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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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Solar
    3. Wind ×3for Beach sea
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:22 · 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 · 27 steps
    1. Windfor Beach sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    3. FinchFinch
    4. ShurikenShuriken
    5. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    6. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    7. HerculesLight transport ×2for Geo sea
    8. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    9. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    12. FinchFinch
    13. Con turretfor Beach sea
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. Construction AircraftCon aircraftfor Beach sea
    16. Con turretfor Beach sea
    17. Windfor Beach sea
    18. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    19. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    20. Converterfor Beach sea
    21. Con turret
    22. Windfor Beach sea
    23. Con turretfor Beach sea
    24. Windfor Beach sea
    25. Converterfor Beach sea
    26. Con turretfor Beach sea
    27. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
  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 · 137 steps
    1. Windfor Beach sea
    2. Con turretfor Beach sea
    3. Wind ×4for Beach sea
    4. Wind ×2
    5. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    6. Windfor Beach sea
    7. Windfor Beach sea
    8. Windfor Beach sea
    9. Wind
    10. Windfor Beach sea
    11. Wind
    12. Windfor Beach sea
    13. Windfor Beach sea
    14. Windfor Beach sea
    15. Converterfor Beach sea
    16. Windfor Beach sea
    17. Windfor Beach sea
    18. Converterfor Beach sea
    19. Windfor Beach sea
    20. Windfor Beach sea
    21. Windfor Beach sea
    22. Windfor Beach sea
    23. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    24. Windfor Beach sea
    25. Con turretfor Beach sea
    26. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    27. Converterfor Beach sea
    28. Windfor Beach sea
    29. Converterfor Beach sea
    30. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    31. Converter ×2for Beach sea
    32. Windfor Beach sea
    33. Converterfor Beach sea
    34. Windfor Beach sea
    35. Converterfor Beach sea
    36. Windfor Beach sea
    37. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexfor Beach seadone 7:20 · typical 6:50
    38. Windfor Beach sea
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexfor Beach sea
    40. Windfor Beach sea
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexfor Beach sea
    42. Windfor Beach sea
    43. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexfor Beach sea
    44. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    45. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantfor Beach seadone 8:05
    46. Windfor Beach sea
    47. ShurikenShuriken
    48. Windfor Beach sea
    49. ShurikenShuriken
    50. Windfor Beach sea
    51. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    52. Windfor Beach sea
    53. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    54. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    55. Windfor Beach sea
    56. ShurikenShuriken
    57. Windfor Beach sea
    58. ShurikenShuriken
    59. Windfor Beach sea
    60. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    61. Windfor Beach sea
    62. ShurikenShuriken
    63. ValiantValiant
    64. Windfor Beach sea
    65. ValiantValiant ×2
    66. Windfor Beach sea
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Windfor Beach sea
    69. ValiantValiant
    70. SAMSAM
    71. ArbalestArbalest
    72. Windfor Beach sea
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Con turretfor Beach sea
    75. Windfor Beach sea
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Windfor Beach sea
    78. Con turretfor Beach sea
    79. ValiantValiant
    80. Windfor Beach sea
    81. Con turretfor Beach sea
    82. ValiantValiant
    83. Con turretfor Beach sea
    84. Windfor Beach sea
    85. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    86. Windfor Beach sea
    87. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    88. Windfor Beach sea
    89. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    90. Windfor Beach sea
    91. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    92. Windfor Beach sea
    93. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    94. Windfor Beach sea
    95. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    96. Windfor Beach sea
    97. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    98. Wind ×3for Beach sea
    99. FinchFinch
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Windfor Beach sea
    102. Con turretfor Beach sea
    103. ValiantValiant
    104. Con turretfor Beach sea
    105. Windfor Beach sea
    106. ValiantValiant
    107. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    108. ValiantValiant
    109. Fusion ReactorFusionfor Beach seadone 12:00 · typical 10:52
    110. Windfor Beach sea
    111. ValiantValiant
    112. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    113. Windfor Beach sea
    114. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    115. Windfor Beach sea
    116. ShurikenShuriken
    117. Wind ×2for Beach sea
    118. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    119. Windfor Beach sea
    120. Energy storagefor Beach sea
    121. ShurikenShuriken
    122. T2 converterfor Beach sea
    123. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    124. Windfor Beach sea
    125. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    126. FinchFinch ×2
    127. Windfor Beach sea
    128. ValiantValiant ×3
    129. Windfor Beach sea
    130. ValiantValiant ×3
    131. Windfor Beach sea
    132. ValiantValiant ×2
    133. Windfor Beach sea
    134. ValiantValiant ×2
    135. ValiantValiantfor Beach sea
    136. Windfor Beach sea
    137. ValiantValiant ×25for Beach sea

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is NFX_Scurvy's (37 OS, 06/10/2026); 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

NFX_Scurvy

36.8 OS · 06/10/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
585 metal received · 44648 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