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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's baseline: Aircraft Plant immediately, transports and scouts for the team first, Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor on a normal timeline, transitioning into Valiant fighter coverage over the game.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 633 distinct matches · 123 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 48% of 707 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:24

  1. Take 3 mex and open wind before committing to aircraft plant.
  2. Finish aircraft plant to start churning scouts and transports.
  3. Send Hercules, Finch and Hephaestus to allies as they ask.
  4. Get your advanced metal extractor up to fund fighter spam.
  5. Bring fusion online and shift into Valiant fighter coverage.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 633 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 · 6 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×2
    3. Solar
    4. Wind ×2
    5. Energy storage
    6. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:34 · 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 (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · 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. Wind
    2. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    3. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    4. Wind
    5. Solar
    6. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Solar
    9. Wind ×2
    10. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    11. Wind
    12. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    13. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    14. Mex
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    17. Wind
    18. Con turret
    19. Wind
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Wind
    22. Wind
    23. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    24. Wind
    25. HerculesLight transport
    26. Con turret
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant
    2. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant

    Some games also: shuriken (50%) · fusion (36%) · con aircraft (35%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 24 wind · 19 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Lexosis's (39 OS, 08/10/2026); 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 Beach seafirst at 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:26 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · 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 85% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:03 · in 95% 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

707 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002057051
5:00276873116
6:003751125167
7:005142190225
8:007010240292
9:009301263344
10:0011805340474
11:0014399440641
12:0017093607949
13:00199139491280
14:002269914671852
15:002558321432789
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard air sits below average team win rate at 48%, reflecting the role's support nature rather than kills.

  • + Aircraft plant lands fast at 1:24, enabling early transport and scout support.
  • − Own metal lost still reaches 2705 by 15:00 despite a support-first role.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Lexosis

39.3 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

17 received units · includes a constructor
1222 metal received · 37651 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=707
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:24–7:25 · n=681
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:53–12:08 · n=442

Played most by

DRM44games of this buildAdeus37games of this buildTheGeneraI32games of this buildImmort29games of this buildNutzz29games of this build