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 · 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 · 7 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Mex
    4. Wind ×4
    5. Energy storage
    6. Wind
    7. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:44 · 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 · 23 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    3. Wind
    4. FinchFinch
    5. Wind ×3
    6. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    7. Wind
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. ShurikenShuriken
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Wind ×3
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    13. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    14. Con turret
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. Con turret
    17. Mex
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    20. Con turret
    21. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    22. ValiantValiant ×3
    23. Wind
  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 · 282 steps
    1. Wind
    2. HerculesLight transport
    3. Wind ×3
    4. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    5. Wind ×8
    6. Converter
    7. Wind ×4
    8. Converter
    9. Wind ×3
    10. Converter
    11. Wind ×2
    12. Con turret
    13. Wind
    14. Converter
    15. Wind ×2
    16. Converter
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:53 · typical 6:54
    18. Wind ×4
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    20. Wind ×2
    21. Con turret
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    23. Wind ×4
    24. Bot LabBot Labdone 8:00
    25. Construction BotCon bot
    26. Wind
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    28. Construction BotCon bot
    29. Wind
    30. Construction BotCon bot
    31. Wind
    32. Construction BotCon bot
    33. Wind
    34. Construction BotCon bot
    35. Wind ×11
    36. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:05
    37. Wind ×4
    38. Con turret
    39. Wind
    40. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    41. Wind ×2
    42. Con turret
    43. Wind ×2
    44. ValiantValiant
    45. Wind ×5
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. Windfor Geo
    49. ValiantValiant
    50. Wind
    51. Windfor Geo
    52. ValiantValiant
    53. Con turret
    54. Wind ×2
    55. Converter
    56. Wind ×2
    57. ValiantValiant
    58. Windfor Geo
    59. Wind ×4
    60. ValiantValiant
    61. Windfor Geo
    62. ValiantValiant
    63. Wind ×3
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Wind ×2
    66. Converter
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant
    69. Windfor Geo
    70. Con turret
    71. Wind ×4
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Con turret
    74. Wind ×2
    75. FinchFinch
    76. Wind
    77. Windfor Geo
    78. Wind ×2
    79. FinchFinch
    80. Wind
    81. FinchFinch
    82. Wind ×3
    83. FinchFinch
    84. Wind
    85. FinchFinch
    86. Wind ×3
    87. Converter
    88. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    89. Wind
    90. Converter
    91. Wind ×3
    92. FinchFinch
    93. Wind ×2
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Wind ×3
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Converter
    98. Wind ×2
    99. ValiantValiant
    100. Wind ×3
    101. ValiantValiant
    102. Converter
    103. Windfor Geo
    104. Wind
    105. Converter
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiant
    108. Windfor Geo
    109. Wind ×3
    110. ValiantValiant
    111. Converter
    112. ValiantValiant
    113. Wind ×3
    114. Converter
    115. Wind
    116. ValiantValiant
    117. NettleNettle
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. Wind ×3
    120. ValiantValiant
    121. Converter
    122. Converter
    123. Wind
    124. ValiantValiant
    125. Wind ×4
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind ×3
    128. Converter
    129. ValiantValiant
    130. Wind
    131. Converter
    132. Wind
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Wind ×4
    135. ValiantValiant
    136. Wind ×3
    137. ValiantValiant
    138. Converter
    139. Wind
    140. ValiantValiant
    141. Converter
    142. Wind ×2
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Wind ×2
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Wind ×2
    147. Converter
    148. ValiantValiant
    149. Wind
    150. Converter
    151. Wind ×2
    152. ValiantValiant
    153. Wind ×2
    154. ValiantValiant
    155. Wind ×3
    156. Converter
    157. Wind
    158. ValiantValiant
    159. Wind ×4
    160. ValiantValiant
    161. Wind ×2
    162. Converter
    163. Wind ×4
    164. ValiantValiant
    165. Wind ×2
    166. CitadelAnti-nukedone 13:08
    167. Wind
    168. ValiantValiant
    169. Converter
    170. Wind
    171. Converter
    172. Con turret
    173. Wind ×4
    174. Con turret
    175. Wind ×3
    176. Converter
    177. ValiantValiant
    178. Con turret
    179. Wind ×2
    180. NettleNettle
    181. Wind ×2
    182. Converter
    183. Wind ×7
    184. Converter
    185. Wind ×3
    186. Converter
    187. Wind ×4
    188. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    189. Converter
    190. Wind ×5
    191. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    192. Wind ×2
    193. Converter
    194. Wind ×2
    195. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    196. Wind ×2
    197. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    198. Wind ×3
    199. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    200. Wind
    201. Converter
    202. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    203. Wind
    204. Converter
    205. Wind
    206. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    207. Wind ×2
    208. Converter
    209. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    210. Wind ×3
    211. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    212. Con turret
    213. Wind
    214. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    215. Converter
    216. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    217. Wind
    218. Con turret
    219. Wind
    220. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    221. Wind ×2
    222. Con turret
    223. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    224. Wind
    225. Converter
    226. Wind ×2
    227. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    228. Converter
    229. Wind ×2
    230. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    231. Con turret
    232. Wind
    233. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    234. Wind
    235. Converter
    236. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    237. Wind
    238. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    239. Wind
    240. Converter
    241. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    242. Wind
    243. Converter
    244. ValiantValiant ×2
    245. Wind ×2
    246. ValiantValiant
    247. Wind ×2
    248. ValiantValiant ×2
    249. Wind ×2
    250. Converter
    251. Wind
    252. Converter
    253. Wind
    254. ValiantValiant
    255. Wind
    256. ValiantValiant
    257. NettleNettle
    258. Wind
    259. ValiantValiant
    260. Wind
    261. ValiantValiant
    262. Wind
    263. ValiantValiant
    264. Wind
    265. Converter
    266. ValiantValiant
    267. Wind ×3
    268. Converter
    269. Wind
    270. ValiantValiant
    271. Wind ×3
    272. ValiantValiant
    273. Con turret
    274. Wind
    275. ValiantValiant
    276. Wind ×2
    277. ValiantValiant
    278. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantnot finished by 15:00
    279. Converter
    280. Wind
    281. ValiantValiant
    282. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is bob7's (31 OS, 11/10/2026); 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 2:23 · 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

bob7

31.0 OS · 11/10/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
1380 metal received · 15341 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