BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
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 · 1508 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1813 · 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 1508 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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:29 · 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 · 14 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    3. HerculesLight transport
    4. ValiantValiant ×2
    5. Wind ×2
    6. ValiantValiant ×2
    7. Mex
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. HerculesLight transport
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. HerculesLight transport ×2for Pond
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    13. Con turret
    14. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
  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 · 197 steps
    1. Con turret
    2. Con turret
    3. ValiantValiant
    4. Wind ×2
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Wind
    7. ValiantValiant
    8. Converter
    9. Wind
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. Con turret
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Converter
    17. Wind
    18. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:38 · typical 6:54
    19. Wind ×4
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Wind ×2
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Wind
    26. ValiantValiant
    27. Wind
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. ValiantValiant
    31. Wind ×2
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant
    36. Wind
    37. ValiantValiant
    38. Wind
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiant
    41. Wind
    42. Wind
    43. ValiantValiant
    44. Wind
    45. Wind
    46. Wind
    47. ValiantValiant ×2
    48. Wind
    49. Wind
    50. ValiantValiant
    51. Wind
    52. Wind
    53. ValiantValiant
    54. Wind
    55. Converter
    56. Wind
    57. ValiantValiant
    58. Wind
    59. Wind
    60. Converter
    61. ValiantValiant
    62. Wind
    63. Wind ×2
    64. Wind
    65. Converter
    66. ValiantValiant
    67. Wind
    68. Wind
    69. Converter
    70. Wind
    71. Wind
    72. Converter
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Wind ×2
    75. Wind
    76. Converter
    77. Wind
    78. ValiantValiant
    79. Wind
    80. Wind
    81. Converter
    82. Wind
    83. Wind
    84. Wind
    85. ValiantValiant
    86. Wind
    87. ValiantValiant
    88. Wind
    89. Wind
    90. ValiantValiant
    91. Wind
    92. Wind
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. Wind
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind
    98. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Wind
    102. Wind
    103. Con turret
    104. Wind
    105. Wind
    106. ValiantValiant
    107. Wind
    108. Con turret
    109. Wind ×2
    110. Con turret
    111. Wind
    112. Wind
    113. Con turret
    114. Wind
    115. ValiantValiant
    116. Wind
    117. Con turret
    118. Wind
    119. Con turret
    120. Wind
    121. ValiantValiant
    122. Wind
    123. ValiantValiant
    124. Wind
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Wind
    130. ValiantValiant
    131. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 12:40
    132. Wind
    133. Con turret
    134. ValiantValiant
    135. Con turret
    136. Wind
    137. Con turret ×2
    138. Wind
    139. Con turret
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. Wind
    142. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:23 · typical 10:52
    143. Con turret
    144. Wind
    145. Wind
    146. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    147. Wind
    148. Wind ×2
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Wind ×2
    151. ValiantValiant
    152. Con turret
    153. Wind
    154. Wind
    155. Con turret
    156. ValiantValiant
    157. Wind
    158. Con turret
    159. Wind
    160. ValiantValiant
    161. Wind
    162. T2 converter
    163. Wind
    164. ValiantValiant ×2
    165. Wind
    166. ValiantValiant
    167. Wind
    168. ValiantValiant ×2
    169. Wind
    170. ValiantValiant ×3
    171. Wind
    172. ValiantValiant
    173. Wind
    174. ValiantValiant ×2
    175. Wind
    176. ValiantValiant ×3
    177. Wind
    178. ValiantValiant ×4
    179. Wind
    180. ValiantValiant
    181. Wind
    182. ValiantValiant ×2
    183. Wind
    184. ValiantValiant
    185. Wind
    186. ValiantValiant ×2
    187. Wind
    188. Wind
    189. ValiantValiant ×5
    190. Wind
    191. ValiantValiant ×2
    192. Wind
    193. ValiantValiant ×3
    194. Wind
    195. ValiantValiant
    196. Wind
    197. ValiantValiant ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is realisticjo's (33 OS, 23/09/2026); 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 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 2:22 · 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

1813 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
6:003711102124
7:005089146167
8:006903190219
9:009285230270
10:0011761292379
11:0014370369533
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811101
14:002270412631689
15:002573618082409
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

realisticjo

33.2 OS · 23/09/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
109 metal received · 43678 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=1813
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1753
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:46–12:17 · n=1160

Played most by

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