BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

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 · 1508 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1813 · 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 1508 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 · 43 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. ValiantValiant
    4. Wind ×2
    5. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Wind ×2
    8. FinchFinch ×3for Beach sea
    9. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    10. Mex
    11. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. Con turret ×2
    14. ShurikenShuriken
    15. Wind
    16. Wind ×2
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Wind
    23. Energy storage
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Wind
    26. Wind
    27. Wind
    28. HerculesLight transportfor Geo
    29. Wind
    30. Converter
    31. Wind
    32. HerculesLight transport
    33. Wind
    34. Wind ×2
    35. ValiantValiant
    36. Wind
    37. Wind
    38. Wind ×3
    39. ValiantValiant
    40. Wind
    41. Wind
    42. Converter
    43. 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 (47%) · 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 · 168 steps
    1. Wind
    2. Wind
    3. ValiantValiant
    4. Wind
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Wind
    7. ValiantValiant
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. Converter
    11. ValiantValiant
    12. FinchFinch
    13. Converter
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Wind
    18. Con turret
    19. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    20. Wind
    21. Converter
    22. Wind
    23. Converter
    24. Wind
    25. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:03 · typical 6:54
    26. Wind ×2
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. Wind
    32. Wind
    33. Wind
    34. Wind
    35. Converter
    36. Wind ×2
    37. Converter
    38. Wind
    39. Converter
    40. Wind
    41. Wind
    42. Converter
    43. Wind
    44. Wind ×2
    45. Wind
    46. Converter
    47. Wind
    48. Wind
    49. Wind
    50. Wind
    51. Converter
    52. Wind
    53. Wind
    54. Converter
    55. Wind
    56. Wind
    57. Wind
    58. Converter
    59. Wind
    60. Converter
    61. Wind ×3
    62. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:58
    63. Wind
    64. Con turret
    65. Wind
    66. ValiantValiant
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant ×2
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Wind
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Wind
    74. ShurikenShuriken
    75. Con turret
    76. ShurikenShuriken
    77. Con turret
    78. Wind
    79. ShurikenShuriken
    80. Wind
    81. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    82. Wind
    83. ShurikenShuriken
    84. Wind
    85. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    86. ValiantValiant
    87. Wind
    88. ValiantValiant ×2
    89. Wind
    90. HerculesLight transport
    91. ValiantValiant ×6
    92. Wind
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. JellyfishJellyfish
    95. ValiantValiant ×2
    96. Wind
    97. ValiantValiant ×3
    98. Wind
    99. ValiantValiant
    100. Wind
    101. ValiantValiant ×2
    102. Wind
    103. ValiantValiant ×2
    104. ShurikenShuriken
    105. Wind
    106. ShurikenShuriken ×9
    107. ValiantValiant
    108. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    109. ValiantValiant
    110. Wind
    111. ValiantValiant ×3
    112. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    113. ValiantValiant
    114. Wind
    115. Con turret
    116. ValiantValiant
    117. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    118. ValiantValiant ×2
    119. Wind
    120. ValiantValiant ×2
    121. Con turret
    122. ValiantValiant ×3
    123. Wind
    124. ValiantValiant ×2
    125. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:34 · typical 10:52
    126. ValiantValiant ×2
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant ×2
    129. Wind
    130. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    131. Wind
    132. Wind
    133. Wind ×2
    134. Wind
    135. Wind
    136. Fusion ReactorFusion
    137. Wind
    138. Wind
    139. Converter
    140. Wind
    141. Converter
    142. Wind
    143. Wind
    144. Converter
    145. Wind
    146. Converter
    147. Wind
    148. Wind
    149. Converter
    150. Wind
    151. Converter
    152. Wind
    153. Converter
    154. Wind
    155. Wind
    156. Converter ×4
    157. Wind
    158. Converter ×2
    159. Wind
    160. Converter ×2
    161. Wind
    162. Wind
    163. Wind
    164. Wind
    165. Wind
    166. Wind
    167. Wind
    168. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is HALF_DALLAH_HABIT's (33 OS, 04/10/2026); 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 Beach seafirst at 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:23 · in 71% 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 2:22 · 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

1813 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
6:003711102124
7:005089146167
8:006903190219
9:009285230270
10:0011761292379
11:0014370369533
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811101
14:002270412631689
15:002573618082409
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

HALF_DALLAH_HABIT

32.8 OS · 04/10/2026

Open source match ↗

4 received units · includes a constructor
42 metal received · 80696 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=1813
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1753
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:46–12:17 · n=1160

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildDRM52games of this buildMilkdragon52games of this build