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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

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 (73%)

#eco #team support #air · 525 distinct matches · 115 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 590 · 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 525 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 ~1:21, middle half 1:13–1:34

    Some games also: energy storage (37%)

    By 1:02 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×5
    3. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:18 · typical 1:21
  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
    • Shuriken1 Shuriken
    • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport for allies

    Some games also: energy storage (46%) · 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 · 19 steps
    1. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    2. Wind ×3
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. Wind
    5. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    6. Energy storage
    7. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    8. Wind
    9. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    10. Wind
    11. ValiantValiant ×2
    12. Mex
    13. ValiantValiant ×5
    14. Wind
    15. Con turret
    16. Energy storage
    17. Wind
    18. Converter ×2
    19. Wind
  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 (32%) · 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 · 146 steps
    1. Converter ×2
    2. Wind ×2
    3. ValiantValiant
    4. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:10 · typical 6:50
    5. Wind
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Con turret
    8. Wind
    9. ValiantValiant
    10. Con turret
    11. NettleNettle
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    15. Wind
    16. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    17. ValiantValiant
    18. Wind ×2
    19. ValiantValiant
    20. Wind
    21. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    22. ValiantValiant
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    26. Wind
    27. Con turret
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    30. Con turret
    31. Wind
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind
    34. ValiantValiant
    35. Con turret
    36. Wind
    37. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    38. ValiantValiant ×2
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiant
    41. Wind
    42. ValiantValiant
    43. Wind
    44. ValiantValiant ×2
    45. Wind
    46. ValiantValiant ×3
    47. Wind ×2
    48. ValiantValiant ×2
    49. Wind
    50. Converter
    51. ValiantValiant ×2
    52. Wind
    53. ValiantValiant
    54. Bot LabBot Labdone 10:26
    55. Converter
    56. ValiantValiant ×2
    57. Converter
    58. Wind
    59. ValiantValiant
    60. Construction BotCon bot
    61. Wind
    62. Converter
    63. Construction BotCon bot
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Wind
    66. Construction BotCon bot
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Converter
    69. Construction BotCon bot
    70. Wind
    71. ValiantValiant
    72. Construction BotCon bot
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Wind
    75. Construction BotCon bot
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Converter
    78. ValiantValiant
    79. Wind
    80. Construction BotCon bot
    81. ValiantValiant
    82. Wind
    83. Construction BotCon bot
    84. Converter
    85. ValiantValiant
    86. Wind
    87. Construction BotCon bot
    88. Wind
    89. ValiantValiant
    90. Wind
    91. ValiantValiant
    92. Wind
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. Wind
    95. ValiantValiant
    96. Wind ×2
    97. ValiantValiant ×2
    98. Wind
    99. ValiantValiant
    100. Construction BotCon bot
    101. ValiantValiant
    102. Wind ×2
    103. ValiantValiant ×2
    104. Wind ×2
    105. ValiantValiant ×2
    106. Wind ×2
    107. Con turret
    108. Wind
    109. Converter
    110. ValiantValiant
    111. Con turret
    112. Wind ×2
    113. ValiantValiant
    114. Con turret
    115. Con turret
    116. Wind ×2
    117. ValiantValiant
    118. Con turret
    119. Wind
    120. ValiantValiant
    121. Wind ×2
    122. Con turret
    123. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    124. Wind ×3
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind
    127. ValiantValiant
    128. Wind
    129. Con turret
    130. Wind ×2
    131. ValiantValiant
    132. Wind
    133. Con turret
    134. ValiantValiant
    135. Con turret
    136. CitadelAnti-nukenot finished by 15:00
    137. Wind ×2
    138. Converter
    139. ValiantValiant
    140. Wind ×6
    141. Converter
    142. Wind ×3
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Wind ×3
    145. ValiantValiant
    146. Wind ×4

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Tregan's (38 OS, 23/09/2026); 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 2:05 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:25 · in 75% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:39 · in 66% 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 84% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 6:04 · 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

590 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092400
3:00145800
4:002050051
5:00276373102
6:003766125150
7:005129176219
8:007014219285
9:009298248341
10:0011788315470
11:0014397439639
12:0017105603950
13:00199438701236
14:002263713511806
15:002549320022670
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

Tregan

37.8 OS · 23/09/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
104 metal received · 63775 energy received

Allied construction assistance is unknown. Timings are observations, not a promise of solo reproducibility.

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:21Middle 50%: 1:13–1:34 · n=590
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:22–7:27 · n=566
Fusion Reactor10:55Middle 50%: 10:03–12:16 · n=355

Played most by

DRM36games of this buildAdeus32games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildImmort25games of this buildNutzz25games of this build