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Shellshocker artillery

Armada Front build order · Supreme Isthmus

A T1 vehicle artillery opening built around early Shellshockers from the Vehicle Plant starting 2:47, bringing light artillery to the middle well before the role norm and later folding into a Blitz-led army.

#artillery #rush · 30 distinct matches · 17 players · 1% of Armada Front games · team won 57% of 30 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • ShellshockerT1 vehicle artillery from 2:46 · 9% of role by thenFrom the Vehicle Plant. Only 9% of Front games have it by then; others who build it get it around 3:40
  • ShellshockerArty in 60%4% of all Front games by then
  • JanusJanus in 40%9% of all Front games by then

Where those units first fight, in 30 games with kill data: in the middle 100%.

Those units destroy a typical 685 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into blitz (30% of army), janus (12% of army), Rattlesnake (11% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Shellshocker by 3:37

  1. Open double mex and solar, drop Vehicle Plant by 0:41.
  2. Take more mex and wind to fund early vehicle spam.
  3. Push first Shellshocker arty toward middle to outrange enemies.
  4. Add more Shellshocker and Sentry to hold the arty line.
  5. Get T2 cons up and transition into Blitz-led army.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 30 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD 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 Extractor2Mex
    Order
    1. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plant after 2 mexdone ~0:41, middle half 0:35–0:44

    Some games also: wind (50%)

    By 0:23 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex
    2. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 0:31 · typical 0:41
  2. 2

    Vehicle Plant to T1 vehicle artillery

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Wind Turbine2Wind
    Order
    1. ShellshockerT1 vehicle artillery after 6 mex, 2 wind
    Builders
    • Construction Vehicle2 Con vehicle +2 vs standard
    Army
    • Rover3 Scout +3 vs standard
    • Janus2 Janus +2 vs standard

    Some games also: blitz (43%) · Sentry (30%)

    By 2:44 in all: 6 mex · 2 wind

    The example game in this phase · 18 steps
    1. RoverScout
    2. Wind ×2
    3. RoverScout
    4. Wind
    5. RoverScout
    6. Mex
    7. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    8. Mex
    9. RoverScout ×3
    10. BlitzBlitz
    11. Mex
    12. Construction VehicleCon vehicle ×2
    13. SentrySentry
    14. Mex
    15. JanusJanus ×2
    16. SentrySentry
    17. Mex
    18. ShellshockerArtydone 3:08
  3. 3

    T1 vehicle artillery to 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    Army
    • Sentry1 Sentry
    • Shellshocker8 Arty +8 vs standard
    Other
    • Dragon's Teeth1 Dragon's Teeth

    Some games also: janus (47%) · wind (43%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 wind · 4 rocketeer

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 4 wind

    The example game in this phase · 12 steps
    1. SentrySentry
    2. ShellshockerArty
    3. SentrySentry
    4. ShellshockerArty ×3
    5. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×5
    6. JanusJanus ×2
    7. ShellshockerArty
    8. Mex
    9. ShellshockerArty ×2
    10. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×5
    11. ShellshockerArty
    12. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
  4. 4

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine15Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret
    • Construction Vehicle1 Con vehicle
    Army
    • Sentry1 Sentry
    • Blitz14 Blitz +14 vs standard
    • Shellshocker5 Arty +5 vs standard

    Some games also: converter (43%) · janus (43%) · energy storage (43%) · Radar Tower (40%) · Dragon's Teeth (40%) · eat Vehicle Plant (30%)

    By 10:00 in all: 7 mex · 20 wind · 2 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 41 steps
    1. ShellshockerArty
    2. JanusJanus ×2
    3. BlitzBlitz
    4. Wind
    5. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:25 · typical 9:16
    6. BlitzBlitz
    7. Wind ×2
    8. BlitzBlitz
    9. Wind
    10. Con turret
    11. BlitzBlitz ×2
    12. Wind
    13. BlitzBlitz
    14. Wind
    15. BlitzBlitz
    16. Wind
    17. BlitzBlitz
    18. Wind
    19. BlitzBlitz
    20. Wind
    21. BlitzBlitz ×2
    22. Con turret
    23. Mex ×2
    24. BlitzBlitz ×2
    25. Wind
    26. RattlesnakeRattlesnakenot finished by 15:00
    27. BlitzBlitz
    28. Wind
    29. BlitzBlitz
    30. Wind ×4
    31. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×5
    32. Wind ×8
    33. RattlesnakeRattlesnake
    34. Wind ×6
    35. Converter
    36. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    37. Converter ×2
    38. NettleNettle ×2
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Converter
    41. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Gieds's (45 OS, 08/10/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:17 · in 63% of games
  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:28 · in 30% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:59 · in 73% 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

30 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
2:0081184021213131
3:0015851618160135133108
4:0026722700526522342333
5:003835384710271128630787
6:00492350351762192811241428
7:00596562502940272019412303
8:00698575353466354633343173
9:00825389734001433042704071
10:009939105424655501148444810
11:0011682123755382554056305548
12:0013523145285683599865366409
13:0016364168596298647072677001
14:0018768192176646718681997827
15:0021700218497341787090828694
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Slightly lower win rate and metal destroyed than the standard Front build, with lower losses too.

  • + Loses less metal early, 644 vs 807 by 5:00
  • + Arty reaches field by 3:37, way ahead of the 9% norm
  • − Metal produced falls behind standard by 15:00, 21530 vs 22614
  • − Destroys less enemy metal by 15:00, 7556 vs 8296
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Gieds

45.5 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
1300 metal received · 17278 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Vehicle Plant0:41Middle 50%: 0:35–0:44 · n=30
Advanced Metal Extractor9:16Middle 50%: 8:31–10:21 · n=23

Played most by

Gieds6games of this buildOptimusprimenutt5games of this build[BS]Hellzie2games of this buildImmort2games of this buildPRO_Rerory2games of this build