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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 · 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 · 147 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×3
    3. Solar
    4. Wind ×2
    5. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantfor Beach seadone 1:24 · typical 1:26
    6. Wind
    7. ShurikenShuriken
    8. FinchFinch
    9. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    10. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    11. Wind ×5
    12. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    13. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    14. Con turret
    15. FinchFinch
    16. Wind
    17. Converter
    18. FinchFinch
    19. Mex
    20. Converter
    21. FinchFinch
    22. HerculesLight transport
    23. Converter
    24. ValiantValiant
    25. Converter
    26. Con turret
    27. Wind
    28. Wind ×3
    29. Wind
    30. Wind
    31. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    32. Wind
    33. Wind
    34. ValiantValiant
    35. Wind
    36. Wind
    37. Con turret
    38. Wind ×2
    39. Converter
    40. Wind
    41. Wind
    42. ValiantValiant
    43. Wind
    44. ValiantValiant
    45. Converter
    46. Wind
    47. ValiantValiant
    48. Wind
    49. Converter
    50. ValiantValiant
    51. Wind
    52. Wind
    53. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:41 · typical 6:54
    54. Wind
    55. Converter
    56. Wind
    57. Wind
    58. Converter ×3
    59. Wind
    60. Energy storage
    61. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    62. HerculesLight transport
    63. Wind
    64. Converter
    65. ValiantValiant ×2
    66. Wind
    67. ValiantValiant
    68. Converter
    69. ValiantValiant
    70. Wind
    71. ValiantValiant
    72. Wind
    73. ValiantValiant
    74. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    75. Wind
    76. ValiantValiant ×2
    77. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    78. Wind
    79. ValiantValiant ×2
    80. Con turret
    81. ValiantValiant ×2
    82. Wind
    83. ValiantValiant
    84. ShurikenShuriken ×4
    85. Wind
    86. ShurikenShuriken ×6
    87. Wind ×2
    88. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 11:38 · typical 10:52
    89. ValiantValiant
    90. Wind
    91. ValiantValiant ×2
    92. Wind
    93. ValiantValiant ×2
    94. Wind
    95. ValiantValiant
    96. Wind
    97. ValiantValiant
    98. Wind
    99. ShurikenShuriken
    100. Wind
    101. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    102. Wind
    103. ShurikenShuriken
    104. Wind
    105. ShurikenShuriken
    106. Con turret
    107. Wind
    108. ShurikenShuriken ×2for Beach sea
    109. Wind
    110. ShurikenShurikenfor Beach sea
    111. ShurikenShuriken
    112. Wind
    113. ShurikenShuriken
    114. ValiantValiant
    115. Wind
    116. Con turret
    117. Wind
    118. ValiantValiant ×2
    119. Wind
    120. ValiantValiant
    121. Wind
    122. ValiantValiant ×2
    123. Wind
    124. ValiantValiant
    125. Wind
    126. ValiantValiant
    127. Wind
    128. ValiantValiant
    129. Wind
    130. Con turret
    131. ValiantValiant
    132. Wind
    133. ValiantValiant
    134. Wind
    135. Fusion ReactorFusion
    136. ValiantValiant
    137. Wind
    138. Con turret
    139. ValiantValiant
    140. Con turret
    141. Wind
    142. Con turret
    143. ValiantValiant
    144. Con turret
    145. Wind
    146. ValiantValiant
    147. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 12:03
  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

  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 · 45 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ValiantValiant ×2
    3. Wind
    4. ValiantValiant
    5. Wind
    6. ValiantValiant ×2
    7. Wind
    8. ValiantValiant ×2
    9. Wind
    10. ValiantValiant ×2
    11. Wind
    12. ValiantValiant
    13. Wind
    14. ValiantValiant ×2
    15. T2 converter
    16. Wind
    17. ValiantValiant ×3
    18. Wind
    19. ValiantValiant ×3
    20. Wind
    21. ValiantValiant
    22. Wind
    23. ValiantValiant ×2
    24. Wind
    25. T2 converter
    26. ValiantValiant ×2
    27. Wind
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. T2 converter
    31. ValiantValiant ×2
    32. Wind ×2
    33. ValiantValiant
    34. Wind
    35. ValiantValiant ×2
    36. Wind
    37. ValiantValiant
    38. Wind
    39. ValiantValiant ×2
    40. Wind
    41. ValiantValiant ×3
    42. Wind
    43. ValiantValiant ×20
    44. T2 converter
    45. ValiantValiant ×9

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Ubilosis's (30 OS, 11/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

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

Ubilosis

30.5 OS · 11/10/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
1170 metal received · 214450 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