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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 · 443 distinct matches · 137 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 50% of 460 · 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 443 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 · 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
    • 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 · 43 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. Wind
    3. GraverobberGraverobber
    4. Construction BotCon bot
    5. Wind
    6. GruntGrunt
    7. Wind
    8. GruntGrunt
    9. Mex
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. GraverobberGraverobber
    12. ThugThug ×2
    13. Mex
    14. Con turret
    15. ThugThug ×2
    16. Mex
    17. ThugThug
    18. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    19. ThugThug
    20. Mex
    21. ThugThug
    22. WardenWarden
    23. GuardGuard
    24. ThugThug
    25. GuardGuard
    26. Wind
    27. ThugThug
    28. Wind
    29. ThugThug
    30. Wind
    31. ThugThug
    32. Wind
    33. ThugThug
    34. Wind
    35. ThugThug
    36. BeholderBeholder
    37. ThugThug
    38. Wind
    39. ThugThug
    40. Wind
    41. ThugThug
    42. Wind
    43. Mex
  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%) · 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 · 167 steps
    1. ThugThug
    2. Wind
    3. ThugThug
    4. Wind
    5. ThugThug
    6. Wind
    7. ThugThug
    8. Wind
    9. Con turret ×2
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. Wind
    12. GraverobberGraverobber
    13. Wind
    14. GraverobberGraverobber
    15. Wind
    16. ThugThug
    17. Wind ×2
    18. ThugThug
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug
    21. Wind
    22. ThugThug
    23. GraverobberGraverobber
    24. Wind
    25. GraverobberGraverobber
    26. CastroCastro
    27. GraverobberGraverobber
    28. Energy storage
    29. Wind
    30. GraverobberGraverobber
    31. Con turret
    32. Wind
    33. ThugThug
    34. Wind
    35. Converter
    36. Wind
    37. ThugThug
    38. Converter
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:03 · typical 9:24
    40. Converter
    41. Wind
    42. Converter
    43. CastroCastro
    44. Converter
    45. WardenWarden
    46. Converter
    47. ThugThug
    48. GruntGrunt
    49. Wind ×2
    50. GruntGrunt
    51. Wind ×6
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. Wind
    54. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. Wind
    57. GruntGrunt
    58. Wind
    59. GruntGrunt ×2
    60. Wind
    61. GruntGrunt
    62. Wind ×2
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. Wind
    65. GruntGrunt
    66. Wind
    67. GruntGrunt ×2
    68. Metal storage
    69. Wind
    70. GruntGrunt ×2
    71. Wind
    72. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    73. GruntGrunt
    74. Wind
    75. GruntGrunt
    76. Wind ×2
    77. GruntGrunt ×2
    78. Wind
    79. GruntGrunt
    80. Wind
    81. GruntGrunt
    82. Wind
    83. GruntGrunt
    84. Wind ×2
    85. Construction BotCon bot
    86. Wind
    87. Construction BotCon bot
    88. Wind
    89. Con turret ×2
    90. Wind ×2
    91. GruntGrunt ×2
    92. Wind
    93. Energy storage
    94. GruntGrunt ×2
    95. Wind
    96. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    97. GruntGrunt
    98. Wind
    99. Con turret
    100. GruntGrunt
    101. Wind
    102. GruntGrunt
    103. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    104. Wind
    105. GruntGrunt
    106. Wind
    107. GruntGrunt
    108. Wind
    109. GruntGrunt ×4
    110. Wind
    111. GruntGrunt
    112. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 12:43
    113. GruntGrunt
    114. Wind
    115. GraverobberGraverobber
    116. Wind ×2
    117. Converter
    118. Wind
    119. GraverobberGraverobber
    120. Wind
    121. Energy storage
    122. GraverobberGraverobber
    123. Converter
    124. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    125. Wind
    126. FiendFiend
    127. Converter
    128. FiendFiend
    129. Wind
    130. Converter
    131. FiendFiend
    132. Wind
    133. Converter
    134. FiendFiend
    135. Wind
    136. Converter
    137. FiendFiend
    138. Wind
    139. FiendFiend
    140. Wind
    141. FiendFiend
    142. Wind
    143. FiendFiend
    144. Wind
    145. FiendFiend
    146. Wind
    147. FiendFiend
    148. Wind
    149. FiendFiend
    150. Wind
    151. FiendFiend ×2
    152. Wind
    153. FiendFiend
    154. Wind
    155. FiendFiend ×2
    156. Wind
    157. FiendFiend ×2
    158. Wind
    159. FiendFiend
    160. Wind
    161. FiendFiend
    162. Wind
    163. FiendFiend ×2
    164. Wind
    165. FiendFiend
    166. Wind
    167. FiendFiend

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is spieriz's (33 OS, 03/08/2026); 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 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

460 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085400
3:00162710086
4:002704386337
5:003850916838
6:00510515861559
7:00638923642474
8:00772630943385
9:00914637694271
10:001077344855070
11:001264252035984
12:001455357176925
13:001682962137650
14:001901866638579
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

spieriz

32.9 OS · 03/08/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
3256 metal received · 100299 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=447
Advanced Metal Extractor9:24Middle 50%: 8:19–10:45 · n=338

Played most by

iLike2Eco31games of this buildTheGeneraI27games of this buildSauceDispenser27games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildHummell15games of this build