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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 · 1508 distinct matches · 252 players · 81% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1813 · 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 1508 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 · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:15 · 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 · 26 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinch
    3. Wind
    4. GuardGuard
    5. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    6. Wind ×2
    7. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    8. Wind
    9. Energy storage
    10. Wind
    11. Solar
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    13. Wind
    14. Mex
    15. ShurikenShurikenfor Suicide front
    16. Wind
    17. ShurikenShuriken ×3for Suicide front
    18. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    19. Con turret
    20. Wind
    21. HerculesLight transport ×2for Tech
    22. Wind
    23. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    24. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    25. Energy storage
    26. 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 (47%) · 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 · 84 steps
    1. Converter
    2. Con turret
    3. ValiantValiant ×2
    4. Wind
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Con turret
    7. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    8. Converter
    9. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    10. Wind
    11. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    12. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:38 · typical 6:54
    13. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    14. ValiantValiant
    15. Converter
    16. ValiantValiant ×2
    17. Wind
    18. ValiantValiant ×3
    19. Converter
    20. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    21. Wind
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    23. Wind
    24. Converter
    25. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:38
    26. Wind
    27. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    28. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    29. Con turret
    30. Converter
    31. ValiantValiant
    32. Con turret
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant
    36. Wind
    37. ValiantValiant
    38. Wind ×3
    39. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00 · typical 10:52
    40. ShurikenShuriken
    41. Wind
    42. ShurikenShuriken
    43. Wind
    44. ShurikenShuriken ×3
    45. Converter
    46. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    47. ValiantValiant ×2
    48. Wind
    49. ValiantValiant
    50. ThistleThistle
    51. ValiantValiant
    52. Wind
    53. ThistleThistle
    54. ValiantValiant ×2
    55. ThistleThistle
    56. ValiantValiant ×2
    57. ThistleThistle
    58. ValiantValiant
    59. ThistleThistle ×2
    60. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:10
    61. ValiantValiant ×7
    62. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    63. Metal storage
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Con turret
    66. ValiantValiant ×5
    67. Con turret
    68. ValiantValiant ×5
    69. Con turret
    70. ValiantValiant ×2
    71. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    72. Con turret ×2
    73. Advanced Aircraft PlantAdvanced Aircraft Plantdone 13:39
    74. Con turret
    75. Wind
    76. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    77. Advanced Construction AircraftT2 con aircraft
    78. Wind
    79. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 14:35
    80. Wind
    81. Converter
    82. NighthawkNighthawk
    83. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 14:42
    84. NighthawkNighthawk ×3

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is [APM]ZenMonk[Vdb]'s (37 OS, 13/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:50 · 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 71% 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 2:22 · 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

1813 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
6:003711102124
7:005089146167
8:006903190219
9:009285230270
10:0011761292379
11:0014370369533
12:0017069512781
13:00198597811101
14:002270412631689
15:002573618082409
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

[APM]ZenMonk[Vdb]

36.5 OS · 13/10/2026

Open source match ↗

2 received units · includes a constructor
2726 metal received · 152797 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=1813
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1753
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:46–12:17 · n=1160

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildDRM52games of this buildMilkdragon52games of this build