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

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is krtf's (46 OS, 03/10/2026); 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

krtf

46.2 OS · 03/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
358 metal received · 28583 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