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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

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 · 555 distinct matches · 116 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 624 · 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 555 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 ×2
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:01 · 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 (45%) · light transport (44%) · converter (39%) · 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 · 51 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    3. Wind ×2
    4. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    5. Wind ×2
    6. ShurikenShuriken
    7. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    8. ShurikenShuriken
    9. Wind
    10. Con turret
    11. Mex
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. Converter
    14. ValiantValiant
    15. Wind ×2
    16. ShurikenShuriken
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Con turret
    19. Wind
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Wind
    22. Wind ×2
    23. ValiantValiant
    24. Wind
    25. Converter
    26. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    27. Wind ×2
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. Wind ×2
    31. Wind
    32. Wind
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Wind
    35. Energy storage
    36. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    37. Wind
    38. Converter
    39. HerculesLight transportfor Geo
    40. Wind
    41. ValiantValiant
    42. Wind
    43. Converter
    44. HerculesLight transport
    45. Converter
    46. Wind
    47. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    48. Converter
    49. Energy storage
    50. Con turret
    51. ValiantValiant
  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 · 108 steps
    1. Wind
    2. Converter
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. Wind
    5. Converter
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Mex
    8. Wind
    9. Converter
    10. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Converter
    14. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    17. Converter
    18. Mex
    19. Wind
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Converter
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2done 6:35 · typical 6:50
    23. Wind
    24. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    25. Wind
    26. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    27. Wind
    28. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    29. ThistleThistle
    30. Wind ×4
    31. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 9:11 · typical 10:56
    32. Con turret
    33. Wind
    34. Con turret ×3
    35. Wind
    36. Con turret
    37. T2 converter
    38. Con turret
    39. Wind
    40. Con turret
    41. Fusion ReactorFusion
    42. Wind ×4
    43. T2 converter
    44. Wind ×2
    45. Fusion ReactorFusion
    46. Con turret
    47. Wind
    48. Con turret
    49. Wind ×2
    50. T2 converter
    51. Wind ×3
    52. Con turret
    53. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant ×2done 11:39
    54. Wind
    55. T2 converter
    56. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    57. Con turret
    58. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    59. Wind
    60. Con turret ×3
    61. ShurikenShuriken ×9
    62. Wind
    63. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    64. ValiantValiantfor Geo
    65. ShurikenShuriken
    66. ValiantValiant ×5for Geo
    67. Wind
    68. ValiantValiant ×6for Geo
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant ×4for Geo
    71. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    72. Wind
    73. ValiantValiant ×5for Geo
    74. Wind
    75. ValiantValiant ×12for Geo
    76. Advanced Fusion ReactorAdvanced Fusion Reactornot finished by 15:00
    77. ValiantValiant ×6for Geo
    78. Wind
    79. ValiantValiant ×4for Geo
    80. ValiantValiant
    81. Wind
    82. ValiantValiant ×4
    83. Wind
    84. ValiantValiant ×3
    85. Wind
    86. ValiantValiant ×4
    87. Wind
    88. ValiantValiant ×3
    89. Wind
    90. ValiantValiant
    91. JellyfishJellyfish
    92. ValiantValiant ×3
    93. Wind
    94. ValiantValiant ×3
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant ×4
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant ×3
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant ×4
    101. Wind
    102. ValiantValiant ×10
    103. Wind
    104. ValiantValiant ×3
    105. Wind
    106. ValiantValiant ×4
    107. Wind
    108. ValiantValiant ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is KaptenKaki's (36 OS, 12/08/2026); 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 Geofirst 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 1:40 · in 64% 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 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

624 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002053051
5:00276573109
6:003759125167
7:005136190219
8:007017225290
9:009298258342
10:0011788328471
11:0014383440641
12:0017097606958
13:00199439331269
14:002265314171801
15:002554320602701
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

KaptenKaki

35.7 OS · 12/08/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
71 metal received · 283801 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=624
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:21–7:26 · n=599
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:03–12:16 · n=383

Played most by

DRM37games of this buildAdeus33games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildNutzz28games of this buildImmort26games of this build