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Front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard front

Cortex Front build order · Supreme Isthmus

Standard economy-first Front play: Bot Lab immediately, Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:23, then a mixed Thug/Grunt/Aggravator army sent up to defend the wider gap and move to middle as a line.

#eco #team support · 504 distinct matches · 154 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 51% of 521 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Bot Lab by 0:40

  1. Open 2 mex into early Bot Lab.
  2. Finish Bot Lab and start Thug, Grunt, Aggravator mix.
  3. Send first units to coast to stop leaks, not straight to mid.
  4. Transition into Advanced Metal Extractor as eco scales.
  5. Move units up as a line toward middle to hold the wider gap.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 504 GAMES
  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

    Up to the Bot Lab

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor2Mex
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 2 mexdone ~0:40, middle half 0:34–0:46

    Some games also: wind (40%)

    By 0:23 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:43 · typical 0:40
  2. 2

    Bot Lab to 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Wind Turbine4Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Bot3 Con bot
    • Graverobber2 Graverobber
    Army
    • Guard2 Guard
    • Thug9 Thug
    • Aggravator5 Aggravator
    • Grunt4 Grunt

    Some games also: con turret (45%) · Radar Tower (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 29 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. GruntGrunt
    4. Wind
    5. GruntGrunt ×2
    6. GraverobberGraverobber
    7. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    8. GruntGrunt ×5
    9. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    10. GraverobberGraverobber
    11. Mex
    12. GraverobberGraverobber
    13. ThugThug ×2
    14. GuardGuard
    15. GraverobberGraverobber
    16. Mex
    17. ThugThug
    18. GuardGuard
    19. GruntGrunt
    20. ThugThug
    21. GruntGrunt
    22. GuardGuard
    23. GruntGrunt
    24. GuardGuard
    25. Mex
    26. ThugThug
    27. GuardGuard
    28. Mex
    29. ThugThug ×4
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine17Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret
    • Graverobber2 Graverobber
    • Construction Bot1 Con bot
    Army
    • Guard1 Guard
    • Grunt6 Grunt
    • Thug5 Thug
    • Aggravator1 Aggravator

    Some games also: Radar Tower (44%) · energy storage (36%) · converter (36%) · Twin Guard (33%) · eat Bot Lab (36%)

    By 10:00 in all: 7 mex · 24 wind · 3 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 76 steps
    1. ThugThug ×9
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. ThugThug ×4
    4. Construction BotCon bot
    5. Mex
    6. Construction BotCon bot
    7. ThugThug
    8. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    9. ThugThug ×4
    10. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    11. ThugThug
    12. Wind
    13. ThugThug
    14. Wind
    15. ThugThug
    16. Wind
    17. Con turret
    18. ThugThug
    19. Energy storage
    20. Mex
    21. ThugThug ×3
    22. Wind ×2
    23. ThugThug ×3
    24. Wind
    25. ThugThug
    26. Wind
    27. ThugThug
    28. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 10:35 · typical 9:27
    29. Wind
    30. RocketeerRocketeer
    31. ThugThug
    32. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    33. Wind ×2
    34. ThugThug ×2
    35. Wind ×2
    36. ThugThug ×2
    37. Wind
    38. ThugThug
    39. Wind
    40. ThugThug
    41. Wind
    42. RocketeerRocketeer
    43. Wind
    44. ThugThug
    45. Mex
    46. Wind ×2
    47. ThugThug
    48. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    49. Wind
    50. ThugThug
    51. Wind ×3
    52. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:32
    53. Wind
    54. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    55. Converter
    56. Mex
    57. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    58. Converter
    59. Con turret
    60. Converter
    61. Con turret ×2
    62. Mex
    63. Converter
    64. Con turret
    65. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    66. Con turret
    67. T2 converter
    68. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    69. Con turret
    70. CastroCastro
    71. VeilVeil
    72. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    73. Advanced Fusion ReactorAdvanced Fusion Reactornot finished by 15:00
    74. Con turret
    75. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    76. Con turret ×7

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Mikasiki's (31 OS, 22/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:16 · in 64% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:52 · in 62% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build, running totals by minute

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

521 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:00163510886
4:002720394336
5:003868939840
6:00512516061538
7:00643724302426
8:00779232103342
9:00924339124311
10:001093247155086
11:001268253366003
12:001462158726889
13:001695163767632
14:001913870188587
15:002074476779398
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard front play wins less than half its games, with losses slightly outpacing kills through the first 15 minutes.

  • + Kills reach 7200 by 15:00 despite the safer starting position.
  • + T2 constructor reached in 85% of games, solid tech follow-through.
  • − Team wins under half of games (45%), the weakest shown here.
  • − Own metal lost (9484) exceeds enemy metal destroyed (7200) by 15:00.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Mikasiki

31.2 OS · 22/09/2026

Open source match ↗

11 received units · includes a constructor
133 metal received · 44018 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Bot Lab0:40Middle 50%: 0:34–0:46 · n=508
Advanced Metal Extractor9:27Middle 50%: 8:20–10:46 · n=378

Played most by

iLike2Eco32games of this buildSauceDispenser28games of this buildTheGeneraI27games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildUncle_Cane15games of this build