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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 ×3
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:22 · 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 · 22 steps
    1. Wind ×3
    2. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    3. Wind ×2
    4. Solar
    5. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    6. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    7. Solar
    8. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    9. Construction AircraftCon aircraft ×2
    10. HerculesLight transportfor Geo
    11. Energy storage
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    13. ValiantValiant ×2
    14. Con turret
    15. Mex
    16. Converter
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Converter
    19. Con turret
    20. Con turret
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Converter ×2
  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 · 106 steps
    1. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Tech
    2. Wind
    3. Converter
    4. Wind
    5. Con turret
    6. ValiantValiant ×2
    7. Converter
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Converter
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Converter
    12. Con turret
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind
    15. Converter
    16. Wind ×3
    17. Converter
    18. Wind ×2
    19. Converter
    20. ShurikenShuriken
    21. Wind ×2
    22. ShurikenShuriken
    23. Wind ×2
    24. ShurikenShuriken
    25. Wind ×2
    26. ShurikenShuriken
    27. Wind
    28. ShurikenShuriken
    29. Wind ×10
    30. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    31. Converter
    32. Wind
    33. ShurikenShuriken
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant
    36. Converter
    37. Wind ×5
    38. Con turret
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:12 · typical 6:50
    40. Wind ×3
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    42. Wind
    43. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    44. Wind
    45. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    46. Wind ×2
    47. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 11:10 · typical 10:56
    48. Wind ×2
    49. Solar
    50. HerculesLight transport
    51. Wind ×3
    52. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    53. Wind ×2
    54. Con turret
    55. Wind ×2
    56. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:31
    57. Wind
    58. HephaestusHeavy transport
    59. ValiantValiant
    60. Wind
    61. ValiantValiant ×2
    62. Wind
    63. ValiantValiant ×3
    64. Wind ×2
    65. ShurikenShuriken
    66. Wind
    67. ValiantValiant ×3
    68. Wind
    69. ValiantValiant ×2
    70. Wind
    71. Con turret
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Con turret
    74. Fusion ReactorFusion
    75. Wind
    76. Con turret ×2
    77. ValiantValiant
    78. Con turret
    79. ValiantValiant ×3
    80. Wind
    81. ShurikenShuriken
    82. ValiantValiant ×7
    83. Wind
    84. ShurikenShuriken ×6
    85. ValiantValiant
    86. Wind
    87. ValiantValiant ×7
    88. Wind
    89. ValiantValiant ×3
    90. Converter
    91. Wind
    92. ValiantValiant ×3
    93. Con turret
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Converter
    96. ValiantValiant
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant ×4
    99. Converter
    100. ValiantValiant ×4
    101. Converter
    102. Wind
    103. ValiantValiant
    104. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    105. Wind
    106. ShurikenShuriken

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Etherift's (36 OS, 22/08/2026); 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

Etherift

35.6 OS · 22/08/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
119 metal received · 32021 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