← All builds
Suicide front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Pounder assault push

Vehicle plant into an early Pounder riot line by 1:16, backed by Rascal raiders, Wolverine artillery and Brute assault tanks, pushing into the middle earlier than the norm.

Usually 3 mex, then lab (68%)

#push #raid #artillery · 18 distinct matches · 6 players · 3% of Cortex Suicide front games · team won 63% of 19 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • PounderT1 vehicle riot from 1:16 · 10% of role by thenFrom the Vehicle Plant. Only 10% of Suicide front games have it by then; others who build it get it around 1:36
  • Vehicle PlantVehicle Plant in 100%12% of all Suicide front games by then
  • WolverineWolverine in 84%6% of all Suicide front games by then
  • RascalRascal in 79%7% of all Suicide front games by then
  • BruteBrute in 68%3% of all Suicide front games by then

Where those units first fight, in 19 games with kill data: in the middle 89%, on their own side 11%.

Those units destroy a typical 1,555 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into brute (25% of army), wolverine (12% of army), Rattlesnake (9% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Pounder pressure by 1:26

  1. Open straight into Vehicle Plant instead of the usual bot lab.
  2. Send early Rascal raiders out to harass and scout.
  3. Lead the push with Pounder riot tanks at middle.
  4. Add Wolverine light arty to back the vehicle line.
  5. Transition into Brute-heavy assault as the army scales.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 18 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD SUICIDE FRONT
  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 Vehicle Plant

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor3Mex+2 vs standard
    Order
    1. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plant after 3 mexdone ~0:48, middle half 0:47–0:52

    By 0:29 in all: 3 mex (standard 1)

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 0:47 · typical 0:48
  2. 2

    Vehicle Plant to T1 vehicle riot

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine1Wind
    Order
    1. PounderT1 vehicle riot after 3 mex, 1 wind
    Builders
    • Construction Vehicle1 Con vehicle

    Some games also: mex (32%)

    By 1:16 in all: 3 mex · 1 wind

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Wind
    2. PounderPounderdone 1:04
  3. 3

    T1 vehicle riot to 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor2Mex
    • Wind Turbine7Wind+6 vs standard
    Builders
    • Construction Vehicle3 Con vehicle +3 vs standard
    Army
    • Guard2 Guard
    • Wolverine5 Wolverine +5 vs standard
    • Pounder3 Pounder +3 vs standard
    Other
    • Radar Tower1 Radar Tower

    Some games also: con turret (42%) · rascal (42%) · brute (42%) · Twin Guard (37%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 3 Graverobber · 2 con bot · 14 thug

    By 5:00 in all: 5 mex · 8 wind (standard 3)

    The example game in this phase · 22 steps
    1. RascalRascal
    2. PounderPounder
    3. RascalRascal
    4. Construction VehicleCon vehicle ×2
    5. Mex
    6. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    7. PounderPounder
    8. Wind
    9. RascalRascal
    10. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    11. GuardGuard
    12. Wind
    13. WolverineWolverine
    14. Wind
    15. WolverineWolverine
    16. Wind
    17. WolverineWolverine ×2
    18. Wind
    19. WolverineWolverine
    20. Construction VehicleCon vehiclefor Geo sea
    21. WolverineWolverine
    22. BruteBrute ×4
  4. 4

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine15Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret
    • Construction Vehicle2 Con vehicle +2 vs standard
    Army
    • Guard1 Guard
    • Brute8 Brute +8 vs standard
    • Pounder2 Pounder +2 vs standard
    • Rascal2 Rascal +2 vs standard
    Other
    • Radar Tower1 Radar Tower

    Some games also: lasher (47%) · energy storage (32%) · Twin Guard (32%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 Graverobber

    By 10:00 in all: 6 mex · 24 wind (standard 18) · 3 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 55 steps
    1. BruteBrute
    2. RascalRascal
    3. BruteBrute ×4
    4. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    5. BruteBrute
    6. Wind ×2
    7. PounderPounder
    8. Wind
    9. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    10. Mex
    11. Con turret
    12. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    13. Wind
    14. RascalRascal
    15. Wind
    16. WolverineWolverine
    17. Wind
    18. BruteBrute ×2
    19. PounderPounder ×2
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:38 · typical 9:53
    21. Mex
    22. PounderPounder ×2
    23. Wind ×2
    24. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    25. PounderPounder
    26. Wind
    27. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    28. Wind ×4
    29. RascalRascal
    30. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    31. Con turret
    32. Wind
    33. RascalRascal ×3
    34. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    35. Wind
    36. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×7
    37. PounderPounder
    38. Wind
    39. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    40. PounderPounder
    41. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    42. Wind
    43. TrapperTrapper
    44. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    45. Wind
    46. TrapperTrapper
    47. Wind
    48. PounderPounder ×2
    49. RascalRascal
    50. PounderPounder
    51. Heavy MineHeavy Mine
    52. Energy storage
    53. Medium MineMedium Mine ×2
    54. Metal storage
    55. Mex

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is CommandoMan's (39 OS, 05/08/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:13 · in 68% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geofirst at 7:45 · in 53% of games
  • Advanced Construction Vehicle1 T2 con vehicle from Geofirst at 9:06 · in 32% 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

010k20k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

05k10k15k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

19 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
1:003802730000
2:009409560000
3:00178520581301910130
4:0027703151605663220628
5:0038874328109916974261420
6:00487055341939256510962380
7:00626567682755356414363465
8:00742079714096450524504456
9:00849792344336518631455453
10:009647104505415581142666293
11:0010597119465415628847237124
12:0012375136125694681560508150
13:0014399153065724746167398924
14:0016932170546030822180629879
15:00195891877677998872922610532
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Won clearly more often than the standard build while losing much less metal by every checkpoint shown.

  • + Lost only 426 metal by 5:00 vs 1451 standard.
  • + Team won 63% vs 50% for the standard build.
  • − Destroyed less enemy metal than standard by 15:00 (7799 vs 8805).
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

CommandoMan

39.1 OS · 05/08/2026

Open source match ↗

11 received units · includes a constructor
632 metal received · 6375 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Vehicle Plant0:48Middle 50%: 0:47–0:52 · n=19
Advanced Metal Extractor9:53Middle 50%: 9:38–10:58 · n=15

Played most by

CommandoMan9games of this buildMischievousDragonGF4games of this buildRAM_Ricardo3games of this build[crd]sisa1game of this buildGieds1game of this build