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Front / Armada / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Gauntlet defence

Armada Front build order · Supreme Isthmus

Economy-first start that commits early to a Gauntlet from around 5:14, well ahead of the role norm, using its area-control plasma to anchor the middle before transitioning into the usual T1 army mix.

#defence #artillery · 159 distinct matches · 77 players · 6% of Armada Front games · team won 52% of 162 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • GauntletEarly defence from 5:14 · 9% of role by thenOnly 9% of Front games have it by then; others who build it get it around 11:01

Where those units first fight, in 143 games with kill data: in the middle 100%.

Those units destroy a typical 625 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into rocketeer (14% of army), blitz (11% of army), Rattlesnake (8% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Gauntlet by 5:28

  1. Open mex and Vehicle Plant as standard economy-first Front.
  2. Add early Sentries and Beamers to hold the wider gap.
  3. Rush a Gauntlet well before the usual 11:13 timing.
  4. Reclaim Vehicle Plant in a third of games to pay for defence.
  5. Push into Blitz and Rattlesnake army as T2 approaches.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 159 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD FRONT
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
PLAY THE OPENING

Follow the example game's first 6:14 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 Bot Lab

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor2Mex
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 2 mex, 1 winddone ~0:43, middle half 0:33–0:50

    Some games also: wind (47%)

    By 0:27 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 1 step
    1. Mex ×3
  2. 2

    Bot Lab to Early defence

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Wind Turbine3Wind−2 vs standard
    Order
    1. GauntletEarly defence after 6 mex, 5 winddone ~6:23, middle half 5:46–6:53
    Builders
    • Construction Bot3 Con bot +2 vs standard
    • Lazarus1 Lazarus
    Army
    • Sentry1 Sentry
    • Rocketeer8 Rocketeer
    • Tick1 Tick

    Some games also: con turret (41%) · Beamer (40%) · Radar Tower (39%) · centurion (38%) · pawn (35%)

    By 5:13 in all: 6 mex · 6 wind · 1 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 14 steps
    1. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 0:50 · typical 0:49
    2. RoverScout ×2
    3. BlitzBlitz ×4for Pond
    4. Construction VehicleCon vehicle ×2
    5. Mex
    6. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    7. JanusJanus
    8. Mex
    9. JanusJanus ×2
    10. RoverScout
    11. Mex
    12. RoverScout
    13. JanusJanus
    14. GauntletGauntletdone 4:58 · typical 6:23
  3. 3

    Early defence to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine17Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret

    Some games also: Dragon's Teeth (47%) · energy storage (46%) · Beamer (44%) · rocketeer (43%) · Sentry (43%)

    By 10:00 in all: 7 mex · 24 wind · 1 energy storage · 4 con turret (standard 2)

    The example game in this phase · 119 steps
    1. WhistlerMissile truck
    2. SentrySentry
    3. JanusJanus ×2
    4. Construction VehicleCon vehicle ×2
    5. BeamerBeamer
    6. BlitzBlitz ×3
    7. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    8. BlitzBlitz
    9. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    10. BlitzBlitz
    11. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    12. BlitzBlitz
    13. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    14. BlitzBlitz
    15. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    16. BlitzBlitz
    17. BeamerBeamer
    18. BlitzBlitz ×2
    19. Energy storage
    20. BlitzBlitz
    21. BeamerBeamer
    22. BlitzBlitz
    23. Con turret
    24. BlitzBlitz
    25. Wind
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    27. BlitzBlitz
    28. Wind
    29. Mex
    30. Wind
    31. BlitzBlitz
    32. Wind
    33. BlitzBlitz
    34. Wind
    35. BlitzBlitz
    36. Wind
    37. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    38. Con turret
    39. BlitzBlitz
    40. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    41. Wind
    42. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    43. Wind
    44. BlitzBlitz
    45. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:16 · typical 8:58
    46. Wind
    47. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    48. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    49. Wind
    50. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×6
    51. Wind
    52. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    53. SentrySentry
    54. Sneaky PeteSneaky Pete
    55. Wind ×2
    56. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    57. RoverScout
    58. Wind
    59. RoverScout
    60. Mex
    61. RoverScout
    62. Wind
    63. RoverScout
    64. SentrySentry
    65. RoverScout
    66. Wind
    67. RoverScout ×2
    68. Wind
    69. RoverScout
    70. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 10:15
    71. Wind
    72. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    73. Wind
    74. OspreyHeavy transportfor Suicide front
    75. Wind
    76. OspreyHeavy transport
    77. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    78. Aircraft PlantEat Aircraft Plantreclaimed for its metal
    79. Wind
    80. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    81. Wind ×2
    82. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    83. Wind
    84. Con turret
    85. Wind
    86. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    87. Wind
    88. Con turret
    89. BlitzBlitz
    90. Con turret
    91. Construction VehicleCon vehiclefor Pond
    92. Wind ×10
    93. BlitzBlitz
    94. Wind ×3
    95. BlitzBlitz
    96. Wind
    97. VeilVeil
    98. BlitzBlitz ×2
    99. Wind ×2
    100. BlitzBlitz ×2
    101. Wind ×2
    102. BlitzBlitz ×2
    103. RattlesnakeRattlesnakenot finished by 15:00
    104. Wind
    105. BlitzBlitz
    106. Wind
    107. BeamerBeamer
    108. Wind
    109. BeamerBeamer
    110. Wind
    111. BlitzBlitz
    112. Wind
    113. BlitzBlitz
    114. BeamerBeamer
    115. BlitzBlitz
    116. Wind ×2
    117. BlitzBlitz
    118. Con turret
    119. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantnot finished by 15:00

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is DRM's (43 OS, 13/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:18 · in 72% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:20 · in 59% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build against the role’s standard build, running totals by minute

  • This build
  • Standard front

Metal produced

010k20k30k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

162 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard frontEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard frontOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard front
1:003333330000
2:0085384021213131
3:001627161813013593108
4:0027272699402522294333
5:00389038477441127603787
6:00514850351327192311431427
7:00634462491898271417362302
8:00761875342727354425123173
9:00907089733652432631994069
10:0010860105384210500539254807
11:0013159123734688553345815547
12:0015780145275394597657866408
13:0018135168576033646866366999
14:0021314192206667716380457826
15:0024557218547480786889048687
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Lower team win rate than standard despite better metal production, suggesting the early Gauntlet reacts to pressure rather than prevents losses.

  • + Metal production reaches 25200 vs 22627 standard by 15:00.
  • + Own metal lost stays close to standard by 15:00 (8904 vs 8940).
  • − Team win rate drops to 53% vs 62% standard.
  • − Enemy metal destroyed trails standard at every checkpoint.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

DRM

43.2 OS · 13/10/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
145 metal received · 35763 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Bot Lab0:43Middle 50%: 0:33–0:50 · n=122
Vehicle Plant0:49Middle 50%: 0:44–7:31 · n=93
Gauntlet6:23Middle 50%: 5:46–6:53 · n=132
Advanced Metal Extractor8:58Middle 50%: 8:13–9:51 · n=124

Played most by

Leohvm13games of this buildTheGeneraI12games of this buildDRM9games of this buildGodmother136games of this buildEpicTyrannus5games of this build