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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 · 1506 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1811 · 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 1506 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. Solar ×2
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:11 · 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 · 30 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind ×2
    4. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    5. Wind ×7
    6. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    7. Wind
    8. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    9. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    10. Solar
    11. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    12. Mex
    13. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    14. Wind
    15. Con turret
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind
    19. Energy storage
    20. Con turret
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Converter
    23. Wind ×5
    24. Converter
    25. ShurikenShuriken
    26. Converter
    27. HephaestusHeavy transport
    28. Converter
    29. Energy storage
    30. 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 · 204 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ThistleThistle
    3. Wind
    4. Converter
    5. ShurikenShuriken
    6. HerculesLight transport
    7. Wind
    8. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    9. Converter
    10. Wind ×2
    11. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    12. Wind
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Wind
    18. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Wind
    23. GuardGuard
    24. Wind
    25. Wind
    26. Wind
    27. GuardGuard
    28. Wind
    29. ValiantValiant
    30. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    31. Converter
    32. ThistleThistle
    33. Wind
    34. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:40 · typical 6:54
    35. Wind
    36. Wind
    37. Con turret
    38. ValiantValiant
    39. Wind
    40. Converter ×2
    41. Wind
    42. Wind
    43. Wind
    44. Converter
    45. ValiantValiant
    46. Wind
    47. Converter
    48. Wind
    49. Converter ×2
    50. Wind
    51. ValiantValiant
    52. Wind
    53. Converter
    54. Wind
    55. ValiantValiant
    56. Converter
    57. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    58. Wind
    59. ValiantValiant
    60. GuardGuard
    61. Wind
    62. Converter
    63. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    64. Converter
    65. Bot LabBot Labdone 9:19
    66. Wind
    67. Wind
    68. Construction BotCon bot
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    72. Construction BotCon bot
    73. Converter
    74. Wind
    75. Converter
    76. Wind
    77. ValiantValiant
    78. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    79. Wind
    80. Wind
    81. Converter
    82. ValiantValiant
    83. CastroCastro
    84. Converter
    85. Wind
    86. Converter
    87. Construction BotCon bot
    88. Wind
    89. Converter
    90. ValiantValiant
    91. Wind
    92. Construction BotCon bot
    93. Converter ×2
    94. GruntGrunt
    95. Wind
    96. ThistleThistle
    97. GruntGrunt
    98. Wind
    99. Converter
    100. Wind
    101. GruntGrunt
    102. ValiantValiant
    103. GruntGrunt
    104. Converter
    105. Wind
    106. GruntGrunt
    107. Con turret
    108. GruntGrunt
    109. Wind
    110. GruntGrunt ×2
    111. Con turret
    112. GruntGrunt
    113. Wind
    114. Wind
    115. ValiantValiant
    116. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    117. GruntGrunt
    118. Converter
    119. Wind
    120. GruntGrunt
    121. Con turret
    122. GruntGrunt
    123. Wind
    124. GruntGrunt ×2
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. GruntGrunt
    127. Con turret
    128. Wind
    129. GruntGrunt
    130. ThistleThistle
    131. TrasherTrasher ×2
    132. GruntGrunt
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. GruntGrunt
    135. ValiantValiant
    136. Wind
    137. GruntGrunt
    138. ValiantValiant ×2
    139. GruntGrunt
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. GruntGrunt
    142. Wind
    143. ValiantValiant ×2
    144. GruntGrunt
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    147. Wind
    148. ValiantValiant ×2
    149. Wind
    150. Wind
    151. ValiantValiant
    152. Wind
    153. ValiantValiant
    154. Wind
    155. Wind
    156. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    157. Wind
    158. Wind
    159. ShurikenShuriken
    160. Wind
    161. ShurikenShuriken
    162. Wind
    163. Wind
    164. ShurikenShuriken
    165. Wind
    166. ShurikenShuriken
    167. Wind
    168. Wind
    169. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    170. Con turret
    171. ShurikenShuriken
    172. Wind
    173. Wind
    174. ShurikenShuriken
    175. Wind ×2
    176. ShurikenShuriken
    177. Wind
    178. Wind
    179. ShurikenShuriken
    180. Wind
    181. ShurikenShuriken
    182. Wind
    183. ShurikenShuriken
    184. Wind
    185. ShurikenShuriken
    186. Wind ×2
    187. ShurikenShuriken
    188. Wind ×2
    189. ShurikenShuriken
    190. Wind
    191. ShurikenShuriken
    192. Wind ×2
    193. ShurikenShuriken
    194. Wind
    195. ShurikenShuriken
    196. Wind ×2
    197. ValiantValiant
    198. Wind ×3
    199. ValiantValiant
    200. Wind ×2
    201. ValiantValiant
    202. Wind
    203. Wind ×3
    204. ValiantValiant

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Hokusai's (32 OS, 21/09/2026); 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 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

1811 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
6:003707102124
7:005089146167
8:006902190219
9:009284230270
10:0011758292380
11:0014356369536
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811102
14:002270412641689
15:002573618132420
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

Hokusai

31.8 OS · 21/09/2026

Open source match ↗

2 received units · includes a constructor
1250 metal received · 123472 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=1811
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1751
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:45–12:17 · n=1159

Played most by

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