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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 · 1496 distinct matches · 252 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1799 · 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 1496 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 · 6 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind
    3. Energy storage
    4. Wind
    5. Solar
    6. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:31 · 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 · 26 steps
    1. FinchFinch
    2. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    5. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    6. ValiantValiant ×2
    7. Wind ×3
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Wind ×2
    10. Mex
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant ×2for Geo
    13. HerculesLight transport
    14. ShurikenShuriken
    15. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    16. Wind
    17. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    22. Con turret
    23. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    24. Wind
    25. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    26. Con turret
  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 · 25 wind · 20 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 95 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ValiantValiant ×2for Geo
    3. Wind ×3
    4. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    5. Wind
    6. Con turret
    7. Wind
    8. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:20 · typical 6:54
    9. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    10. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×3
    11. Wind ×8
    12. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:24
    13. Wind
    14. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant ×2for Geo
    17. Wind
    18. Con turret
    19. ValiantValiant ×3for Geo
    20. Con turret
    21. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant ×2for Geo
    24. ValiantValiant ×2
    25. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 10:13 · typical 10:53
    26. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    27. Wind ×3
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. ShurikenShuriken
    31. Wind
    32. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    33. T2 converter
    34. ShurikenShuriken
    35. Wind
    36. ShurikenShuriken
    37. Wind ×2
    38. ShurikenShuriken
    39. Wind
    40. ShurikenShuriken
    41. Con turret
    42. Wind
    43. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    44. Wind
    45. T2 converter
    46. ShurikenShuriken
    47. Wind
    48. ShurikenShuriken
    49. Wind
    50. ShurikenShuriken
    51. Con turret
    52. Wind ×2
    53. ShurikenShuriken
    54. Con turret
    55. Wind
    56. Con turret ×2
    57. ShurikenShuriken
    58. Wind
    59. Con turret
    60. ValiantValiant
    61. Wind
    62. Con turret
    63. Converter
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Con turret
    66. Converter
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant
    69. Con turret
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Converter
    72. Con turret
    73. Wind
    74. ValiantValiant ×2
    75. Converter
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Wind
    78. ValiantValiant ×2
    79. Converter
    80. ValiantValiant ×3
    81. Wind
    82. Converter
    83. ValiantValiant ×4
    84. Wind
    85. Converter
    86. ValiantValiant ×3
    87. Converter
    88. Wind
    89. ValiantValiant ×3
    90. Converter
    91. ValiantValiant ×2
    92. Wind
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. Converter
    95. ValiantValiant ×3

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is OsamaBinClappin's (31 OS, 13/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · 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 2:23 · 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

1799 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
6:003705102124
7:005088146167
8:006898190219
9:009278232270
10:0011753292384
11:0014351373538
12:0017061513781
13:00198507811102
14:002270012641689
15:002570818042405
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

OsamaBinClappin

31.1 OS · 13/09/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
895 metal received · 57060 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=1799
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1740
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:47–12:18 · n=1151

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildMilkdragon51games of this buildAdeus50games of this build