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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 · 5 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×5
    3. Energy storage
    4. Wind ×2
    5. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:42 · 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 · 24 steps
    1. FinchFinchfor unknown
    2. FinchFinch
    3. HerculesLight transport ×2for unknown
    4. ValiantValiant ×3
    5. Wind
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Mex
    9. Wind
    10. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    11. ValiantValiant
    12. Con turret
    13. Wind
    14. ValiantValiantfor Pond
    15. Con turret
    16. Wind
    17. Con turretfor Pond
    18. Wind
    19. ValiantValiantfor Pond
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiantfor Pond
    22. Converter
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiantfor Pond
  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 · 251 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ValiantValiantfor Pond
    3. Wind
    4. Converter
    5. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Pond
    6. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 5:58 · typical 6:50
    7. Wind
    8. Con turret
    9. Wind
    10. Converter
    11. Wind
    12. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    13. Converter
    14. Wind
    15. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    16. Wind
    17. Converter
    18. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 7:06
    19. Converter
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    21. FalconFighter ×2
    22. Wind
    23. Converter
    24. FalconFighter ×2
    25. Wind
    26. FalconFighter
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
    29. FalconFighter
    30. Wind
    31. FalconFighter
    32. Wind
    33. FalconFighter
    34. Wind
    35. FalconFighter ×2
    36. Wind ×2
    37. FalconFighter
    38. OspreyHeavy transport
    39. Wind
    40. FalconFighter
    41. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    42. Wind
    43. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    44. Wind
    45. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    46. Wind
    47. FalconFighter
    48. Wind
    49. StorkLight transportfor Geo
    50. StorkLight transport
    51. Wind
    52. Con turret
    53. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    54. Con turret
    55. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    56. Wind
    57. FalconFighter
    58. Wind
    59. StorkLight transport ×2
    60. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    61. Con turret ×2
    62. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    63. FalconFighter
    64. Con turret
    65. StorkLight transport ×2
    66. FalconFighter
    67. StorkLight transport
    68. FalconFighter ×3
    69. Con turret
    70. FalconFighter
    71. Wind
    72. Con turret
    73. FalconFighter
    74. Con turret
    75. Wind
    76. FalconFighter
    77. Wind
    78. Con turret
    79. Wind
    80. FalconFighter
    81. Wind ×2
    82. FalconFighter
    83. Wind
    84. FalconFighter
    85. Wind ×3
    86. FalconFighter
    87. Wind ×5
    88. Converter
    89. FalconFighter
    90. Wind ×2
    91. FalconFighter
    92. Wind
    93. FalconFighter
    94. Wind ×4
    95. FalconFighter
    96. Wind
    97. FalconFighter
    98. Wind ×3
    99. Con turret
    100. Wind
    101. Converter
    102. FalconFighter
    103. Wind ×3
    104. Con turret
    105. Wind ×2
    106. FalconFighter
    107. Wind ×4
    108. Con turret
    109. Wind
    110. FalconFighter
    111. Wind ×4
    112. Con turret
    113. Wind
    114. Energy storage
    115. Wind ×2
    116. FalconFighter
    117. Wind ×3
    118. FalconFighter
    119. Wind ×2
    120. Con turret
    121. FalconFighter
    122. Wind ×3
    123. FalconFighter
    124. Wind
    125. FalconFighter
    126. Wind ×3
    127. FalconFighter ×2
    128. Wind ×2
    129. FalconFighter
    130. Wind
    131. FalconFighter
    132. Wind ×2
    133. FalconFighter
    134. Wind ×3
    135. FalconFighter
    136. Wind ×2
    137. FalconFighter
    138. Wind ×2
    139. FalconFighter
    140. Wind
    141. FalconFighter
    142. Wind
    143. FalconFighter
    144. Wind
    145. FalconFighter ×3
    146. Wind
    147. FalconFighter
    148. Wind ×4
    149. FalconFighter
    150. Wind
    151. FalconFighter
    152. Wind ×3
    153. Converter
    154. Wind
    155. FalconFighter
    156. Wind
    157. FalconFighter
    158. Wind ×2
    159. Converter
    160. FalconFighter
    161. Wind ×2
    162. FalconFighter
    163. Wind
    164. FalconFighter
    165. Converter
    166. Wind
    167. FalconFighter
    168. Wind ×2
    169. Converter
    170. FalconFighter
    171. Wind ×3
    172. FalconFighter
    173. Converter
    174. Wind ×3
    175. FalconFighter
    176. Wind
    177. Converter
    178. Wind ×6
    179. Converter
    180. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 14:22 · typical 10:56
    181. Wind ×3
    182. Converter
    183. Wind ×5
    184. Converter
    185. Wind ×2
    186. Converter
    187. Wind ×3
    188. Converter ×2
    189. Wind
    190. Converter
    191. Wind ×2
    192. Converter
    193. T2 converter
    194. Wind ×2
    195. Converter
    196. Wind ×2
    197. Converter
    198. Wind ×4
    199. Converter
    200. Wind ×5
    201. Converter
    202. Wind ×4
    203. Converter
    204. Wind ×5
    205. Converter
    206. Wind ×4
    207. Converter
    208. Wind ×3
    209. Converter
    210. Wind ×3
    211. Converter
    212. Wind
    213. Con turret
    214. Wind
    215. Converter
    216. Wind
    217. Converter
    218. Wind ×2
    219. Converter
    220. Wind ×3
    221. Converter
    222. Con turret
    223. Wind ×2
    224. Converter
    225. Wind
    226. Con turret
    227. Wind
    228. Converter
    229. Wind ×2
    230. Converter
    231. Wind ×3
    232. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 14:49
    233. Con turret
    234. Wind
    235. Converter
    236. Wind
    237. Converter
    238. Wind ×4
    239. Converter
    240. ValiantValiant
    241. Wind ×2
    242. Converter
    243. ValiantValiant
    244. Wind ×4
    245. ValiantValiant
    246. Converter
    247. Wind
    248. ValiantValiant
    249. Wind ×2
    250. ValiantValiant
    251. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is waine's (35 OS, 20/09/2026); 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 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

waine

35.1 OS · 20/09/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
603 metal received · 91174 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