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Front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard front

Cortex Front build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's default economy-first play: Bot Lab right away, Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:12, transitioning into the usual Thug/Grunt/Aggravator mix to hold the wider gap and feed the middle.

#eco #defence · 177 distinct matches · 62 players · 64% of Cortex Front games · team won 44% of 179 · 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 177 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
    • Wind Turbine1Wind
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 2 mex, 1 winddone ~0:40, middle half 0:34–0:46

    By 0:24 in all: 2 mex · 1 wind

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind
    3. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:39 · 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 (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 24 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. GruntGrunt
    4. Mex
    5. GruntGrunt
    6. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    7. ThugThug ×2
    8. Mex
    9. ThugThug ×4
    10. Mex
    11. ThugThug
    12. Mex
    13. ThugThug
    14. GruntGrunt
    15. ThugThug
    16. GuardGuard
    17. ThugThug
    18. GruntGrunt
    19. ThugThug
    20. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    21. ThugThug ×4
    22. Construction BotCon bot
    23. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    24. Construction BotCon bot ×5
  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
    • Thug2 Thug

    Some games also: aggravator (46%) · energy storage (42%) · Twin Guard (36%) · converter (35%) · Radar Tower (35%)

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

    The example game in this phase · 166 steps
    1. Construction BotCon bot
    2. ThugThug
    3. Wind
    4. Con turret
    5. Wind
    6. ThugThug
    7. Wind ×3
    8. GraverobberGraverobber
    9. Wind
    10. ThugThug
    11. Wind
    12. ThugThug
    13. Wind
    14. ThugThug ×2
    15. Con turret
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug
    18. Wind ×2
    19. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    20. Wind ×3
    21. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    22. Wind
    23. Converter
    24. GuardGuard
    25. Wind
    26. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    27. Converter
    28. Wind
    29. Con turret
    30. Energy storage
    31. Wind ×2
    32. Energy storage
    33. Wind
    34. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    35. Wind
    36. Energy storage
    37. Wind ×4
    38. Con turret
    39. Wind ×2
    40. GraverobberGraverobber
    41. Wind
    42. Mex
    43. Wind
    44. Bot LabBot Labdone 9:01
    45. Wind
    46. GraverobberGraverobber
    47. TickTick
    48. Wind
    49. TickTick ×4
    50. Wind
    51. TickTick ×5
    52. Wind
    53. GraverobberGraverobber
    54. TickTick ×4
    55. Wind
    56. TickTick ×5
    57. Wind
    58. TickTick ×4
    59. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    60. GraverobberGraverobber
    61. TickTick
    62. Wind
    63. TickTick ×4
    64. Wind
    65. TickTick ×5
    66. Wind
    67. TickTick ×3
    68. GraverobberGraverobber
    69. TickTick
    70. CastroCastro
    71. Wind
    72. TickTick ×2
    73. Wind
    74. TickTick ×2
    75. Wind
    76. TickTick ×3
    77. Wind
    78. TickTick ×4
    79. Wind
    80. TickTick
    81. Converter
    82. TickTick ×2
    83. Wind
    84. MaceMace
    85. Converter
    86. MaceMace
    87. Wind
    88. Converter
    89. MaceMace
    90. Wind
    91. Converter
    92. MaceMace
    93. Wind
    94. Converter
    95. CastroCastro
    96. Wind
    97. MaceMace
    98. Converter
    99. Wind
    100. TickTick
    101. Wind
    102. TickTick ×2
    103. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 12:22 · typical 9:10
    104. TickTick
    105. Wind
    106. TickTick ×3
    107. Wind ×2
    108. TickTick
    109. Wind
    110. Con turret
    111. Wind
    112. TickTick
    113. Wind
    114. TickTick
    115. Wind
    116. TickTick
    117. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    118. Wind
    119. TickTick
    120. Con turret
    121. Wind
    122. TickTick
    123. Wind
    124. CastroCastro
    125. Wind ×2
    126. TickTick
    127. Exploiter
    128. Wind
    129. TickTick
    130. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    131. Wind
    132. TickTick
    133. Wind
    134. TickTick
    135. Wind
    136. TickTick ×2
    137. Wind
    138. ThugThug
    139. TickTick
    140. Wind
    141. TickTick ×2
    142. Wind
    143. TickTick
    144. ThugThug
    145. Wind
    146. TickTick ×3
    147. Wind
    148. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    149. GuardGuard
    150. TickTick
    151. Wind
    152. ThugThug
    153. TickTick
    154. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    155. TickTick
    156. Wind
    157. TickTick
    158. Wind
    159. ThugThug
    160. TickTick
    161. Wind
    162. TickTick
    163. Wind
    164. TickTick
    165. ThugThug
    166. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Mixosis's (38 OS, 05/08/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

Nothing regular.

You get

  • Tidal Generator4 Tidal from Pondfirst at 0:17 · in 68% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:26 · 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

179 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016248686
4:002692359336
5:003828938883
6:00505116831622
7:00633024302606
8:00769932503477
9:00914838644317
10:001091543525092
11:001287049345948
12:001507052866934
13:001774557647566
14:002019663178516
15:002293570989484
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

Mixosis

38.4 OS · 05/08/2026

Open source match ↗

7 received units · includes a constructor
40 metal received · 29148 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=164
Advanced Metal Extractor9:10Middle 50%: 8:09–10:29 · n=140

Played most by

Hummell19games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildiLike2Eco12games of this buildCentientWaffle9games of this buildGeeGee9games of this build