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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 · 1513 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1818 · 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 1513 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 1:10 · 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 · 33 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind ×3
    4. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    5. Solar
    6. Wind
    7. FinchFinch ×2for Beach sea
    8. Mex
    9. HephaestusHeavy transport ×2for Geo sea
    10. Con turret
    11. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    12. Energy storage
    13. ValiantValiant ×2
    14. Wind
    15. ValiantValiant ×2
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Con turret
    19. HerculesLight transportfor Pond
    20. Wind
    21. Converter
    22. Wind
    23. Wind
    24. Converter
    25. Wind ×2
    26. Wind
    27. HerculesLight transport
    28. Wind
    29. ValiantValiant
    30. Converter
    31. Wind
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Converter
  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 (34%) · 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 · 119 steps
    1. ValiantValiant
    2. Wind
    3. Wind ×2
    4. ValiantValiant
    5. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    6. Wind
    7. Con turret
    8. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2done 5:49 · typical 6:54
    9. Wind
    10. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    11. Wind
    12. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    13. Wind ×3
    14. Con turret
    15. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 7:12
    16. Wind ×2
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind
    19. ValiantValiant
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant
    24. Wind
    25. Wind ×3
    26. ValiantValiant
    27. Wind
    28. Wind
    29. ValiantValiant
    30. Wind
    31. Hardened Energy Storage
    32. Wind
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Wind
    35. ThistleThistle
    36. Wind
    37. ValiantValiant
    38. NettleNettle
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiant
    41. Wind
    42. Wind ×2
    43. Wind
    44. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    45. Wind
    46. Wind
    47. ValiantValiant
    48. Wind
    49. Con turret
    50. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    51. Wind
    52. Wind
    53. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    54. Wind
    55. Wind
    56. Con turret
    57. Wind
    58. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    59. Con turret
    60. Wind
    61. Wind
    62. Con turret
    63. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    64. Con turret
    65. Wind
    66. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    67. Wind
    68. ShurikenShuriken
    69. Wind
    70. ShurikenShuriken
    71. Wind
    72. Wind
    73. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    74. Wind
    75. ShurikenShuriken
    76. Wind
    77. ShurikenShuriken
    78. Wind
    79. ShurikenShuriken
    80. Wind
    81. Wind
    82. ShurikenShuriken
    83. Wind ×2
    84. Wind
    85. Wind
    86. ShurikenShuriken
    87. Wind
    88. ShurikenShuriken
    89. Wind
    90. Wind
    91. ShurikenShuriken
    92. Wind ×2
    93. ShurikenShuriken
    94. Wind
    95. ShurikenShuriken
    96. Wind
    97. ShurikenShuriken
    98. Wind
    99. Wind
    100. Wind ×2
    101. ValiantValiant
    102. Wind ×2
    103. Wind
    104. ValiantValiant
    105. Wind
    106. ValiantValiant
    107. Wind
    108. ValiantValiant ×2
    109. Wind
    110. Converter
    111. ValiantValiant
    112. Wind
    113. Converter
    114. Wind
    115. ValiantValiant
    116. Wind
    117. ValiantValiant
    118. Wind
    119. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal

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, 06/10/2026); 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 2:23 · 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

1818 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
6:003709102124
7:005089146167
8:006903190219
9:009285230270
10:0011765292380
11:0014373367535
12:0017074512780
13:00198647751095
14:002271012621682
15:002573918062407
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

32.6 OS · 06/10/2026

Open source match ↗

9 received units · includes a constructor
812 metal received · 37564 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=1818
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1758
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:45–12:16 · n=1165

Played most by

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