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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 · 447 distinct matches · 138 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 50% of 464 · 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 447 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 (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 50 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GruntGrunt ×2
    3. Wind
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Mex
    6. Solar
    7. GruntGrunt
    8. GraverobberGraverobber
    9. Construction BotCon bot
    10. GraverobberGraverobber
    11. Con turret
    12. Mex
    13. Construction BotCon bot
    14. Mex
    15. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    16. Converter
    17. Mex
    18. Wind
    19. AggravatorAggravator
    20. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    21. Wind
    22. AggravatorAggravator
    23. Wind
    24. GuardGuard
    25. ThugThug
    26. Wind
    27. Converter
    28. GuardGuard
    29. ThugThug
    30. Wind
    31. GuardGuard
    32. ThugThug
    33. Wind
    34. GuardGuard ×2
    35. ThugThug
    36. Wind ×2
    37. GuardGuard
    38. ThugThug
    39. Wind ×3
    40. ThugThug
    41. Wind
    42. ThugThug
    43. Wind ×2
    44. ThugThug
    45. Wind
    46. ThugThug
    47. Wind
    48. ThugThug
    49. GuardGuard
    50. 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 (42%) · converter (36%) · energy storage (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 · 56 steps
    1. Wind
    2. ThugThug
    3. Wind
    4. ThugThug
    5. Wind
    6. ThugThug
    7. Wind
    8. GuardGuard
    9. ThugThug ×2
    10. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    11. ThugThug
    12. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    13. Wind
    14. ThugThug
    15. Wind
    16. ThugThug
    17. Wind
    18. ThugThug
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug
    21. Wind
    22. GraverobberGraverobber
    23. WardenWarden
    24. GraverobberGraverobber
    25. Wind
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    27. Wind
    28. CastroCastro
    29. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    30. ThugThug
    31. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    32. Wind
    33. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    34. Converter
    35. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    36. ThugThug
    37. Wind
    38. ThugThug
    39. Wind
    40. ThugThug
    41. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    42. Wind
    43. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    44. Converter
    45. Wind ×3
    46. ThugThug
    47. Wind
    48. ThugThug
    49. Wind
    50. ThugThug
    51. Wind
    52. ThugThug ×2
    53. Wind
    54. ThugThug
    55. Wind
    56. ThugThug

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Beenami's (32 OS, 08/08/2026); 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 64% 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

464 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085400
3:00162710286
4:002707387345
5:003850917839
6:00510515861559
7:00638923652478
8:00772631103385
9:00914638064291
10:001077345215079
11:001264252035987
12:001455356906925
13:001682962067650
14:001901866638566
15:002063272469349
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

Beenami

31.5 OS · 08/08/2026

Open source match ↗

4 received units
12 metal received · 6942 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=451
Advanced Metal Extractor9:23Middle 50%: 8:19–10:45 · n=341

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