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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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Solarfor Tech
    3. Wind ×5
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:31 · 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 · 34 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    3. Wind
    4. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    5. Wind ×2
    6. Mex
    7. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    8. HerculesLight transport
    9. Wind
    10. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    11. Con turret
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. Wind
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Con turret
    18. Energy storage
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    22. Wind
    23. HerculesLight transport
    24. Wind
    25. HerculesLight transport
    26. Wind
    27. Con turret
    28. Wind
    29. Con turret ×3
    30. Wind
    31. Con turret ×2
    32. Wind ×6
    33. Wind
    34. Wind ×3
  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 · 83 steps
    1. Wind ×14
    2. Wind
    3. Wind
    4. Converter ×3
    5. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexnot finished by 15:00 · typical 6:50
    6. Converter ×6
    7. Wind
    8. Wind ×10
    9. Wind
    10. Wind ×11
    11. Wind
    12. Wind ×13
    13. Wind
    14. Converter ×12
    15. Wind
    16. Converter
    17. Wind ×5
    18. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    22. Wind
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    24. Energy storage
    25. Con turret ×3
    26. Wind
    27. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:39
    28. HerculesLight transport
    29. Wind
    30. HerculesLight transport
    31. Wind ×2
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind
    34. ValiantValiant
    35. Wind
    36. ValiantValiant
    37. Wind
    38. ValiantValiant
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiant
    41. Wind
    42. ValiantValiant
    43. Con turret
    44. Wind ×2
    45. Con turret
    46. Wind
    47. ValiantValiant
    48. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    49. Wind
    50. Con turret
    51. Wind ×2
    52. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    53. Wind
    54. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    55. Wind
    56. Wind
    57. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    58. Wind
    59. Wind
    60. ShurikenShuriken
    61. Wind
    62. ShurikenShuriken
    63. Wind
    64. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    65. Wind
    66. ShurikenShuriken
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Wind
    69. Wind
    70. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    71. Wind
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    74. Wind
    75. Wind
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Wind
    78. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    79. Wind
    80. ValiantValiant
    81. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    82. Wind
    83. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is WaterBoy's (37 OS, 23/09/2026); 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

WaterBoy

36.9 OS · 23/09/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
401 metal received · 21985 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
Standard air · Cortex Air build order · BAR Build Atlas