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:20 · 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 · 22 steps
    1. HerculesLight transport
    2. Energy storage
    3. Wind
    4. ShurikenShuriken
    5. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    6. Wind
    7. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    8. Wind ×3
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. Energy storage
    11. ValiantValiant
    12. Wind
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Solar
    15. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    19. Mex
    20. ValiantValiant ×2
    21. Wind
    22. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
  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 · 259 steps
    1. Wind
    2. Wind
    3. Con turret
    4. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    5. Wind
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Con turret
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    11. Con turret
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Converter
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:10 · typical 6:54
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Converter
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    23. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    24. Wind
    25. Wind
    26. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    27. Wind
    28. Wind
    29. Wind
    30. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    31. Wind ×2
    32. Bot LabBot Labdone 8:20
    33. Wind
    34. Construction BotCon bot
    35. Wind
    36. Converter
    37. Construction BotCon bot
    38. Converter
    39. Construction BotCon bot
    40. Converter
    41. Construction BotCon bot
    42. Wind
    43. Converter
    44. Construction BotCon bot
    45. Wind ×3
    46. Construction BotCon bot
    47. Wind
    48. Construction BotCon bot
    49. Wind
    50. Wind ×2
    51. Construction BotCon bot
    52. Wind
    53. Construction BotCon bot
    54. Wind
    55. Construction BotCon bot
    56. Wind
    57. Construction BotCon bot
    58. Wind
    59. Construction BotCon bot
    60. Wind
    61. Con turret
    62. Wind ×2
    63. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:49
    64. Wind
    65. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    66. Wind
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Converter
    69. Con turret
    70. Wind
    71. Wind
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Converter
    74. Wind
    75. Con turret
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Wind ×2
    78. Con turret ×3
    79. Wind
    80. Con turret
    81. ValiantValiant
    82. Converter
    83. Wind ×3
    84. ValiantValiant
    85. Wind
    86. Wind
    87. ValiantValiant
    88. Wind ×3
    89. ValiantValiant ×2
    90. Converter
    91. Wind
    92. ValiantValiant ×2
    93. Wind
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Wind ×2
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant ×2
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant
    103. Converter
    104. Wind
    105. ValiantValiant
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiant
    108. Wind
    109. ValiantValiant
    110. Wind
    111. ValiantValiant
    112. Wind
    113. Wind
    114. ValiantValiant
    115. Wind
    116. ValiantValiant
    117. Wind
    118. Converter
    119. ValiantValiant
    120. Wind
    121. ValiantValiant
    122. Wind
    123. ValiantValiant
    124. Wind
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind ×2
    127. ValiantValiant
    128. Wind
    129. Wind
    130. ValiantValiant ×2
    131. Converter
    132. Wind
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Wind ×2
    135. ValiantValiant
    136. Wind
    137. ValiantValiant ×2
    138. Wind
    139. ValiantValiant
    140. Wind
    141. ValiantValiant
    142. Wind
    143. Wind
    144. Wind
    145. ValiantValiant ×2
    146. Converter
    147. ValiantValiant
    148. Wind ×2
    149. ValiantValiant ×2
    150. Wind ×2
    151. ValiantValiant ×3
    152. Wind ×2
    153. ValiantValiant
    154. Wind
    155. ValiantValiant
    156. Wind
    157. Converter
    158. Wind
    159. ValiantValiant ×2
    160. Wind
    161. ValiantValiant
    162. Wind ×2
    163. ValiantValiant ×2
    164. Wind
    165. Con turret
    166. ValiantValiant
    167. Wind
    168. Con turret
    169. Wind
    170. Converter
    171. Wind ×2
    172. Wind
    173. Wind ×2
    174. ValiantValiant
    175. Wind
    176. ValiantValiant
    177. Wind ×3
    178. ValiantValiant
    179. Wind
    180. ValiantValiant
    181. Converter
    182. ValiantValiant
    183. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    184. Wind
    185. Wind
    186. Wind ×3
    187. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    188. Wind
    189. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×3
    190. Wind ×3
    191. Converter
    192. Wind
    193. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    194. Wind
    195. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    196. Wind
    197. Wind
    198. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    199. Wind ×3
    200. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    201. Wind
    202. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    203. Converter
    204. Wind ×4
    205. ValiantValiant
    206. Wind
    207. ValiantValiant
    208. Wind
    209. Wind
    210. ValiantValiant
    211. Wind ×3
    212. ValiantValiant
    213. Wind
    214. Converter
    215. ValiantValiant
    216. Wind ×4
    217. ValiantValiant
    218. Wind
    219. ValiantValiant
    220. Wind
    221. Wind ×2
    222. ValiantValiant
    223. Wind ×2
    224. Converter
    225. Wind
    226. ValiantValiant
    227. Wind ×4
    228. ValiantValiant
    229. Wind
    230. ValiantValiant
    231. Wind
    232. Wind ×2
    233. ValiantValiant
    234. Wind ×2
    235. Converter
    236. Wind
    237. ValiantValiant ×2
    238. Wind ×4
    239. ValiantValiant
    240. Wind
    241. Wind
    242. Converter
    243. ValiantValiant
    244. Wind ×5
    245. ValiantValiant
    246. Wind
    247. ValiantValiant
    248. Wind ×4
    249. Converter
    250. ValiantValiant
    251. Wind
    252. Wind
    253. ValiantValiant
    254. Wind ×4
    255. ValiantValiant
    256. Converter
    257. Wind
    258. ValiantValiant
    259. Wind ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is BigRowan's (33 OS, 11/08/2026); 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 71% 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 2:22 · 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

1813 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
6:003711102124
7:005089146167
8:006903190219
9:009285230270
10:0011761292379
11:0014370369533
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811101
14:002270412631689
15:002573618082409
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

BigRowan

33.5 OS · 11/08/2026

Open source match ↗

4 received units · includes a constructor
1694 metal received · 39596 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=1813
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1753
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:46–12:17 · n=1160

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildDRM52games of this buildMilkdragon52games of this build