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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 · 450 distinct matches · 138 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 51% of 467 · 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 450 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 · 2 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:34 · 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 · 30 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GruntGrunt
    3. GraverobberGraverobber
    4. Wind
    5. Construction BotCon bot
    6. GruntGrunt ×2
    7. Construction BotCon bot
    8. GruntGrunt ×2
    9. Mex
    10. ThugThug ×2
    11. Construction BotCon bot
    12. GuardGuard
    13. Mex
    14. AggravatorAggravator
    15. ThugThug ×3
    16. AggravatorAggravator
    17. Mex
    18. AggravatorAggravator
    19. ThugThug ×2
    20. GraverobberGraverobber
    21. ThugThug ×2
    22. AggravatorAggravator
    23. Mex
    24. AggravatorAggravator
    25. ThugThug ×3
    26. AggravatorAggravator
    27. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    28. AggravatorAggravator
    29. ThugThug ×2
    30. Construction BotCon bot
  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 · 162 steps
    1. Con turret
    2. WardenWardenfor Pond
    3. Wind
    4. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    5. ThugThug
    6. Wind
    7. ThugThug
    8. Wind
    9. AggravatorAggravator
    10. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    11. Wind
    12. Mex
    13. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    14. Wind
    15. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    16. AggravatorAggravator
    17. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    18. AggravatorAggravator
    19. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    20. Wind
    21. AggravatorAggravator
    22. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    23. ThugThug
    24. Con turret
    25. AggravatorAggravator
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    27. AggravatorAggravator
    28. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    29. AggravatorAggravator
    30. ThugThug
    31. AggravatorAggravator
    32. Wind
    33. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    34. AggravatorAggravator
    35. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    36. Wind
    37. AggravatorAggravator
    38. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    39. Wind
    40. ThugThug
    41. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    42. AggravatorAggravator
    43. Wind
    44. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    45. AggravatorAggravator
    46. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:45 · typical 9:23
    47. Wind
    48. AggravatorAggravator
    49. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    50. Wind
    51. AggravatorAggravator
    52. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    53. AggravatorAggravator
    54. Wind
    55. AggravatorAggravator
    56. Wind
    57. AggravatorAggravator
    58. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    59. Wind
    60. Con turret
    61. AggravatorAggravator
    62. Wind ×2
    63. AggravatorAggravator
    64. Wind ×2
    65. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    66. Wind
    67. AggravatorAggravator
    68. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    69. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    70. AggravatorAggravator
    71. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    72. GruntGrunt
    73. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    74. Wind
    75. GruntGrunt
    76. Wind
    77. GruntGrunt ×2
    78. Wind
    79. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    80. GruntGrunt
    81. Wind
    82. GruntGrunt ×2
    83. Wind
    84. AggravatorAggravator
    85. GruntGrunt ×2
    86. Wind
    87. GruntGrunt ×2
    88. Wind
    89. RocketeerRocketeer
    90. GruntGrunt ×2
    91. Wind
    92. GruntGrunt ×2
    93. Wind
    94. GruntGrunt
    95. Wind
    96. GruntGrunt
    97. Wind
    98. GruntGrunt
    99. Con turret
    100. Wind
    101. GruntGrunt ×2
    102. Wind
    103. GruntGrunt
    104. Wind
    105. GruntGrunt ×2
    106. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    107. Wind
    108. GruntGrunt
    109. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    110. GruntGrunt
    111. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    112. GruntGrunt
    113. Wind
    114. GruntGrunt
    115. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    116. GruntGrunt
    117. Wind
    118. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    119. GruntGrunt
    120. Con turret
    121. Wind
    122. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    123. GruntGrunt
    124. Wind
    125. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    126. GruntGrunt
    127. Con turret
    128. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    129. Wind
    130. GruntGrunt ×3
    131. Wind
    132. GruntGrunt ×2
    133. Wind
    134. GruntGrunt ×2
    135. Wind
    136. GruntGrunt
    137. Con turret
    138. GruntGrunt ×2
    139. Wind
    140. GruntGrunt ×2
    141. Con turret
    142. GruntGrunt ×2
    143. Con turret
    144. Wind
    145. GruntGrunt ×2
    146. GraverobberGraverobber
    147. Energy storage
    148. GruntGrunt
    149. GraverobberGraverobber
    150. GruntGrunt ×4
    151. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    152. Wind
    153. GraverobberGraverobber ×3
    154. Con turret
    155. Bot LabBot Labdone 14:42
    156. UmbraJammerfor Geo
    157. Wind
    158. GraverobberGraverobber
    159. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00
    160. Wind
    161. GruntGrunt
    162. Wind ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Flerpz's (31 OS, 05/10/2026); 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

467 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085600
3:00162810286
4:002710390344
5:003850920840
6:00510815871557
7:00638923652476
8:00773231243394
9:00915338324309
10:001080045375079
11:001265852035989
12:001454156816934
13:001681562017643
14:001900866498561
15:002063772469322
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

Flerpz

31.1 OS · 05/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
13 metal received · 5558 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