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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 ×3
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:10 · 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 · 35 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind
    4. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    5. Wind ×3
    6. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    7. Wind
    8. HerculesLight transport ×2for Geo sea
    9. ShurikenShuriken
    10. Energy storage
    11. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    12. Wind
    13. ShurikenShuriken
    14. Wind
    15. ShurikenShuriken
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Mex
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    20. Wind
    21. Con turret
    22. Wind
    23. Con turret
    24. Wind
    25. ValiantValiant
    26. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    27. Con turret
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. ValiantValiant
    31. Wind
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant
  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 · 161 steps
    1. Converter ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Wind
    4. Converter
    5. Wind
    6. Wind
    7. Converter
    8. Wind
    9. Wind
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Wind
    12. Wind
    13. Wind ×2
    14. Converter
    15. Wind
    16. Wind ×2
    17. Converter
    18. Wind
    19. Converter
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. Wind ×2
    23. Converter
    24. Wind
    25. Wind ×2
    26. Converter
    27. Wind
    28. Wind
    29. Wind ×2
    30. Converter
    31. Wind
    32. Wind
    33. Converter
    34. Wind
    35. Wind
    36. Wind
    37. Converter
    38. Wind ×2
    39. Wind
    40. Converter
    41. Wind ×2
    42. Wind
    43. Converter
    44. Wind
    45. Converter
    46. Wind ×2
    47. Converter
    48. Wind
    49. ValiantValiant
    50. Wind
    51. Converter
    52. Wind
    53. Wind ×2
    54. Converter
    55. ValiantValiant
    56. Wind ×2
    57. Wind
    58. Wind ×2
    59. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:08 · typical 6:50
    60. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    61. Wind
    62. Wind
    63. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    64. Wind
    65. Wind
    66. Wind ×2
    67. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    68. Wind
    69. Wind
    70. Wind
    71. Wind
    72. Wind
    73. Wind
    74. Wind
    75. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:37
    76. Wind
    77. Wind
    78. Con turret
    79. Wind
    80. Wind
    81. Con turret
    82. Wind
    83. Wind
    84. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    85. ValiantValiant
    86. Con turret
    87. Wind
    88. Wind
    89. Con turret
    90. Wind
    91. Con turret
    92. Wind
    93. Wind ×2
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind
    98. FinchFinch ×3
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant ×2
    103. Wind
    104. Wind
    105. ValiantValiant ×2
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiant ×2
    108. Wind
    109. Wind
    110. ValiantValiant ×3
    111. Wind
    112. Wind
    113. ValiantValiant ×2
    114. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 12:06 · typical 10:52
    115. Wind
    116. Wind ×2
    117. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    118. Wind
    119. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 12:18
    120. Wind
    121. Converter
    122. Wind
    123. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    124. Wind
    125. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    126. Wind
    127. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    128. Wind
    129. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    130. Wind
    131. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    132. Wind
    133. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    134. Wind
    135. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    136. Wind
    137. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    138. Converter
    139. Wind
    140. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×3
    141. ValiantValiant ×5
    142. FinchFinch ×2
    143. Wind
    144. FinchFinch
    145. ValiantValiant ×2
    146. Wind
    147. ValiantValiant ×2
    148. Fusion ReactorFusion
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Wind
    151. Con turret
    152. ValiantValiant
    153. Con turret ×2
    154. Converter
    155. Con turret
    156. Wind
    157. Con turret ×4
    158. Wind
    159. Converter
    160. Wind
    161. ValiantValiant

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Gieds's (45 OS, 07/10/2026); 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

Gieds

45.4 OS · 07/10/2026

Open source match ↗

4 received units · includes a constructor
896 metal received · 17267 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
Standard air · Cortex Air build order · BAR Build Atlas