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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 · 451 distinct matches · 138 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 51% of 468 · 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 451 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 (41%)

    By 0:23 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:40 · 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 (34%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 21 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. Mex
    3. GruntGrunt
    4. Wind
    5. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    6. GruntGrunt ×5
    7. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    8. ThugThug ×3
    9. Mex
    10. ThugThug
    11. Mex
    12. ThugThug ×4
    13. Mex
    14. ThugThug
    15. GuardGuard
    16. ThugThug ×5
    17. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    18. ThugThug ×3
    19. GraverobberGraverobber
    20. Wind
    21. GraverobberGraverobber
  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
    • Grunt8 Grunt
    • Thug4 Thug
    • Aggravator1 Aggravator

    Some games also: Radar Tower (43%) · energy storage (36%) · converter (36%) · Twin Guard (33%) · eat Bot Lab (37%)

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

    The example game in this phase · 177 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ThugThug
    3. Wind
    4. Con turret
    5. ThugThug
    6. RocketeerRocketeer
    7. MaceMace
    8. ThugThug ×2
    9. MaceMace
    10. Mex
    11. ThugThug
    12. RocketeerRocketeer
    13. Wind
    14. ThugThug ×2
    15. Con turret
    16. RocketeerRocketeer
    17. Wind
    18. ThugThug
    19. GruntGrunt
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:36 · typical 9:23
    21. Wind
    22. GruntGrunt
    23. Wind
    24. RocketeerRocketeer
    25. GruntGrunt
    26. Wind
    27. GruntGrunt
    28. Wind
    29. GuardGuard ×2
    30. Wind ×2
    31. GruntGrunt
    32. Wind
    33. GruntGrunt
    34. Wind
    35. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    36. Wind ×2
    37. GruntGrunt
    38. Wind
    39. GruntGrunt
    40. Wind
    41. GruntGrunt
    42. Wind ×2
    43. GruntGrunt
    44. Energy storage
    45. GruntGrunt
    46. Wind
    47. GruntGrunt
    48. Wind
    49. Construction BotCon bot
    50. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    51. Wind
    52. Construction BotCon bot
    53. Wind ×6
    54. GruntGrunt ×2
    55. Wind
    56. GruntGrunt ×2
    57. Con turret
    58. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    59. GruntGrunt ×2
    60. Wind
    61. GruntGrunt
    62. Construction BotCon bot
    63. Wind
    64. Con turret
    65. Construction BotCon bot
    66. Wind ×2
    67. GruntGrunt
    68. Wind
    69. GruntGrunt ×2
    70. Wind
    71. Con turret
    72. GruntGrunt ×2
    73. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    74. Wind
    75. GruntGrunt ×3
    76. Wind
    77. GruntGrunt
    78. Wind
    79. GruntGrunt
    80. Wind ×2
    81. GruntGrunt
    82. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 11:06
    83. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    84. Wind ×2
    85. Con turret
    86. Wind ×2
    87. Converter
    88. Wind ×3
    89. Converter
    90. Wind ×2
    91. Con turret
    92. Converter
    93. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    94. Wind
    95. Converter
    96. Wind ×3
    97. Converter
    98. Wind ×3
    99. Converter
    100. Wind ×2
    101. RascalRascal ×2
    102. Wind
    103. RascalRascal
    104. Wind
    105. RattlesnakeRattlesnakenot finished by 15:00
    106. Wind
    107. RascalRascal ×2
    108. Wind
    109. Converter
    110. RascalRascal
    111. Wind
    112. RascalRascal
    113. Wind
    114. RascalRascal ×2
    115. Wind
    116. Converter
    117. RascalRascal
    118. Wind ×2
    119. RascalRascal
    120. Wind
    121. RascalRascal
    122. Wind
    123. RascalRascal
    124. Wind
    125. RascalRascal ×2
    126. Wind
    127. RascalRascal ×4
    128. Wind
    129. WardenWarden
    130. RascalRascal ×5
    131. Wind
    132. RascalRascal ×5
    133. Wind
    134. IncisorIncisor ×3
    135. Con turret
    136. Wind
    137. Converter
    138. IncisorIncisor
    139. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    140. WardenWarden
    141. IncisorIncisor
    142. Con turret
    143. Wind
    144. IncisorIncisor
    145. Converter
    146. IncisorIncisor
    147. Advanced solar
    148. Con turret
    149. IncisorIncisor
    150. Wind
    151. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 13:19
    152. IncisorIncisor
    153. Advanced solar
    154. IncisorIncisor ×3
    155. Wind
    156. IncisorIncisor ×3
    157. Con turret
    158. IncisorIncisor
    159. Advanced solar
    160. IncisorIncisor ×10
    161. Advanced solar
    162. IncisorIncisor ×9
    163. Advanced solar
    164. IncisorIncisor ×9
    165. Con turret
    166. IncisorIncisor
    167. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    168. Con turret
    169. IncisorIncisor ×3
    170. Con turret
    171. IncisorIncisor ×2
    172. Con turret
    173. IncisorIncisor ×4
    174. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 14:48
    175. IncisorIncisor ×8
    176. PounderPounder
    177. IncisorIncisor ×3

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is AinzIsHere's (38 OS, 14/10/2026); 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 65% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:46 · 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

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

metal

Own metal lost

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

468 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085600
3:00162710486
4:002711389341
5:003853921839
6:00510915891556
7:00639523722474
8:00772631253385
9:00915138374291
10:001079845385079
11:001264252055987
12:001450856906925
13:001681462067630
14:001896966638539
15:002063272579305
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

AinzIsHere

37.5 OS · 14/10/2026

Open source match ↗

9 received units · includes a constructor
1749 metal received · 7062 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=454
Advanced Metal Extractor9:23Middle 50%: 8:19–10:45 · n=343

Played most by

iLike2Eco31games of this buildTheGeneraI27games of this buildSauceDispenser27games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildEl_Turco15games of this build
Standard front · Cortex Front build order · BAR Build Atlas