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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

The usual Cortex air game: Aircraft Plant just after the start, Advanced Metal Extractor around 7 minutes and Fusion Reactor around 11 minutes, making transports and fighters for the team while scaling economy normally.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 501 distinct matches · 111 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 559 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:23

  1. Take 3 mex and open straight into Aircraft Plant.
  2. Finish Aircraft Plant, start pumping Valiant for escort duty.
  3. Get T2 constructor going to scale eco alongside air production.
  4. Add Advanced Metal Extractor to keep pace with team's economy.
  5. Bring Fusion Reactor online, keep making Hercules and Finch for allies.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 501 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 1:13–1:33

    Some games also: energy storage (37%)

    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
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: energy storage (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · con turret (31%)

    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 · 25 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind ×6
    4. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    5. Wind ×2
    6. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    7. Wind
    8. Energy storage
    9. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    10. Mex
    11. Con turret
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    13. Con turret ×2
    14. Wind
    15. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    16. Converter
    17. Wind
    18. HerculesLight transport
    19. Wind
    20. HerculesLight transport
    21. Converter
    22. HerculesLight transport
    23. Wind ×3
    24. Converter ×2
    25. Wind
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine5Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken

    Some games also: con aircraft (36%) · fusion (33%) · 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 · 244 steps
    1. Converter
    2. Wind
    3. Converter
    4. Con turret
    5. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    6. Converter
    7. Wind ×2
    8. ShurikenShuriken
    9. Wind ×2
    10. ShurikenShuriken
    11. Wind
    12. Converter
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Converter
    17. Wind
    18. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    19. Wind ×3
    20. Converter
    21. Wind ×2
    22. Converter
    23. Wind ×3
    24. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:42 · typical 6:50
    25. ShurikenShuriken
    26. Wind
    27. Converter
    28. Wind ×2
    29. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    30. Wind ×4
    31. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    32. Wind ×2
    33. Converter
    34. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    35. Wind ×4
    36. Con turret
    37. Converter
    38. Wind ×6
    39. Converter
    40. Wind ×4
    41. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:27
    42. Wind ×2
    43. ValiantValiant
    44. Converter
    45. Wind
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. ValiantValiant
    49. Con turret
    50. Wind
    51. Con turret
    52. ValiantValiant
    53. Wind
    54. ValiantValiant ×2
    55. Converter
    56. Wind ×2
    57. Con turret
    58. ValiantValiant
    59. Wind ×2
    60. ValiantValiant
    61. Wind
    62. ValiantValiant
    63. Wind
    64. Converter
    65. Wind
    66. ValiantValiant
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant
    69. Converter
    70. Wind
    71. ValiantValiant
    72. Wind
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Wind
    75. Con turret
    76. Wind
    77. ValiantValiant
    78. Wind
    79. ValiantValiant
    80. Wind
    81. ValiantValiant
    82. Wind ×2
    83. ValiantValiant
    84. Wind
    85. ShurikenShuriken
    86. Wind
    87. ShurikenShuriken
    88. Wind
    89. ShurikenShuriken
    90. Wind ×2
    91. ShurikenShuriken
    92. Wind ×2
    93. ShurikenShuriken
    94. Wind
    95. ShurikenShuriken
    96. Wind ×3
    97. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    98. Wind ×2
    99. ShurikenShuriken
    100. Wind
    101. ShurikenShuriken
    102. Wind ×2
    103. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    104. Wind ×2
    105. ShurikenShuriken
    106. Wind
    107. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    108. Wind
    109. ShurikenShuriken
    110. Wind
    111. ShurikenShuriken
    112. Wind ×2
    113. ShurikenShuriken
    114. Wind
    115. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    116. Wind ×2
    117. ShurikenShuriken
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. Wind ×3
    120. ValiantValiant ×2
    121. Wind ×2
    122. ValiantValiant
    123. Wind ×2
    124. ValiantValiant
    125. Wind
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind ×4
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Wind
    130. ValiantValiant ×2
    131. Wind ×2
    132. ValiantValiant
    133. Wind ×2
    134. ValiantValiant ×2
    135. Wind ×3
    136. ValiantValiant ×2
    137. Wind ×2
    138. ValiantValiant
    139. Wind
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. Wind
    142. ValiantValiant ×2
    143. Wind ×2
    144. ValiantValiant ×3
    145. Wind ×2
    146. ValiantValiant ×2
    147. Wind
    148. ValiantValiant
    149. Wind
    150. ValiantValiant ×2
    151. Wind
    152. ValiantValiant
    153. Wind
    154. ValiantValiant ×2
    155. Wind ×2
    156. ValiantValiant ×2
    157. Wind
    158. ValiantValiant
    159. Wind
    160. ValiantValiant ×2
    161. Wind
    162. ValiantValiant
    163. Wind
    164. ValiantValiant ×2
    165. Wind
    166. ValiantValiant
    167. Wind ×2
    168. ValiantValiant
    169. Wind
    170. ValiantValiant
    171. Converter
    172. Wind
    173. ValiantValiant
    174. Wind
    175. Converter
    176. ValiantValiant
    177. Wind
    178. ValiantValiant ×2
    179. Wind
    180. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    181. Wind ×3
    182. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    183. Wind
    184. ValiantValiant
    185. Wind
    186. ShurikenShuriken
    187. Wind
    188. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    189. Wind
    190. ShurikenShuriken
    191. Wind ×2
    192. ShurikenShuriken
    193. ValiantValiant
    194. Wind ×2
    195. ValiantValiant
    196. Converter
    197. Wind
    198. ValiantValiant
    199. Con turret
    200. Wind
    201. ShurikenShuriken
    202. Wind
    203. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    204. Wind
    205. ShurikenShuriken
    206. Wind
    207. ValiantValiant
    208. Wind
    209. ValiantValiant ×3
    210. Wind ×2
    211. ValiantValiant ×2
    212. Wind
    213. ValiantValiant
    214. Wind
    215. ValiantValiant ×2
    216. Wind
    217. ValiantValiant ×2
    218. Wind
    219. ValiantValiant
    220. Converter
    221. Wind
    222. ValiantValiant
    223. Wind
    224. ValiantValiant
    225. Wind
    226. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    227. Wind
    228. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    229. Converter
    230. Wind
    231. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    232. Wind
    233. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    234. Wind
    235. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    236. Wind
    237. Converter
    238. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    239. Wind
    240. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    241. Wind
    242. Converter
    243. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    244. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Nutzz's (42 OS, 18/09/2026); 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 Geofirst at 2:05 · in 98% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:26 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · in 66% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:45 · in 48% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Techfirst at 2:19 · in 84% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:04 · in 94% 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

559 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092400
3:00145700
4:002052051
5:00276573102
6:003779124147
7:005128176219
8:007036220281
9:009352250341
10:0011841314464
11:0014395439635
12:0017109605955
13:00199329071256
14:002261913911819
15:002548920592748
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

This is the role's standard support job, winning less than half its games while producing little combat impact but reliably feeding transports and scouts to teammates.

  • + Reaches Aircraft Plant almost immediately (1:23), fast T2 constructor by 5:58.
  • + Keeps own losses low (2789 by 15:00) versus other roles.
  • − Destroys only 2027 enemy metal by 15:00, minimal combat contribution.
  • − Fusion Reactor only completes in 57% of games, some games stall on eco.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Nutzz

42.0 OS · 18/09/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
5 metal received · 90 energy received

Allied construction assistance is unknown. Timings are observations, not a promise of solo reproducibility.

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:33 · n=559
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:23–7:27 · n=536
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:02–12:19 · n=338

Played most by

DRM35games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildAdeus28games of this buildNutzz25games of this buildhaaven24games of this build