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Suicide front / Armada / Factory first / OBSERVED BUILD

Gauntlet defence

Same lab-first opening as standard, but adds a Gauntlet from around 4:08 to anchor the middle with area defence before transitioning normally.

#defence · 100 distinct matches · 33 players · 5% of Armada Suicide front games · team won 50% of 105 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • GauntletEarly defence from 3:55 · 8% of role by thenOnly 8% of Suicide front games have it by then; others who build it get it around 9:09

Where those units first fight, in 101 games with kill data: in the middle 100%.

Those units destroy a typical 1,256 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into rocketeer (17% of army), Rattlesnake (11% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Gauntlet by 4:08

  1. Open Bot Lab then grab mexes and wind, get sentries out for early raid.
  2. Keep making sentries and hold middle, denying leaks with cheap bots.
  3. Commit to a Gauntlet to anchor the line with area artillery.
  4. Mix in Rocketeer and Rattlesnake to hold middle rather than push in.
  5. Transition to T2 constructor once the line is stable.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 100 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD SUICIDE FRONT
  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

    Bot Lab first

    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab done ~0:20, middle half 0:20–0:33

    Some games also: mex (40%)

  2. 2

    Bot Lab to Early defence

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor5Mex
    • Wind Turbine3Wind
    Order
    1. GauntletEarly defence after 5 mex, 4 winddone ~5:23, middle half 4:33–5:48
    Builders
    • Construction Bot3 Con bot
    • Lazarus1 Lazarus
    Army
    • Sentry3 Sentry
    • Beamer2 Beamer +2 vs standard
    • Rocketeer8 Rocketeer −4 vs standard
    • Tick1 Tick
    • Centurion1 Centurion
    Other
    • Radar Tower1 Radar Tower

    Some games also: pawn (33%) · con turret (31%)

    By 3:55 in all: 5 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 20 steps
    1. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    2. SentrySentry
    3. Mex
    4. Construction BotCon bot
    5. Mex ×2
    6. SentrySentry
    7. RocketeerRocketeer ×2
    8. BeamerBeamer
    9. RocketeerRocketeer ×3
    10. Mex
    11. RocketeerRocketeer
    12. BeamerBeamer
    13. LazarusLazarus
    14. BeamerBeamer
    15. Con turret
    16. Wind
    17. CenturionCenturion
    18. Wind
    19. CenturionCenturion
    20. GauntletGauntletdone 4:40 · typical 5:23
  3. 3

    Early defence to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine18Wind
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage
    Builders
    • Construction Turret3 Con turret
    • Lazarus1 Lazarus
    Army
    • Sentry1 Sentry
    • Beamer1 Beamer
    • Rocketeer3 Rocketeer −11 vs standard
    Other
    • Dragon's Teeth5 Dragon's Teeth +5 vs standard

    Some games also: tick (44%) · con bot (43%) · converter (40%) · Gauntlet (40%) · Sneaky Pete (37%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 con bot

    By 10:00 in all: 6 mex · 24 wind · 1 energy storage · 4 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 76 steps
    1. Wind
    2. TickTick ×3
    3. Wind
    4. Con turret
    5. Sneaky PeteSneaky Pete
    6. TickTick
    7. Wind
    8. TickTick ×2
    9. Wind
    10. TickTick
    11. Solar
    12. Wind
    13. TickTick
    14. Solar
    15. TickTick
    16. Con turret
    17. TickTick
    18. Solar
    19. TickTick
    20. Wind
    21. TickTick ×2
    22. Energy storage
    23. Wind
    24. Energy storage
    25. Wind
    26. Energy storage
    27. Wind
    28. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:54 · typical 9:36
    29. Wind
    30. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    31. Con turret
    32. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×10
    33. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    34. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    35. Wind
    36. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    37. BeamerBeamer
    38. Wind
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 8:54
    41. Wind
    42. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    43. StorkLight transport ×2
    44. Wind ×4
    45. BlinkScout plane ×2
    46. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    47. Wind
    48. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    49. Wind
    50. Con turret ×2
    51. RattlesnakeRattlesnakedone 10:51
    52. Wind
    53. Con turret
    54. BlinkScout plane
    55. JunoJuno
    56. Wind
    57. Dragon's ClawDragon's Claw
    58. Wind
    59. Cloakable Fusion ReactorCloakable Fusion Reactordone 12:18
    60. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×8
    61. BeamerBeamer
    62. Wind ×2
    63. Dragon's ClawDragon's Claw
    64. Wind
    65. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 12:43
    66. Wind
    67. Dragon's ClawDragon's Claw
    68. TumbleweedRolling bomb
    69. PlatypusPlatypus
    70. Wind
    71. TumbleweedRolling bomb
    72. PlatypusPlatypus
    73. TumbleweedRolling bomb
    74. PlatypusPlatypus
    75. Wind
    76. TumbleweedRolling bomb

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Espera's (39 OS, 28/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:11 · in 74% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:32 · in 69% of games

How it plays out

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

  • This build
  • Standard suicide 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

105 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard suicide frontEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard suicide frontOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard suicide front
1:002262260000
2:008798880000
3:0019862051130180106106
4:0031393161475658313496
5:004346424390314138151026
6:00546454331348229813061789
7:00661566702317317522502710
8:00787879203111403129843619
9:00915793174050479637444495
10:0010938106994999542643395316
11:0012674122655581590350556054
12:0014780141136007651257856830
13:0016696162226772701370097536
14:0019212181097541769675838373
15:0020756204667948832987319249
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Won less often than the standard build and destroyed less enemy metal despite similar production, a defensive line that trades tempo for metal saved.

  • + Own metal lost by 15:00 lower (8980 vs 9208)
  • + Metal produced by 15:00 slightly ahead (20254 vs 19882)
  • − Team win rate well below standard (46% vs 58%)
  • − Enemy metal destroyed by 15:00 much lower (7767 vs 8172)
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Espera

39.0 OS · 28/09/2026

Open source match ↗

8 received units · includes a constructor
139 metal received · 141532 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Bot Lab0:20Middle 50%: 0:20–0:33 · n=105
Gauntlet5:23Middle 50%: 4:33–5:48 · n=96
Advanced Metal Extractor9:36Middle 50%: 8:45–10:30 · n=83

Played most by

_X_25games of this buildImmort9games of this buildSoliloqueur8games of this buildTrapCaT7games of this buildPlatinumBlonde6games of this build