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Beach sea / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Goon raid

Cortex Beach sea build order · Supreme Isthmus

A land-side hovercraft raid: instead of the usual shipyard-first opening, the player builds a Hovercraft Platform by around 1:20 and pushes Goons out from 2:00, fighting mostly in the middle and enemy base rather than defensively, before…

Usually hovers first (95%)

#raid #amphibious · 42 distinct matches · 21 players · 2% of Cortex Beach sea games · team won 62% of 42 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • GoonHover raid from 1:58 · 5% of role by thenFrom the Hovercraft Platform. Only 5% of Beach sea games have it by then; others who build it get it around 2:51
  • Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platform in 93%6% of all Beach sea games by then

Where those units first fight, in 42 games with kill data: in the middle 71%, in the enemy base 24%.

Those units destroy a typical 561 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into frigate (32% of army), destroyer (26% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Hovercraft Platform by 1:21

  1. Open 3 mex into wind, skip shipyard-first and get eco rolling.
  2. Drop Hovercraft Platform instead of shipyard as your first factory.
  3. Push Goons out from the platform into middle and enemy base.
  4. Add shipyard once raid is rolling for Riptide and Oppressor.
  5. Reclaim the Hovercraft Platform once it has done its job.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 42 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD BEACH SEA
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
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 Hovercraft Platform

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor3Mex
    • Wind Turbine5Wind+3 vs standard
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage
    Order
    1. Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platform after 3 mex, 4 winddone ~1:40, middle half 1:24–1:59

    By 1:07 in all: 3 mex · 5 wind (standard 2) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×4
    3. Hovercraft PlatformHovercraft Platformdone 1:24 · typical 1:40
  2. 2

    Hovercraft Platform to Hover raid

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine1Wind
    Order
    1. GoonHover raid after 3 mex, 6 wind, 1 energy storage
    Builders
    • Construction Hovercraft1 Con hovercraft

    By 1:58 in all: 3 mex · 6 wind (standard 2) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 1 step
    1. GoonGoondone 1:34
  3. 3

    Hover raid to Shipyard

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor3Mex
    • Wind Turbine3Wind+3 vs standard
    Order
    1. ShipyardShipyard after 6 mex, 10 wind, 1 energy storagedone ~4:25, middle half 4:11–4:50
    Builders
    • Construction Hovercraft1 Con hovercraft
    Army
    • Goon6 Goon +6 vs standard

    By 4:09 in all: 6 mex · 10 wind (standard 3) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 9 steps
    1. Wind ×2
    2. GoonGoon ×2
    3. Construction HovercraftCon hovercraft
    4. Mex
    5. Tidal
    6. GoonGoon
    7. Tidal
    8. GoonGoon
    9. ShipyardShipyarddone 3:05 · typical 4:25
  4. 4

    Shipyard to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex+2 vs standard
    • Wind Turbine8Wind+8 vs standard
    Order
    1. Hovercraft PlatformEat Hovercraft Platform
    Builders
    • Construction Ship1 Con ship
    • Death Cavalry1 Death Cavalry
    Army
    • Urchin1 Urchin
    • Guard1 Guard
    • Riptide5 Frigate
    • Oppressor2 Destroyer
    • Herring2 Missile corvette

    Some games also: converter (48%) · Naval Construction Turret (45%) · con turret (40%) · tidal (38%) · Thistle (33%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 10 wind

    By 10:00 in all: 10 mex · 17 wind (standard 4) · 1 energy storage · 1 con turret · 1 Naval Construction Turret

    The example game in this phase · 164 steps
    1. Construction ShipCon ship ×2
    2. MangonelHover rocket bot
    3. SupporterGunboat
    4. Wind
    5. Converter
    6. Mex
    7. SentrySentry
    8. Wind
    9. Mex
    10. Wind
    11. Mex
    12. SupporterGunboat
    13. Mex
    14. SupporterGunboat ×2
    15. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    16. SupporterGunboat
    17. OrcaSubmarinedone 5:09
    18. Hovercraft PlatformEat Hovercraft Platformreclaimed for its metal
    19. Mex
    20. Con turret
    21. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    22. RiptideFrigatedone 5:27 · typical 5:49
    23. Tidal
    24. SentrySentry
    25. OrcaSubmarine
    26. Wind
    27. GuardGuard
    28. Wind
    29. SentrySentry
    30. Wind
    31. HerringMissile corvette
    32. Wind ×2
    33. RiptideFrigate
    34. Wind ×3
    35. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    36. SentrySentry
    37. Wind
    38. OppressorDestroyerdone 7:45 · typical 6:46
    39. Converter
    40. Wind
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:59 · typical 9:56
    42. SentrySentry
    43. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    44. Wind ×2
    45. SentrySentry
    46. Wind
    47. Death CavalryDeath Cavalry
    48. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    49. Wind ×2
    50. RiptideFrigate
    51. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    52. Wind
    53. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    54. RiptideFrigate
    55. Wind ×2
    56. RiptideFrigate
    57. Wind
    58. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    59. Wind
    60. Construction ShipCon ship
    61. Wind ×2
    62. RiptideFrigate
    63. Wind
    64. Mex
    65. Wind ×3
    66. RiptideFrigate
    67. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    68. Naval Construction Turret
    69. Wind ×2
    70. Death CavalryDeath Cavalry
    71. Naval Construction Turret
    72. Wind
    73. Mex
    74. SupporterGunboat ×3
    75. Wind
    76. SupporterGunboat
    77. Wind
    78. SupporterGunboat
    79. Wind
    80. SupporterGunboat ×3
    81. Wind
    82. Wind
    83. SupporterGunboat ×2
    84. OrcaSubmarine
    85. Wind
    86. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    87. Wind
    88. Wind
    89. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    90. OrcaSubmarine
    91. Wind
    92. Wind
    93. RiptideFrigate
    94. Wind
    95. OppressorDestroyer
    96. Wind
    97. Wind
    98. Naval Construction Turret
    99. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    100. HerringMissile corvette
    101. Tidal
    102. Wind
    103. Death CavalryDeath Cavalry
    104. Wind
    105. Tidal
    106. Wind
    107. SupporterGunboat
    108. Wind
    109. SupporterGunboat ×2
    110. Wind
    111. Wind
    112. Tidal
    113. SupporterGunboat
    114. Tidal
    115. Wind
    116. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    117. SupporterGunboat
    118. Tidal
    119. SupporterGunboat
    120. Wind
    121. Tidal
    122. SupporterGunboat
    123. Wind
    124. Naval Construction Turret
    125. SupporterGunboat
    126. Wind
    127. SupporterGunboat
    128. Tidal
    129. SupporterGunboat
    130. Wind
    131. Tidal
    132. Advanced ShipyardAdvanced Shipyarddone 13:58
    133. Wind
    134. Tidal ×2
    135. Wind
    136. Mex
    137. Wind
    138. Death CavalryDeath Cavalry
    139. Tidal
    140. Wind ×2
    141. Death CavalryDeath Cavalry
    142. Wind
    143. Tidal
    144. Wind
    145. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    146. Wind
    147. Wind
    148. Tidal
    149. Advanced Construction SubAdvanced Construction Sub
    150. Tidal
    151. Wind ×2
    152. Wind
    153. Wind
    154. Tidal
    155. PathfinderPathfinder
    156. Tidal
    157. Wind
    158. PathfinderPathfinder
    159. Wind
    160. Wind
    161. Naval Advanced Metal ExtractorNaval Advanced Metal Extractornot finished by 15:00
    162. PathfinderPathfinder
    163. Wind ×2
    164. Wind ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Flerpz's (32 OS, 11/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Finch1 Finch from Airfirst at 1:54 · in 62% of games
  • Lazarus1 Lazarus from Geofirst at 2:16 · in 57% of games
  • Hercules1 Light transport from Airfirst at 2:17 · in 33% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Geo or Suicide frontfirst at 2:18 · in 38% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 8:11 · in 90% of games

How it plays out

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

  • This build
  • Standard beach sea

Metal produced

010k20k30k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02.5k5k7.5k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

42 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard beach seaEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard beach seaOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard beach sea
1:004024030000
2:009359370000
3:00149815530000
4:00237025404302651
5:0035763717294176225101
6:0048385049560487419280
7:0062106492797975605592
8:00760480701421166510841001
9:00922896792040261414331532
10:0011120115362840372417332325
11:0013216136854061474420693105
12:0015778162505269585527983871
13:0018880189516540687834434629
14:0022387216737453792443425680
15:0025060245658617885648036501
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Won more often than the standard build, with less metal lost and more enemy metal destroyed by 5:00.

  • + Own losses at 5:00 are under half the standard build's.
  • + Destroys more enemy metal early (362 vs 200 at 5:00).
  • − Metal production lags standard build across the whole window.
  • − Eats the Hovercraft Platform in 89% of games, costing a factory slot.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Flerpz

32.0 OS · 11/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
46 metal received · 5634 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Hovercraft Platform1:40Middle 50%: 1:24–1:59 · n=39
Shipyard4:25Middle 50%: 4:11–4:50 · n=41
Riptide5:49Middle 50%: 5:09–6:39 · n=38
Oppressor6:46Middle 50%: 6:06–7:44 · n=38
Advanced Metal Extractor9:56Middle 50%: 9:25–10:44 · n=36

Played most by

Kbot_my_Ahole7games of this buildEXZoPrimer36games of this buildEpicTyrannus4games of this buildAdeus3games of this buildyedddoo3games of this build