BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
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 · 4 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Energy storage
    4. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:38 · 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 · 16 steps
    1. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    2. FinchFinch ×2for Geo sea
    3. ValiantValiant ×2
    4. Wind
    5. ValiantValiant
    6. Wind
    7. ValiantValiant ×2
    8. Mex
    9. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    10. Wind ×3
    11. Con turret
    12. Wind ×2
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. Wind ×3
    15. ValiantValiant
    16. 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 (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 · 202 steps
    1. Wind ×2
    2. ValiantValiant
    3. Wind
    4. Con turret
    5. Wind ×3
    6. ValiantValiant
    7. Wind
    8. ValiantValiant
    9. Wind ×2
    10. ValiantValiant ×2
    11. Wind ×2
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:05 · typical 6:54
    16. Wind
    17. Con turret
    18. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    19. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    20. Wind ×3
    21. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    22. Wind ×4
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    24. Con turret
    25. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:40
    26. Wind ×2
    27. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    28. Wind
    29. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    30. Wind
    31. Con turret
    32. Wind
    33. Con turret
    34. Wind
    35. Wind
    36. Wind
    37. Wind
    38. Wind
    39. Wind
    40. ValiantValiant
    41. Wind
    42. ValiantValiant ×2
    43. Wind
    44. Wind
    45. ValiantValiant
    46. Converter
    47. Wind
    48. Wind
    49. ValiantValiant
    50. Wind
    51. Wind
    52. Converter
    53. ValiantValiant
    54. Wind
    55. Wind ×2
    56. Wind
    57. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    58. Wind
    59. Wind
    60. Converter
    61. ValiantValiant
    62. Wind
    63. Wind
    64. Converter
    65. ValiantValiant
    66. Wind
    67. Wind
    68. Converter
    69. ValiantValiant
    70. Converter
    71. Wind
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Wind
    74. Converter
    75. ValiantValiant
    76. Wind
    77. Wind
    78. Converter
    79. ValiantValiant
    80. Wind
    81. Wind
    82. ValiantValiant
    83. Converter
    84. Wind
    85. Con turret
    86. Wind
    87. Con turret
    88. Wind
    89. Wind
    90. Con turret
    91. Converter
    92. Wind
    93. Wind
    94. ValiantValiant
    95. Con turret
    96. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00 · typical 10:52
    97. Wind
    98. Metal storage
    99. Wind
    100. Wind
    101. ValiantValiant
    102. Con turret
    103. Wind
    104. Con turret
    105. Converter
    106. Wind
    107. Wind
    108. Con turret
    109. Wind
    110. Con turret
    111. Wind
    112. ValiantValiant
    113. Fusion ReactorFusion
    114. Con turret
    115. Wind
    116. ValiantValiant
    117. Wind
    118. ValiantValiant
    119. Wind
    120. Converter
    121. ValiantValiant
    122. Wind
    123. Wind
    124. Converter
    125. Wind
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind
    128. Converter
    129. ValiantValiant
    130. Converter
    131. Wind
    132. Converter
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Wind
    135. ValiantValiant ×2
    136. Wind
    137. ValiantValiant ×3
    138. Wind
    139. ValiantValiant
    140. Wind
    141. ValiantValiant ×3
    142. Wind
    143. ValiantValiant ×2
    144. Wind
    145. ValiantValiant ×2
    146. Wind
    147. ValiantValiant ×2
    148. Wind
    149. ValiantValiant
    150. Wind
    151. ValiantValiant ×2
    152. Wind
    153. ValiantValiant ×2
    154. Wind
    155. ValiantValiant ×3
    156. Wind
    157. ValiantValiant ×2
    158. Wind
    159. ValiantValiant ×4
    160. Wind
    161. ValiantValiant
    162. Wind
    163. ValiantValiant ×3
    164. Wind
    165. ValiantValiant
    166. Wind
    167. ValiantValiant ×2
    168. Wind
    169. ValiantValiant
    170. Wind
    171. ValiantValiant
    172. Wind
    173. ValiantValiant ×2
    174. Wind
    175. ValiantValiant ×3
    176. Wind
    177. ValiantValiant
    178. Fusion ReactorFusion
    179. Wind
    180. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    181. Wind
    182. Wind
    183. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantnot finished by 15:00
    184. Wind
    185. Wind
    186. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    187. Wind
    188. Wind ×2
    189. Wind
    190. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 14:31
    191. Wind
    192. T2 converter
    193. Wind
    194. Wind
    195. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 14:50
    196. Wind
    197. Wind
    198. Wind
    199. T2 converter
    200. Wind
    201. Con turret ×2
    202. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is realisticjo's (32 OS, 19/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

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

realisticjo

32.2 OS · 19/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
112 metal received · 22213 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