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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's baseline: Aircraft Plant immediately, transports and scouts for the team first, Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor on a normal timeline, transitioning into Valiant fighter coverage over the game.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 633 distinct matches · 123 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 48% of 707 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Aircraft Plant by 1:24

  1. Take 3 mex and open wind before committing to aircraft plant.
  2. Finish aircraft plant to start churning scouts and transports.
  3. Send Hercules, Finch and Hephaestus to allies as they ask.
  4. Get your advanced metal extractor up to fund fighter spam.
  5. Bring fusion online and shift into Valiant fighter coverage.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 633 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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:32 · 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 (46%) · light transport (44%) · converter (40%) · 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 · 31 steps
    1. Wind
    2. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    5. Wind
    6. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    7. ValiantValiant
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. Wind
    11. HerculesLight transport
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. Wind
    14. ShurikenShuriken
    15. HerculesLight transport ×2for Geo
    16. Wind
    17. Mex
    18. Construction AircraftCon aircraftfor Beach sea
    19. Wind
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Con turret
    26. ValiantValiant ×2
    27. Wind
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Pond
    30. Wind
    31. ValiantValiant
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    • Energy Converter6Converter
    Order
    1. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plant
    2. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plant after 18 wind, 17 wind, 6 converterin 58% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret4 Con turret
    Army
    • Valiant9 Valiant

    Some games also: shuriken (50%) · fusion (36%) · con aircraft (35%) · light transport (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 3 mex · 1 mex · 24 wind · 19 wind · 8 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 204 steps
    1. ValiantValiant
    2. Wind
    3. Con turret
    4. ValiantValiant
    5. Wind
    6. Wind
    7. Wind ×2
    8. Con turret
    9. Wind
    10. Wind
    11. Wind
    12. Converter
    13. Con turret
    14. Converter
    15. Wind
    16. Converter
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:52 · typical 6:50
    18. Wind
    19. Converter
    20. ValiantValiant
    21. Wind
    22. Converter
    23. HerculesLight transport
    24. ValiantValiant ×2
    25. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    26. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×3
    27. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:06
    28. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    29. ValiantValiant ×3
    30. Con turret
    31. ValiantValiant ×2
    32. Con turret
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Con turret
    35. ValiantValiant ×2
    36. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 10:51 · typical 10:52
    37. ValiantValiant ×3
    38. Con turret
    39. ValiantValiant ×2
    40. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    41. Wind ×2
    42. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:06
    43. Wind
    44. HephaestusHeavy transport
    45. Converter
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. ValiantValiant ×2
    49. Wind
    50. Con turret
    51. ShurikenShuriken
    52. Con turret
    53. Wind
    54. ShurikenShuriken
    55. Con turret
    56. Converter
    57. ShurikenShuriken
    58. Wind
    59. Con turret
    60. ShurikenShuriken
    61. Converter
    62. Wind
    63. Converter
    64. ShurikenShuriken
    65. Con turret
    66. ShurikenShuriken
    67. Wind
    68. Converter
    69. Con turret
    70. Wind
    71. ShurikenShuriken
    72. Converter
    73. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    74. Converter
    75. Wind ×2
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Wind
    78. ValiantValiant
    79. Wind
    80. Converter
    81. ValiantValiant
    82. Wind
    83. ValiantValiant ×2
    84. Converter
    85. Wind
    86. ValiantValiant
    87. Wind
    88. ValiantValiant
    89. Wind
    90. Converter
    91. ValiantValiant
    92. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    93. Wind ×2
    94. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    95. Converter
    96. Wind
    97. ShurikenShuriken
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Wind
    100. ValiantValiant
    101. Wind
    102. Converter
    103. ValiantValiant
    104. Wind
    105. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    108. Wind
    109. Converter
    110. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    111. Wind ×2
    112. Converter
    113. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    114. Wind
    115. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    116. Wind
    117. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    118. Wind
    119. Converter
    120. Wind
    121. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    122. Wind
    123. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    124. Converter
    125. Wind
    126. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    129. Converter
    130. Wind ×2
    131. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    132. Converter
    133. Wind
    134. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    135. Wind
    136. ShurikenShuriken
    137. Wind
    138. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    139. Wind
    140. ShurikenShuriken
    141. Converter
    142. Wind ×4
    143. Converter
    144. Wind ×4
    145. Converter
    146. Wind
    147. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    148. Wind
    149. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    150. Converter
    151. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    152. Wind ×2
    153. ValiantValiant ×2for Tech
    154. Converter
    155. ValiantValiantfor Tech
    156. Wind
    157. ValiantValiant
    158. Wind
    159. ValiantValiant
    160. Converter
    161. ValiantValiant ×2
    162. Wind
    163. ValiantValiant ×2
    164. Wind
    165. ValiantValiant
    166. Converter
    167. Wind
    168. ValiantValiant ×2
    169. Converter
    170. ValiantValiant
    171. Wind
    172. ValiantValiant
    173. Wind
    174. ValiantValiant
    175. FinchFinch
    176. Converter
    177. FinchFinch
    178. Wind ×2
    179. FinchFinch ×3
    180. Wind
    181. ValiantValiant
    182. Wind
    183. ValiantValiant
    184. Converter
    185. Wind
    186. ValiantValiant ×3
    187. Wind
    188. ShurikenShuriken
    189. Converter
    190. ShurikenShuriken
    191. Wind
    192. ShurikenShuriken
    193. Wind
    194. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    195. Wind
    196. ShurikenShuriken
    197. Converter
    198. Wind
    199. ShurikenShuriken
    200. Wind
    201. ValiantValiant ×3
    202. Converter
    203. Wind
    204. ValiantValiant

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Lexosis's (40 OS, 08/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · 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 2:26 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:38 · in 65% 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 95% 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

707 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002057051
5:00276873116
6:003751125167
7:005142190225
8:007010240292
9:009301263344
10:0011805340474
11:0014399440641
12:0017093607949
13:00199139491280
14:002269914671852
15:002558321432789
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard air sits below average team win rate at 48%, reflecting the role's support nature rather than kills.

  • + Aircraft plant lands fast at 1:24, enabling early transport and scout support.
  • − Own metal lost still reaches 2705 by 15:00 despite a support-first role.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Lexosis

39.8 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
477 metal received · 74503 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=707
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:24–7:25 · n=681
Fusion Reactor10:52Middle 50%: 9:53–12:08 · n=442

Played most by

DRM44games of this buildAdeus37games of this buildTheGeneraI32games of this buildImmort29games of this buildNutzz29games of this build