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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 · 1480 distinct matches · 250 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1783 · 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 1480 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 ×6
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:28 · 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 · 28 steps
    1. FinchFinch
    2. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    3. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    4. Wind ×3
    5. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    6. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    7. ValiantValiant
    8. Wind
    9. Con turret
    10. Wind
    11. ValiantValiant
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. Mex
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Wind ×2
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Wind
    23. Wind
    24. Con turret
    25. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    26. Wind
    27. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    28. Wind ×2
  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 (48%) · fusion (38%) · con aircraft (35%) · 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 · 169 steps
    1. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    2. Wind
    3. Converter
    4. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    5. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    6. Wind
    7. ValiantValiant
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. Wind
    11. Converter
    12. Wind ×3
    13. Wind
    14. Wind ×2
    15. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    16. Converter
    17. Wind
    18. Wind
    19. Wind ×2
    20. Wind
    21. Con turret
    22. Wind
    23. Converter
    24. Wind
    25. Wind
    26. Wind
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. Wind
    32. Converter
    33. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:38 · typical 6:54
    34. Wind
    35. Converter
    36. Wind
    37. Wind
    38. Wind
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Converter
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    42. Wind
    43. Wind ×2
    44. Wind ×2
    45. Wind
    46. Wind ×2
    47. Wind
    48. Wind
    49. Wind
    50. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    51. Wind
    52. Wind
    53. Wind
    54. Con turret
    55. Wind
    56. Con turret ×2
    57. Wind ×3
    58. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 10:17 · typical 10:53
    59. Wind ×2
    60. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 10:30
    61. Con turret
    62. ValiantValiant
    63. Con turret
    64. ValiantValiant ×4
    65. Con turret
    66. ValiantValiant ×3
    67. Con turret
    68. ValiantValiant
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant ×3
    71. Con turret
    72. ValiantValiant ×2
    73. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    74. Wind
    75. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    76. Wind
    77. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    78. Wind
    79. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    80. Wind
    81. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    82. Wind
    83. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    84. Wind
    85. ShurikenShuriken
    86. ValiantValiant ×2
    87. Wind
    88. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    89. Wind
    90. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    91. Wind
    92. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. Wind
    95. Con turret
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Converter
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant ×2
    103. Wind
    104. ValiantValiant ×2
    105. Converter
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiant ×2
    108. Converter
    109. Wind
    110. ValiantValiant ×2
    111. ShurikenShuriken
    112. Wind
    113. ShurikenShuriken
    114. Converter
    115. ShurikenShuriken
    116. Wind
    117. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    118. Converter
    119. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    120. Wind
    121. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    122. Wind
    123. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    124. Wind
    125. Converter
    126. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    127. Wind
    128. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    129. Wind
    130. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    131. Wind
    132. ShurikenShuriken
    133. Converter
    134. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    135. Wind
    136. Converter
    137. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    138. Wind
    139. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. Wind
    142. Converter
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Wind
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Converter
    147. ValiantValiant
    148. Wind
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Converter
    151. ValiantValiant
    152. Wind
    153. ValiantValiant
    154. Converter
    155. ValiantValiant ×2
    156. Wind
    157. ValiantValiant
    158. Converter
    159. Wind
    160. ValiantValiant ×3
    161. Wind
    162. Converter
    163. ValiantValiant ×2
    164. Con turret ×2
    165. ValiantValiant ×2
    166. Wind
    167. Fusion ReactorFusion
    168. ValiantValiant ×3
    169. ShurikenShuriken ×9

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is [BS]Nampukk's (30 OS, 24/09/2026); 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

1783 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039200
2:0092300
3:00145600
4:002053051
5:0027635173
6:003715102124
7:005089146167
8:006904190219
9:009291230271
10:0011771292384
11:0014395373538
12:0017078517781
13:00198597811115
14:002270012691689
15:002572918312440
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

[BS]Nampukk

30.3 OS · 24/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
161 metal received · 4531 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=1783
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1724
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:45–12:17 · n=1143

Played most by

TheGeneraI112games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildMilkdragon52games of this buildAdeus50games of this build