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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 · 501 distinct matches · 154 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 51% of 518 · 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 501 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 (39%)

    By 0:23 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:48 · 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. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    5. GruntGrunt
    6. Mex
    7. GruntGrunt ×2
    8. Construction BotCon bot
    9. Mex
    10. ThugThug
    11. Mex
    12. ThugThug ×2
    13. GuardGuard
    14. ThugThug ×2
    15. Construction BotCon bot
    16. GuardGuard ×2
    17. GraverobberGraverobber
    18. ThugThug
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug
    21. Wind
    22. ThugThug
    23. Wind
    24. ThugThug
    25. Con turret
    26. ThugThug
    27. GraverobberGraverobber
    28. ThugThug
    29. 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
    • Thug5 Thug
    • Aggravator1 Aggravator

    Some games also: Radar Tower (44%) · 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 · 86 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ThugThug
    3. Wind ×3
    4. ThugThug
    5. Wind ×3
    6. ThugThug
    7. Wind
    8. ThugThug
    9. Wind ×2
    10. ThugThug
    11. Wind
    12. GraverobberGraverobber
    13. ThugThug
    14. GraverobberGraverobber
    15. ThugThug ×4
    16. Energy storage
    17. ThugThug ×4
    18. Con turret
    19. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    20. ThugThug
    21. GraverobberGraverobber
    22. RocketeerRocketeer
    23. ThugThug
    24. Wind
    25. ThugThug
    26. Wind
    27. ThugThug
    28. Wind
    29. GraverobberGraverobber
    30. Wind
    31. ThugThug ×2
    32. Wind
    33. ThugThug
    34. Wind
    35. ThugThug
    36. Wind
    37. ThugThug
    38. GraverobberGraverobber
    39. Wind
    40. ThugThug
    41. Wind
    42. ThugThug
    43. Wind
    44. ThugThug
    45. GraverobberGraverobber
    46. ThugThug ×3
    47. Con turret
    48. GraverobberGraverobber
    49. ThugThug
    50. Wind
    51. ThugThug
    52. Wind
    53. ThugThug
    54. Wind
    55. GraverobberGraverobber
    56. Wind
    57. ThugThug
    58. Wind
    59. ThugThug ×2
    60. GraverobberGraverobber
    61. ThugThug ×3
    62. GraverobberGraverobber
    63. ThugThug ×3
    64. GraverobberGraverobber
    65. ThugThug ×3
    66. GraverobberGraverobber
    67. ThugThug ×3
    68. GraverobberGraverobber
    69. ThugThug
    70. GruntGrunt ×8
    71. Energy storage
    72. GruntGrunt ×2
    73. Con turret
    74. GruntGrunt ×3
    75. GuardGuard
    76. Advanced solar
    77. GruntGrunt
    78. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    79. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 14:20 · typical 9:27
    80. GruntGrunt
    81. Advanced solar
    82. Naval Radar / Sonar TowerNaval Radar / Sonar Tower
    83. GruntGrunt ×3
    84. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    85. GruntGrunt ×4
    86. GuardGuard

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is yeimabounce's (34 OS, 06/08/2026); 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 7:51 · 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

518 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085600
3:00163510886
4:002718391341
5:003868942840
6:00512516061537
7:00642024332443
8:00779131883348
9:00925139064314
10:001093247005089
11:001274553266006
12:001467758626890
13:001695963607624
14:001917070118578
15:002086576629391
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

yeimabounce

33.8 OS · 06/08/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
28 metal received · 33578 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=504
Advanced Metal Extractor9:27Middle 50%: 8:20–10:45 · n=377

Played most by

iLike2Eco33games of this buildSauceDispenser28games of this buildTheGeneraI27games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildEl_Turco15games of this build