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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's baseline: Aircraft Plant immediately, transports and scouts for the team first, Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor on a normal timeline, transitioning into Valiant fighter coverage over the game.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 633 distinct matches · 123 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 48% of 707 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:24

  1. Take 3 mex and open wind before committing to aircraft plant.
  2. Finish aircraft plant to start churning scouts and transports.
  3. Send Hercules, Finch and Hephaestus to allies as they ask.
  4. Get your advanced metal extractor up to fund fighter spam.
  5. Bring fusion online and shift into Valiant fighter coverage.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 633 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 1:13–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (38%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:12 · 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
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken

    Some games also: energy storage (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · con turret (33%)

    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 · 32 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    5. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    6. ValiantValiant ×2
    7. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    8. Wind
    9. Mex
    10. Energy storage
    11. Con turret
    12. Wind ×4
    13. ShurikenShuriken
    14. ValiantValiant
    15. Wind
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind
    19. ValiantValiant
    20. Wind ×2
    21. Wind
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant
    24. Wind ×2
    25. Con turret
    26. Wind
    27. ValiantValiant
    28. Wind
    29. Wind
    30. Wind ×3
    31. ValiantValiant
    32. Wind
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant
    2. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant

    Some games also: shuriken (50%) · fusion (36%) · con aircraft (35%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 24 wind · 19 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 148 steps
    1. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Pond
    2. Converter
    3. Wind
    4. Wind
    5. Converter
    6. Wind
    7. Converter
    8. Wind
    9. Wind
    10. Wind
    11. Converter
    12. Wind
    13. Converter
    14. Wind
    15. Wind
    16. Converter
    17. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    18. Converter
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. Converter
    22. Wind
    23. Converter
    24. Wind
    25. Wind
    26. Wind ×3
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:11 · typical 6:50
    28. Wind
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    32. Wind
    33. Wind
    34. Wind
    35. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    36. Wind
    37. Wind
    38. Wind ×2
    39. Wind
    40. Wind
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    42. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:21
    43. Wind
    44. Wind
    45. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    46. Wind
    47. Wind
    48. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    49. Wind
    50. Con turret
    51. Wind
    52. Con turret ×2
    53. Wind
    54. Wind
    55. Con turret
    56. Wind
    57. Converter
    58. HephaestusHeavy transport
    59. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 10:26 · typical 10:52
    60. Converter
    61. Converter
    62. Converter ×2
    63. ValiantValiant
    64. Converter ×2
    65. ValiantValiant ×2
    66. Converter
    67. ValiantValiant ×2
    68. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    69. Converter
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Converter
    72. ValiantValiant ×3
    73. Converter
    74. ValiantValiant
    75. Converter ×2
    76. Converter
    77. Converter ×3
    78. Mexfor Geo sea
    79. Converter
    80. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    81. Converter
    82. Converter
    83. ValiantValiant
    84. Mexfor Geo sea
    85. Converter
    86. Fusion ReactorFusion
    87. Converter
    88. Con turret
    89. Converter
    90. Con turret
    91. Converter
    92. Con turret ×3
    93. Converter
    94. Con turret
    95. Converter
    96. Converter
    97. HerculesLight transport
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Converter
    100. ValiantValiant ×3
    101. Converter
    102. ValiantValiant ×5
    103. Converter
    104. ValiantValiant ×5
    105. Converter
    106. ValiantValiant ×3
    107. Converter
    108. ValiantValiant ×4
    109. Converter
    110. ValiantValiant
    111. Fusion ReactorFusion
    112. ValiantValiant ×2
    113. Converter
    114. ValiantValiant ×2
    115. Converter
    116. Converter
    117. ValiantValiant ×2
    118. Converter
    119. ValiantValiant ×3
    120. Converter
    121. ValiantValiant ×3
    122. ShurikenShuriken
    123. ValiantValiant
    124. Converter
    125. ShurikenShuriken
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. ShurikenShuriken
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. ShurikenShuriken
    130. ValiantValiant
    131. ShurikenShuriken
    132. Converter
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Converter
    135. ShurikenShuriken
    136. ValiantValiant
    137. Converter
    138. ShurikenShuriken
    139. ValiantValiant
    140. ShurikenShuriken
    141. ValiantValiant
    142. Converter
    143. ShurikenShuriken
    144. ValiantValiant
    145. ShurikenShuriken
    146. ValiantValiant
    147. ShurikenShuriken
    148. Converter

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Adeus's (37 OS, 08/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · 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 2:26 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · in 65% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:44 · in 48% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:20 · in 85% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:03 · in 95% 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

707 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002057051
5:00276873116
6:003751125167
7:005142190225
8:007010240292
9:009301263344
10:0011805340474
11:0014399440641
12:0017093607949
13:00199139491280
14:002269914671852
15:002558321432789
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard air sits below average team win rate at 48%, reflecting the role's support nature rather than kills.

  • + Aircraft plant lands fast at 1:24, enabling early transport and scout support.
  • − Own metal lost still reaches 2705 by 15:00 despite a support-first role.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Adeus

37.2 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
577 metal received · 59210 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:35 · n=707
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:24–7:25 · n=681
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:53–12:08 · n=442

Played most by

DRM44games of this buildAdeus37games of this buildTheGeneraI32games of this buildImmort29games of this buildNutzz29games of this build