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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 · 1496 distinct matches · 252 players · 80% of Cortex Air games · team won 46% of 1799 · 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 1496 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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:28 · 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. FinchFinch ×2for Beach sea
    2. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    3. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    4. ValiantValiant ×4
    5. Wind ×4
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Mex
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    10. Wind
    11. Con turret
    12. Wind ×3
    13. HerculesLight transportfor Pond
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. Wind
    16. ValiantValiant
    17. Wind
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. 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 (48%) · 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 · 156 steps
    1. Con turret
    2. ValiantValiant
    3. Wind
    4. ShurikenShuriken
    5. Wind
    6. ShurikenShuriken
    7. Wind
    8. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    9. Wind
    10. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    11. Wind
    12. ShurikenShuriken
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind
    15. Con turret
    16. Wind
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:15 · typical 6:54
    18. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    19. Wind ×2
    20. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    21. Wind ×2
    22. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    23. Wind ×2
    24. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    25. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:16
    26. ValiantValiant ×2
    27. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    28. ValiantValiant ×2
    29. Con turret
    30. ValiantValiant
    31. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind
    34. ValiantValiant ×2
    35. Wind
    36. ValiantValiant ×2
    37. Wind
    38. ValiantValiant ×2
    39. Wind
    40. Wind
    41. ValiantValiant ×2
    42. Wind
    43. Wind
    44. ValiantValiant
    45. Wind
    46. ValiantValiant
    47. Wind
    48. Wind
    49. ValiantValiant
    50. TracerTracer
    51. Wind
    52. ValiantValiant
    53. Wind
    54. Wind
    55. ValiantValiant
    56. Wind
    57. Wind
    58. ValiantValiant
    59. Wind
    60. T2 converter
    61. ValiantValiant
    62. Wind
    63. Wind
    64. ValiantValiant
    65. Wind
    66. Wind
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Wind
    69. Wind
    70. ValiantValiant
    71. Wind
    72. Wind
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Wind
    75. Wind
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. HerculesLight transport
    78. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    79. Wind
    80. Wind
    81. Wind
    82. Con turret
    83. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    84. Wind
    85. Wind
    86. ValiantValiant
    87. Wind
    88. Wind
    89. ValiantValiant
    90. Wind
    91. Wind
    92. ValiantValiant
    93. Wind
    94. Wind
    95. ValiantValiant
    96. Wind
    97. Wind
    98. ValiantValiant
    99. Con turret
    100. Wind
    101. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:20 · typical 10:53
    102. Wind
    103. ValiantValiant
    104. Wind
    105. Con turret
    106. Wind
    107. ValiantValiant ×2
    108. Con turret
    109. ValiantValiant
    110. Con turret
    111. Wind
    112. ValiantValiant
    113. Con turret
    114. ValiantValiant
    115. Wind
    116. Con turret
    117. ValiantValiant
    118. Wind
    119. Wind
    120. ValiantValiant
    121. Wind
    122. Wind
    123. Wind ×2
    124. Wind
    125. ValiantValiant
    126. Wind
    127. T2 converter
    128. Con turret
    129. Wind
    130. Wind
    131. ValiantValiant
    132. Wind
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Wind
    135. ValiantValiant
    136. Wind
    137. Wind
    138. ValiantValiant
    139. Wind
    140. Fusion ReactorFusion
    141. Wind
    142. Wind ×2
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Wind
    145. Wind
    146. Wind ×2
    147. Converter
    148. ValiantValiant
    149. Wind
    150. Converter
    151. T2 converter
    152. ValiantValiant
    153. Wind
    154. Con turret ×2
    155. ValiantValiant
    156. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Seiffre's (31 OS, 10/08/2026); 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 Beach seafirst at 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:23 · in 72% 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 2:23 · 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

1799 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
6:003705102124
7:005088146167
8:006898190219
9:009278232270
10:0011753292384
11:0014351373538
12:0017061513781
13:00198507811102
14:002270012641689
15:002570818042405
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

Seiffre

31.2 OS · 10/08/2026

Open source match ↗

11 received units · includes a constructor
277 metal received · 67056 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=1799
Advanced Metal Extractor6:54Middle 50%: 6:27–7:26 · n=1740
Fusion Reactor10:53Middle 50%: 9:47–12:18 · n=1151

Played most by

TheGeneraI114games of this buildDad_The_Speedrunner72games of this buildHunfore62games of this buildMilkdragon51games of this buildAdeus50games of this build