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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 ×6
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:23 · 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 · 29 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    3. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    4. Solar
    5. HerculesLight transport ×3for Geo sea
    6. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    7. Con turret
    8. ValiantValiant ×2
    9. Mex
    10. Energy storage
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind ×3
    14. FinchFinch
    15. Wind
    16. ShurikenShuriken
    17. Wind
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. Wind
    22. ValiantValiant ×2
    23. Wind
    24. FinchFinch
    25. Wind
    26. ShurikenShuriken
    27. ValiantValiant
    28. Wind
    29. 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 · 162 steps
    1. ValiantValiant
    2. Wind
    3. FinchFinch
    4. ShurikenShuriken
    5. Wind
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Wind
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Converter
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Con turret
    12. Converter ×2
    13. FinchFinch
    14. Converter
    15. ShurikenShuriken
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:54 · typical 6:50
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. ShurikenShuriken ×10
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    21. Con turret
    22. Energy storage
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    24. Wind ×4
    25. Solar
    26. Wind
    27. Solar
    28. Wind ×2
    29. Energy storage
    30. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 10:08
    31. Wind ×3
    32. Con turret
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant
    36. Con turret
    37. Wind
    38. ValiantValiant
    39. Wind
    40. FinchFinch
    41. Con turret
    42. ValiantValiant
    43. Wind
    44. ValiantValiant
    45. Con turret
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. Con turret
    49. FinchFinch
    50. ValiantValiant ×2
    51. Wind
    52. Con turret
    53. ValiantValiant
    54. Con turret
    55. FinchFinch
    56. Wind
    57. Con turret
    58. ValiantValiant ×2
    59. Wind
    60. ValiantValiant
    61. Wind
    62. FinchFinch
    63. Con turret
    64. Wind
    65. ValiantValiant
    66. Wind
    67. HerculesLight transport ×2
    68. Wind
    69. ValiantValiant ×2
    70. Wind
    71. FinchFinch
    72. ValiantValiant ×2
    73. Wind
    74. ValiantValiant
    75. Wind
    76. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    77. HerculesLight transport
    78. Wind
    79. FinchFinch
    80. ValiantValiant
    81. Con turret
    82. Wind
    83. ValiantValiant
    84. Con turret
    85. Wind
    86. ValiantValiant
    87. Con turret
    88. Wind
    89. FinchFinch
    90. Wind
    91. ValiantValiant ×3
    92. Wind
    93. FinchFinch
    94. ValiantValiant ×2
    95. Wind
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. FinchFinch
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant ×2
    101. Wind
    102. FinchFinch
    103. ValiantValiant ×2
    104. Wind
    105. ValiantValiant
    106. FinchFinch
    107. Wind
    108. ValiantValiant ×3
    109. Wind
    110. FinchFinch
    111. ValiantValiant ×2
    112. Wind
    113. ValiantValiant
    114. Wind
    115. FinchFinch
    116. Wind
    117. HephaestusHeavy transport
    118. Wind
    119. ValiantValiant
    120. Wind
    121. ValiantValiant ×2
    122. Solar
    123. Wind
    124. FinchFinch
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind
    127. Solar
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Advanced Geothermal PowerplantAdvanced Geothermal Powerplantnot finished by 15:00
    130. Wind
    131. Solar
    132. ValiantValiant
    133. Wind
    134. Solar
    135. Wind
    136. Solar
    137. Wind
    138. FinchFinch
    139. Solar
    140. Wind
    141. ValiantValiant
    142. Solar
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Wind
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Wind
    147. FinchFinch
    148. Wind
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Wind
    151. ValiantValiant
    152. Wind
    153. ValiantValiant
    154. FinchFinch
    155. ValiantValiant ×3
    156. Wind
    157. FinchFinch
    158. ValiantValiant
    159. Wind
    160. ValiantValiant ×2
    161. Wind
    162. FinchFinch

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is EXZoPrimer3's (38 OS, 14/09/2026); 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

EXZoPrimer3

38.4 OS · 14/09/2026

Open source match ↗

9 received units · includes a constructor
148 metal received · 35101 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