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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Afussy's (34 OS, 13/08/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:50 · 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

Afussy

33.7 OS · 13/08/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
1000 metal received · 34042 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
Standard air · Cortex Air build order · BAR Build Atlas