BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
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 1:10 · 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 · 42 steps
    1. Wind
    2. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    3. Wind ×2
    4. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    5. Wind ×2
    6. FinchFinch ×2for Beach sea
    7. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    8. Wind
    9. Mex
    10. FinchFinch
    11. Wind
    12. Energy storage
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    15. Wind
    16. Con turret
    17. Wind
    18. ValiantValiant ×2
    19. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    20. Con turret
    21. Wind
    22. Wind
    23. Wind
    24. Wind
    25. Wind
    26. Con turret
    27. ShurikenShuriken
    28. Converter
    29. Wind
    30. Converter
    31. ShurikenShuriken
    32. Converter
    33. Wind
    34. ShurikenShuriken
    35. Wind
    36. Wind
    37. Converter
    38. ShurikenShuriken
    39. Wind
    40. Wind
    41. Converter
    42. Wind
  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 · 183 steps
    1. ShurikenShuriken
    2. Wind
    3. Converter
    4. Wind
    5. Converter
    6. Wind
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Converter
    9. Wind
    10. Wind ×2
    11. Wind
    12. Converter
    13. Wind
    14. Wind
    15. Wind ×2
    16. Wind
    17. Converter
    18. Wind
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:24 · typical 6:50
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Converter
    23. Wind
    24. Converter
    25. Wind ×2
    26. Wind
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. Wind ×2
    32. Wind
    33. Wind
    34. Wind
    35. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    36. Wind ×2
    37. Wind
    38. Wind ×2
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Wind
    41. Wind
    42. Con turret
    43. Wind
    44. Wind
    45. Con turret
    46. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    47. Con turret
    48. Wind
    49. Con turret ×2
    50. Wind
    51. Con turret
    52. Wind
    53. Con turret
    54. Wind
    55. Wind
    56. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:18
    57. Wind
    58. Wind
    59. ValiantValiant ×2
    60. Wind
    61. Wind
    62. ValiantValiant ×2
    63. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    64. Wind
    65. Converter
    66. ValiantValiant ×2
    67. Wind
    68. Converter
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Converter
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Wind
    74. ValiantValiant
    75. ShurikenShuriken
    76. Converter
    77. Wind
    78. ShurikenShuriken
    79. Wind
    80. ShurikenShuriken
    81. Wind
    82. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    83. Converter
    84. ShurikenShuriken
    85. Wind
    86. ShurikenShuriken
    87. Wind
    88. ShurikenShuriken
    89. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    90. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    91. Wind
    92. ShurikenShuriken
    93. Wind
    94. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    95. Wind
    96. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    97. Wind
    98. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    99. Wind
    100. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant ×2
    103. Wind
    104. ValiantValiant ×3
    105. Wind
    106. ValiantValiant ×2
    107. Wind
    108. ValiantValiant ×3
    109. Wind
    110. Wind
    111. ValiantValiant ×3
    112. Wind
    113. ValiantValiant ×2
    114. Wind
    115. ValiantValiant
    116. Wind
    117. Wind
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. Wind
    120. ValiantValiant ×2
    121. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 11:17 · typical 10:56
    122. Wind
    123. ValiantValiant
    124. Wind ×2
    125. Wind ×3
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Con turret
    130. Wind
    131. Con turret
    132. ValiantValiant
    133. Con turret
    134. Wind ×2
    135. ValiantValiant ×2
    136. Wind ×6
    137. Fusion ReactorFusion
    138. Wind
    139. Converter ×4
    140. Wind
    141. Converter ×2
    142. ValiantValiant ×3
    143. Converter
    144. Wind
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Con turret
    147. ValiantValiant
    148. Converter
    149. Con turret
    150. Fusion ReactorFusion
    151. ValiantValiant
    152. Wind
    153. Con turret
    154. ValiantValiant
    155. Con turret
    156. Converter
    157. ValiantValiant
    158. Con turret ×2
    159. Converter
    160. ValiantValiant ×2
    161. Converter
    162. Wind
    163. ValiantValiant
    164. Converter
    165. ValiantValiant
    166. Converter
    167. FinchFinch
    168. Converter
    169. Wind
    170. FinchFinch
    171. Converter ×2
    172. FinchFinch
    173. Converter
    174. ValiantValiant ×6
    175. Converter
    176. ValiantValiant ×3
    177. CitadelAnti-nukenot finished by 15:00
    178. ValiantValiant ×2
    179. Con turret ×2
    180. ValiantValiant
    181. Con turret ×2
    182. ValiantValiant
    183. Con turret

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Gieds's (48 OS, 19/09/2026); 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

Gieds

47.5 OS · 19/09/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
450 metal received · 19222 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