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Front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard front

Standard Front play: Bot Lab immediately, expanding economy with an Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:00, then defending the wider gap with bots like Thug, Grunt and Aggravator as the middle firms up.

#eco #defence · 171 distinct matches · 62 players · 63% of Cortex Front games · team won 43% of 173 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Bot Lab by 0:40

  1. Take 3 mex, then wind before opening Bot Lab.
  2. Finish Bot Lab, start producing Thug, Grunt and Aggravator.
  3. Send early units to coast first to stop leaks, not straight to mid.
  4. Add Twin Guard and Radar Tower to hold the wider gap.
  5. Bring Advanced Metal Extractor online as army transitions to T2.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 171 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 mex, 1 winddone ~0:40, middle half 0:34–0:46

    Some games also: wind (50%)

    By 0:24 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 94 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind
    3. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 0:53
    4. Wind
    5. RascalRascal ×3
    6. Wind
    7. RascalRascal
    8. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    9. Wind
    10. RascalRascal ×2
    11. IncisorIncisor ×3
    12. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    13. WolverineWolverine
    14. Mex
    15. WolverineWolverine ×2
    16. Mex
    17. WolverineWolverine
    18. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    19. RascalRascal
    20. Mex
    21. RascalRascal ×2
    22. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    23. GuardGuard ×2
    24. PounderPounder
    25. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    26. Wind
    27. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    28. WolverineWolverine
    29. Wind
    30. GuardGuard
    31. WolverineWolverine
    32. Wind
    33. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    34. Wind
    35. Solar
    36. PounderPounder
    37. GuardGuard
    38. Wind
    39. WolverineWolverine
    40. Wind
    41. WolverineWolverine
    42. Wind
    43. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    44. GuardGuard
    45. Wind
    46. GuardGuard
    47. RascalRascal
    48. GuardGuard
    49. PounderPounder
    50. Con turret
    51. WolverineWolverine ×2
    52. Mex
    53. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    54. Wind
    55. PounderPounder
    56. Wind
    57. WolverineWolverine
    58. Wind
    59. WolverineWolverine
    60. Wind
    61. Con turret
    62. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    63. Wind
    64. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    65. PounderPounder
    66. BruteBrute
    67. Wind
    68. BruteBrute
    69. Wind
    70. BruteBrute
    71. Wind
    72. Mex
    73. RascalRascal ×2
    74. BruteBrute
    75. Energy storage
    76. GuardGuard
    77. BruteBrute
    78. ThistleThistle
    79. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 10:14 · typical 9:12
    80. GuardGuard
    81. ThistleThistle
    82. BruteBrute
    83. GuardGuard
    84. BruteBrute
    85. Con turret
    86. BruteBrute
    87. Con turret
    88. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    89. Mex
    90. Wind ×2
    91. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    92. Wind
    93. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    94. Bot LabBot Labdone 10:56 · 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
    • Thug6 Thug
    • Aggravator5 Aggravator
    • Grunt4 Grunt

    Some games also: con turret (42%) · Radar Tower (36%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

  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
    • Grunt7 Grunt
    • Thug1 Thug

    Some games also: aggravator (47%) · energy storage (43%) · Twin Guard (36%) · Radar Tower (35%) · converter (34%)

    By 10:00 in all: 7 mex · 24 wind · 1 energy storage · 3 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 84 steps
    1. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    2. Wind
    3. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    4. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    5. Wind ×2
    6. GruntGrunt
    7. Wind
    8. GruntGrunt
    9. GuardGuard
    10. Wind ×2
    11. GruntGrunt
    12. Wind
    13. GruntGrunt
    14. Wind ×2
    15. GruntGrunt
    16. GuardGuard
    17. Wind
    18. GruntGrunt ×2
    19. Wind
    20. GruntGrunt
    21. Wind ×2
    22. GruntGrunt
    23. Wind
    24. ThistleThistle
    25. GruntGrunt
    26. Wind ×2
    27. GruntGrunt
    28. RattlesnakeRattlesnakedone 12:58
    29. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    30. Wind ×2
    31. GruntGrunt
    32. Wind
    33. GruntGrunt
    34. Wind ×2
    35. GruntGrunt
    36. Wind
    37. GruntGrunt
    38. Wind
    39. TrasherTrasher ×2
    40. Wind ×4
    41. TrasherTrasher
    42. Wind
    43. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    44. Wind ×5
    45. VeilVeil
    46. Wind
    47. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    48. Wind
    49. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    50. Wind
    51. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    52. Wind
    53. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    54. Advanced solar
    55. Wind
    56. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    57. Energy storage
    58. Advanced solar
    59. Wind
    60. Advanced solar
    61. CastroCastro
    62. PulsarPulsarnot finished by 15:00
    63. Con turret
    64. Converter
    65. Con turret
    66. Converter
    67. Con turret
    68. Converter
    69. Wind
    70. Converter
    71. Con turret
    72. Wind ×2
    73. Con turret
    74. Converter ×2
    75. Con turret
    76. Wind
    77. Converter ×2
    78. JellyfishJellyfish
    79. Wind
    80. Converter
    81. JellyfishJellyfish
    82. Converter
    83. Wind
    84. Converter

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Immort's (55 OS, 29/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:17 · in 68% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:34 · in 66% 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

173 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016248686
4:002686350336
5:003810938895
6:00504016971662
7:00633025242607
8:00769533073575
9:00914138954317
10:001085943745102
11:001287050665960
12:001507052866978
13:001774558947597
14:002023963458690
15:002294371609707
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

This build has the worst win rate of the roles shown and trails Suicide front on kills while losing nearly as much metal.

  • + Produces more metal than Suicide front by 15:00 (22286 vs 18297).
  • + T2 constructor lands slightly faster (7:41) than Suicide front's 8:07.
  • − Loses 9797 own metal by 15:00, close to what it destroys (6775).
  • − Wins only 40% of games, well below every other role shown.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Immort

54.5 OS · 29/09/2026

Open source match ↗

11 received units · includes a constructor
1321 metal received · 32258 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=158
Advanced Metal Extractor9:12Middle 50%: 8:10–10:30 · n=136

Played most by

watermeloans19games of this buildHummell16games of this buildiLike2Eco12games of this buildCentientWaffle8games of this buildGeeGee8games of this build