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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 · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×6
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:26 · 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 · 42 steps
    1. Energy storage
    2. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    3. Wind ×2
    4. FinchFinch
    5. Wind
    6. Mex
    7. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    8. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    9. ValiantValiantfor Beach sea
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Con turret
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Con turret ×2
    14. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Wind ×3
    18. FinchFinch
    19. Wind
    20. Converter
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Wind
    23. Wind
    24. Converter
    25. ValiantValiant
    26. HerculesLight transport
    27. Converter
    28. Wind
    29. HerculesLight transport
    30. Wind
    31. Converter
    32. Wind ×2
    33. Converter
    34. Wind
    35. Wind
    36. Converter
    37. Wind
    38. Converter
    39. Wind
    40. Converter
    41. Wind
    42. Wind
  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 · 141 steps
    1. Con turret
    2. Converter
    3. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    4. Converter
    5. Wind
    6. Wind
    7. Wind
    8. Con turret
    9. Converter ×2
    10. Wind
    11. Wind
    12. Converter
    13. Wind
    14. Wind
    15. Converter
    16. Wind
    17. Wind
    18. Wind
    19. Converter
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Converter
    23. Wind ×4
    24. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:22 · typical 6:50
    25. Wind
    26. Wind
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    28. Wind
    29. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    30. Wind ×2
    31. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    32. Wind
    33. Con turret ×2
    34. Wind ×6
    35. Con turret
    36. Wind ×4
    37. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 9:06 · typical 10:52
    38. Con turret
    39. Wind
    40. Converter
    41. Wind
    42. Fusion ReactorFusion
    43. Converter ×4
    44. Con turret ×3
    45. Converter ×2
    46. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 10:02
    47. Converter
    48. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×3
    49. Converter
    50. FalconFighter
    51. Con turret
    52. FalconFighter
    53. Con turret ×3
    54. FalconFighter
    55. Con turret
    56. Wind
    57. Con turret
    58. FalconFighter
    59. Converter
    60. Con turret
    61. Wind
    62. FalconFighter
    63. Con turret ×2
    64. FalconFighter
    65. Wind
    66. FalconFighter
    67. Converter
    68. FalconFighter
    69. Wind ×2
    70. FalconFighter
    71. Converter
    72. FalconFighter
    73. Wind
    74. FalconFighter
    75. Wind
    76. FalconFighter
    77. Converter
    78. FalconFighter
    79. Wind
    80. FalconFighter
    81. Con turret
    82. FalconFighter
    83. Wind ×2
    84. Converter
    85. Wind
    86. FalconFighter ×3
    87. Converter
    88. Wind
    89. FalconFighter
    90. Wind
    91. FalconFighter
    92. Converter
    93. FalconFighter ×2
    94. Wind ×2
    95. FalconFighter
    96. Converter
    97. FalconFighter ×2
    98. Wind
    99. Converter
    100. FalconFighter
    101. Wind
    102. FalconFighter
    103. Wind
    104. FalconFighter
    105. Wind
    106. Converter
    107. Wind ×2
    108. FalconFighter
    109. Wind
    110. FalconFighter ×2
    111. Converter
    112. Wind
    113. FalconFighter
    114. Wind ×2
    115. FalconFighter
    116. Converter
    117. Wind
    118. FalconFighter
    119. Wind
    120. Converter
    121. FalconFighter ×2
    122. Wind ×2
    123. FalconFighter
    124. Wind
    125. Converter
    126. FalconFighter
    127. Wind
    128. FalconFighter ×2
    129. Converter
    130. Wind
    131. FalconFighter
    132. Wind
    133. FalconFighter
    134. Wind ×2
    135. FalconFighter
    136. Converter
    137. FalconFighter
    138. Wind
    139. FalconFighter
    140. Wind ×2
    141. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Fakepilot's (36 OS, 05/10/2026); 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

Fakepilot

35.7 OS · 05/10/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
301 metal received · 37547 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