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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is [A7O]SuperTetra's (31 OS, 26/08/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · 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

[A7O]SuperTetra

30.7 OS · 26/08/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
215 metal received · 79490 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