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Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's baseline: Aircraft Plant immediately, transports and scouts for the team first, Advanced Metal Extractor and Fusion Reactor on a normal timeline, transitioning into Valiant fighter coverage over the game.

Usually transports first (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 598 distinct matches · 119 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 671 · 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 598 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 ~1:24, middle half 1:13–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (39%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 5 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Solar
    3. Wind ×2
    4. Energy storage
    5. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 1:43 · typical 1:24
  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 · 21 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ShurikenShuriken
    3. FinchFinch
    4. HerculesLight transportfor Geo sea
    5. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    6. Wind
    7. FinchFinchfor Beach sea
    8. HephaestusHeavy transportfor Beach sea
    9. Wind
    10. ValiantValiant
    11. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    12. FinchFinch
    13. ValiantValiant
    14. HerculesLight transportfor Tech
    15. Con turret
    16. ValiantValiant ×2
    17. Mex
    18. ValiantValiant
    19. FinchFinchfor Geo sea
    20. ValiantValiant ×3
    21. Wind
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine20Wind
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    • 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 (35%) · fusion (35%) · 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 · 111 steps
    1. Wind
    2. Con turret
    3. Wind ×2
    4. Con turret
    5. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 6:42 · typical 6:48
    6. Con turret
    7. Wind
    8. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    9. Wind ×3
    10. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    11. Wind ×4
    12. Con turret ×2
    13. Wind
    14. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 9:32 · typical 10:55
    15. Wind ×12
    16. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 9:47
    17. Wind ×3
    18. FinchFinch
    19. Wind
    20. ValiantValiant ×2
    21. Wind
    22. ValiantValiant ×2
    23. Wind
    24. ValiantValiant ×2
    25. Wind
    26. ValiantValiant
    27. Converter
    28. ValiantValiant
    29. Wind
    30. ValiantValiant
    31. Converter
    32. ValiantValiant
    33. Wind
    34. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    35. Wind
    36. FinchFinch
    37. Converter
    38. Wind
    39. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    40. Con turret
    41. Wind
    42. Con turret ×2
    43. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    44. Wind ×2
    45. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    46. Wind
    47. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    48. Con turret
    49. Converter
    50. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    51. Wind
    52. Converter
    53. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    54. Converter
    55. Wind
    56. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    57. Converter
    58. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    59. Wind
    60. Converter
    61. Wind
    62. Converter
    63. Wind
    64. Converter ×3
    65. Wind
    66. Converter
    67. Wind ×2
    68. Converter ×7
    69. FinchFinch
    70. ValiantValiant ×6
    71. Con turret ×2
    72. ValiantValiant
    73. Con turret ×2
    74. ValiantValiant
    75. Con turret ×2
    76. ValiantValiant
    77. Con turret ×2
    78. ValiantValiant
    79. Con turret
    80. ValiantValiant ×5
    81. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×12
    82. HerculesLight transportfor Beach sea
    83. Converter
    84. WhirlwindWhirlwind ×2
    85. Converter
    86. WhirlwindWhirlwind
    87. FinchFinch ×2
    88. Converter
    89. ValiantValiant ×3
    90. Converter
    91. ValiantValiant ×2
    92. Converter
    93. ValiantValiant
    94. Converter
    95. ValiantValiant
    96. Converter
    97. ValiantValiant ×2
    98. Converter
    99. ValiantValiant ×3
    100. Converter
    101. ValiantValiant ×3
    102. Converter
    103. ValiantValiant ×2
    104. Converter
    105. ValiantValiant ×3
    106. Converter
    107. ValiantValiant ×3
    108. Converter
    109. ValiantValiant ×3
    110. Converter
    111. ValiantValiant ×16

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is NFX_Scurvy's (36 OS, 02/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Finch2 Finch to Geo sea or Beach seafirst at 1:51 · 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 2:25 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:39 · in 65% of games
  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo sea or Pondfirst at 1:44 · in 49% 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

671 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002054051
5:00276673116
6:003772125167
7:005147190224
8:007026240292
9:009354263343
10:0011850338467
11:0014411439631
12:0017116585949
13:00199489191276
14:002269914241819
15:002558820892709
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

NFX_Scurvy

36.1 OS · 02/10/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
932 metal received · 110320 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:24Middle 50%: 1:13–1:35 · n=671
Advanced Metal Extractor6:48Middle 50%: 6:22–7:25 · n=645
Fusion Reactor10:55Middle 50%: 9:53–12:11 · n=413

Played most by

DRM39games of this buildAdeus33games of this buildTheGeneraI32games of this buildImmort28games of this buildNutzz28games of this build