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Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

Economy-first air build: Aircraft Plant then Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor, making transports and scouts for allies while transitioning into fighters and occasional bombers over the whole game.

Usually transports first (78%)

#eco #air #team support · 1496 distinct matches · 252 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1799 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:24

  1. Open 3 mex and wind, then drop Aircraft Plant early.
  2. Finish Aircraft Plant and start fighters for scouting and defense.
  3. Eat the Aircraft Plant once production needs outgrow it.
  4. Get Advanced Metal Extractor up to scale eco.
  5. Bring Fusion Reactor online and keep feeding transports, scouts, fighters to allies.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 1496 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 ~1:26, middle half 1:14–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (38%)

    By 1:07 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×3
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:08 · typical 1:26
  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
    • Hercules2 Light transport for allies
    • Finch2 Finch for allies
    • Finch1 Finch
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: shuriken (49%) · energy storage (45%) · converter (44%) · light transport (40%)

    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 · 22 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind ×2
    4. FinchFinch
    5. HephaestusHeavy transport
    6. Wind
    7. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    8. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    9. Wind
    10. Solar ×2
    11. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    12. Solar ×2
    13. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    14. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    15. FinchFinch
    16. ValiantValiant ×3
    17. Wind
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Mex
    20. Energy storage
    21. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    22. ValiantValiant
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine21Wind
    • Wind Turbine5Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant
    2. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 19 wind, 18 wind, 7 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret3 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant

    Some games also: shuriken (48%) · fusion (38%) · con aircraft (35%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 25 wind · 20 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is gy0h6y's (32 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 1:51 · 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 2:23 · in 72% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:37 · in 64% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:42 · in 46% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:23 · in 88% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:05 · in 96% 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

01k2k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

01k2k3k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

1799 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039200
2:0092300
3:00145600
4:002052051
5:0027635173
6:003705102124
7:005088146167
8:006898190219
9:009278232270
10:0011753292384
11:0014351373538
12:0017061513781
13:00198507811102
14:002270012641689
15:002570818042405
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard air play wins less than half its games, with very low combat losses and kills since the role mostly supports rather than fights.

  • + Own metal lost stays very low, only 2701 by 15:00.
  • + Metal production reaches 25740 by 15:00, a strong support economy.
  • − Team wins under half of games (47%).
  • − Enemy metal destroyed stays low at 2097 by 15:00, showing little direct impact.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

gy0h6y

31.9 OS · 23/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
622 metal received · 38275 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:26Middle 50%: 1:14–1:35 · n=1799
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1740
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:47–12:18 · n=1151

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildMilkdragon51games of this buildAdeus50games of this build