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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 ×6
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:24 · 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 · 20 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    2. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    4. ValiantValiant
    5. Wind ×3
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. FinchFinch
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant ×5
    10. Energy storage
    11. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    12. HerculesLight transportfor Geo
    13. Mex
    14. Energy storage
    15. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    16. Con turret
    17. ShurikenShuriken
    18. Con turret
    19. Converter
    20. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
  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 · 129 steps
    1. Converter
    2. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    3. Converter
    4. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    5. Converter
    6. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    7. Converter
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Wind ×5
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Wind ×3
    12. ValiantValiant ×2
    13. Converter
    14. ValiantValiant ×3
    15. Wind ×2
    16. ShurikenShuriken
    17. Wind
    18. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:11 · typical 6:50
    20. ShurikenShuriken
    21. ValiantValiant ×2
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant ×2
    24. Wind
    25. HerculesLight transport
    26. Wind ×2
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    28. Wind ×3
    29. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    30. Con turret ×2
    31. Bot LabBot Labdone 9:51
    32. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    33. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    34. Converter
    35. Construction BotCon bot
    36. Converter
    37. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    38. Wind
    39. Construction BotCon bot
    40. Wind ×2
    41. Construction BotCon bot
    42. Wind ×4
    43. Construction BotCon bot
    44. Wind
    45. Construction BotCon bot
    46. Wind ×3
    47. Construction BotCon bot
    48. Wind ×2
    49. Converter
    50. Wind ×5
    51. Advanced Aircraft PlantAdvanced Aircraft Plantnot finished by 15:00
    52. Wind
    53. Con turret
    54. Wind ×2
    55. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 12:20 · typical 10:56
    56. Wind ×5
    57. Con turret
    58. Wind ×2
    59. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:38
    60. Wind ×2
    61. Con turret ×2
    62. Wind ×4
    63. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    64. Wind ×5
    65. Converter
    66. Wind
    67. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    68. Wind ×10
    69. Con turret
    70. Wind ×2
    71. Con turret
    72. Wind ×4
    73. Converter
    74. Advanced Aircraft PlantAdvanced Aircraft Plantdone 14:13
    75. Wind ×3
    76. Converter
    77. Wind ×3
    78. Con turret
    79. Wind
    80. Converter
    81. Wind
    82. Converter
    83. Con turret
    84. Wind ×2
    85. Converter
    86. Wind ×2
    87. CitadelAnti-nukedone 14:42
    88. Wind
    89. Con turret
    90. Converter
    91. Wind ×3
    92. Con turret
    93. Wind ×2
    94. Converter
    95. Wind ×6
    96. Converter
    97. Wind ×6
    98. Converter
    99. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    100. Wind
    101. Converter
    102. Wind ×5
    103. Converter ×2
    104. Wind ×5
    105. Converter ×2
    106. Wind ×4
    107. NighthawkNighthawk
    108. Converter
    109. Wind ×4
    110. Converter
    111. Wind
    112. NighthawkNighthawk
    113. Converter
    114. Wind ×3
    115. Converter
    116. Converter
    117. Wind ×2
    118. Converter
    119. Wind ×6
    120. Converter
    121. TracerTracer
    122. NighthawkNighthawk
    123. Wind ×3
    124. Converter
    125. Wind ×2
    126. Converter
    127. Wind
    128. Converter
    129. Wind ×3

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is [UNN]Prime's (38 OS, 21/08/2026); 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

[UNN]Prime

38.3 OS · 21/08/2026

Open source match ↗

12 received units · includes a constructor
194 metal received · 92811 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