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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

The usual Cortex air game: Aircraft Plant just after the start, Advanced Metal Extractor around 7 minutes and Fusion Reactor around 11 minutes, making transports and fighters for the team while scaling economy normally.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 501 distinct matches · 111 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 559 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:23

  1. Take 3 mex and open straight into Aircraft Plant.
  2. Finish Aircraft Plant, start pumping Valiant for escort duty.
  3. Get T2 constructor going to scale eco alongside air production.
  4. Add Advanced Metal Extractor to keep pace with team's economy.
  5. Bring Fusion Reactor online, keep making Hercules and Finch for allies.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 501 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 1:13–1:33

    Some games also: energy storage (37%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 5 steps
    1. Mex
    2. Wind
    3. Mex ×2
    4. Wind ×3
    5. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:14 · 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
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: energy storage (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · con turret (31%)

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

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine5Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken

    Some games also: con aircraft (36%) · fusion (33%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 24 wind · 20 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 127 steps
    1. ValiantValiant
    2. Wind ×2
    3. Converter
    4. Wind
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Converter
    7. Wind ×2
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Wind
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Wind ×3
    12. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:38
    13. Wind ×3
    14. Converter
    15. Wind
    16. Converter
    17. Wind ×2
    18. Converter
    19. Wind
    20. Converter
    21. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    22. Wind
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    24. Wind
    25. Converter
    26. Wind ×4
    27. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 7:46
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Con turret
    30. ValiantValiant ×2
    31. Con turret
    32. ValiantValiant ×2
    33. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    34. Con turret
    35. FinchFinch
    36. ValiantValiant
    37. Wind
    38. ValiantValiant ×2
    39. Wind
    40. FinchFinch
    41. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    42. FinchFinch
    43. Wind
    44. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    45. ValiantValiant
    46. Wind
    47. ValiantValiant ×2
    48. Wind
    49. ValiantValiant ×3
    50. Wind
    51. ValiantValiant ×3
    52. Wind
    53. ValiantValiant ×3
    54. Wind
    55. ValiantValiant ×2
    56. Wind
    57. ValiantValiant ×2
    58. Wind
    59. Con turret
    60. ValiantValiant
    61. Con turretfor Beach sea
    62. ValiantValiant ×2
    63. Wind
    64. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    65. Con turret
    66. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    67. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    68. Con turret
    69. ShurikenShuriken
    70. Con turret
    71. ShurikenShuriken ×6
    72. Wind
    73. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    74. Con turret
    75. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    76. Wind
    77. ShurikenShuriken
    78. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    79. Con turret
    80. ShurikenShuriken
    81. ValiantValiant
    82. Wind
    83. FinchFinch
    84. ValiantValiant
    85. Con turret
    86. Wind
    87. ValiantValiant ×2
    88. Wind
    89. ValiantValiant
    90. Wind
    91. ValiantValiant ×2
    92. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    93. Wind
    94. ValiantValiant ×4
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant ×2
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant ×5
    99. ThistleThistle
    100. ValiantValiant ×5
    101. FinchFinch
    102. HerculesLight transport
    103. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    104. HerculesLight transport
    105. ThistleThistle
    106. ValiantValiant ×9
    107. Con turret
    108. ValiantValiant
    109. Con turret
    110. ValiantValiant ×6
    111. ThistleThistle
    112. ValiantValiant ×5
    113. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    114. ValiantValiant
    115. FinchFinch
    116. ValiantValiant ×7
    117. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 14:02
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. ShurikenShuriken ×5
    120. ThistleThistle
    121. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    122. HephaestusHeavy transport
    123. ValiantValiant ×3
    124. T2 converter
    125. ThistleThistle
    126. Fusion ReactorFusion
    127. T2 converter

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is CentientWaffle's (35 OS, 29/08/2026); 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 Geofirst at 2:05 · in 98% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:26 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · in 66% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:45 · in 48% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:19 · in 84% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:04 · in 94% 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

559 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092400
3:00145700
4:002052051
5:00276573102
6:003779124147
7:005128176219
8:007036220281
9:009352250341
10:0011841314464
11:0014395439635
12:0017109605955
13:00199329071256
14:002261913911819
15:002548920592748
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

This is the role's standard support job, winning less than half its games while producing little combat impact but reliably feeding transports and scouts to teammates.

  • + Reaches Aircraft Plant almost immediately (1:23), fast T2 constructor by 5:58.
  • + Keeps own losses low (2789 by 15:00) versus other roles.
  • − Destroys only 2027 enemy metal by 15:00, minimal combat contribution.
  • − Fusion Reactor only completes in 57% of games, some games stall on eco.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

CentientWaffle

35.1 OS · 29/08/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
1345 metal received · 84324 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:33 · n=559
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:23–7:27 · n=536
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:02–12:19 · n=338

Played most by

DRM35games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildAdeus28games of this buildNutzz25games of this buildhaaven24games of this build