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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 · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×3
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:08 · 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 · 28 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind
    4. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    5. Wind ×3
    6. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    7. Wind
    8. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    9. Wind
    10. Energy storage
    11. Solar ×2
    12. FinchFinch
    13. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    14. ValiantValiant
    15. Solar
    16. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. HerculesLight transport
    19. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    20. ShurikenShuriken
    21. Construction AircraftCon aircraftfor Geo
    22. Mex
    23. ShurikenShuriken
    24. ValiantValiant ×2
    25. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    26. Con turret
    27. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    28. Converter
  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 · 240 steps
    1. FinchFinch
    2. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Pond
    3. Converter
    4. HephaestusHeavy transport
    5. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    6. Converter ×2
    7. Con turret
    8. Con turret ×2
    9. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    10. Converter
    11. Wind ×3
    12. ValiantValiant ×2
    13. Wind
    14. Wind
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:16 · typical 6:50
    20. Wind
    21. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant
    24. Wind
    25. Wind ×3
    26. Wind
    27. Wind
    28. Wind
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. Wind
    32. Wind
    33. Wind
    34. Wind
    35. Wind
    36. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    37. Wind
    38. Wind
    39. Con turret ×2
    40. Wind
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    42. Wind
    43. Bot LabBot Labdone 9:32
    44. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    45. Construction BotCon bot
    46. Wind
    47. Construction BotCon bot
    48. Wind
    49. Construction BotCon bot
    50. Wind
    51. Construction BotCon bot
    52. Wind
    53. Converter
    54. Construction BotCon bot
    55. Wind
    56. Converter
    57. Construction BotCon bot
    58. Converter
    59. Construction BotCon bot
    60. Converter
    61. Construction BotCon bot
    62. Wind
    63. Converter
    64. Construction BotCon bot
    65. Wind
    66. Converter
    67. Construction BotCon bot
    68. Wind
    69. Converter
    70. Con turret
    71. Wind
    72. Converter
    73. Wind
    74. Con turret
    75. Wind
    76. Converter
    77. Wind
    78. Con turret
    79. Wind ×2
    80. Con turret
    81. Converter
    82. Wind ×3
    83. Con turret
    84. Wind
    85. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:06
    86. Converter
    87. Wind ×3
    88. ValiantValiant
    89. Wind ×3
    90. Converter
    91. Wind
    92. ValiantValiant ×2
    93. Wind ×2
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind ×2
    98. Converter
    99. ValiantValiant
    100. Wind ×4
    101. ValiantValiant
    102. Wind ×2
    103. ValiantValiant
    104. Wind ×2
    105. ValiantValiant
    106. Wind ×4
    107. ValiantValiant
    108. Wind ×2
    109. ValiantValiant
    110. Wind ×2
    111. ValiantValiant
    112. Wind ×3
    113. ValiantValiant
    114. Wind ×3
    115. ValiantValiant
    116. Converter
    117. Wind ×2
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. Wind ×4
    120. ValiantValiant
    121. Wind ×2
    122. ValiantValiant
    123. Wind
    124. Converter
    125. Wind ×2
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind ×4
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Wind ×2
    130. Converter
    131. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    132. ValiantValiant
    133. Wind ×3
    134. ValiantValiant
    135. Wind ×2
    136. Converter
    137. Wind ×3
    138. ValiantValiant
    139. Wind ×3
    140. Converter
    141. ValiantValiant
    142. Wind ×3
    143. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    144. Wind
    145. Converter
    146. Wind ×2
    147. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    148. Wind ×4
    149. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    150. Wind
    151. Converter
    152. Wind ×3
    153. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    154. Wind
    155. Con turret
    156. Wind ×3
    157. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    158. Wind ×3
    159. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    160. Converter
    161. Wind ×2
    162. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    163. Wind ×3
    164. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    165. Wind ×5
    166. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    167. Converter
    168. Wind ×2
    169. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    170. Wind ×2
    171. Converter
    172. Wind ×3
    173. ValiantValiant
    174. Converter
    175. ValiantValiant
    176. Wind ×2
    177. Converter
    178. Wind
    179. ValiantValiant
    180. Wind
    181. ValiantValiant
    182. Wind ×2
    183. Converter
    184. ValiantValiant
    185. Wind
    186. Converter
    187. Wind
    188. ValiantValiant
    189. Wind ×2
    190. ValiantValiant
    191. Converter
    192. ValiantValiant
    193. Wind ×2
    194. Converter
    195. ValiantValiant
    196. Wind ×2
    197. ValiantValiant ×2
    198. Wind ×2
    199. Converter
    200. ValiantValiant
    201. Converter
    202. Wind ×2
    203. ValiantValiant
    204. Wind
    205. ValiantValiant
    206. Wind ×2
    207. ValiantValiant
    208. Converter
    209. Wind ×2
    210. ValiantValiant
    211. Converter
    212. ValiantValiant
    213. Wind
    214. ValiantValiant
    215. Wind ×2
    216. ValiantValiant
    217. Wind
    218. ValiantValiant ×2
    219. Converter
    220. Wind ×2
    221. Converter
    222. ValiantValiant ×3
    223. Wind ×2
    224. ValiantValiant
    225. Wind ×3
    226. ValiantValiant
    227. Converter ×2
    228. ValiantValiant
    229. Wind ×2
    230. ValiantValiant
    231. Wind ×3
    232. ValiantValiant
    233. Converter
    234. ValiantValiant
    235. Wind ×2
    236. ValiantValiant
    237. Wind ×2
    238. Converter
    239. Wind
    240. ValiantValiant

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is RitualMurder's (37 OS, 20/09/2026); 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

RitualMurder

37.4 OS · 20/09/2026

Open source match ↗

36 received units · includes a constructor
167 metal received · 60438 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