BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
Air / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard air

Cortex Air build order · Supreme Isthmus

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 (72%)

#eco #team support #air · 555 distinct matches · 116 players · 79% of Cortex Air games · team won 47% of 624 · 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 555 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 ~1:22, middle half 1:13–1:35

    Some games also: energy storage (38%)

    By 1:03 in all: 3 mex · 4 wind

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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is kuraga__prime's (45 OS, 17/09/2026); 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 2:06 · in 99% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport to Beach sea or Pond or Techfirst at 2:26 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Wind Turbine3 Wind from Beach sea or Geo seafirst at 1:40 · in 64% 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 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

624 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0039300
2:0092500
3:00145900
4:002053051
5:00276573109
6:003759125167
7:005136190219
8:007017225290
9:009298258342
10:0011788328471
11:0014383440641
12:0017097606958
13:00199439331269
14:002265314171801
15:002554320602701
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

kuraga__prime

44.9 OS · 17/09/2026

Open source match ↗

9 received units · includes a constructor
20 metal received · 40253 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Aircraft Plant1:22Middle 50%: 1:13–1:35 · n=624
Advanced Metal Extractor6:50Middle 50%: 6:21–7:26 · n=599
Fusion Reactor10:56Middle 50%: 10:03–12:16 · n=383

Played most by

DRM37games of this buildAdeus33games of this buildCentientWaffle32games of this buildNutzz28games of this buildImmort26games of this build