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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 · 445 distinct matches · 138 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 50% of 462 · 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 445 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 0:40 · 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 · 39 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. GruntGrunt ×2
    4. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    5. Mex
    6. Construction BotCon bot
    7. AggravatorAggravator
    8. GruntGrunt
    9. Mex
    10. GruntGrunt ×3
    11. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    12. Mex
    13. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    14. Mex
    15. AggravatorAggravator ×4
    16. Con turret
    17. AggravatorAggravator
    18. Con turret
    19. Wind
    20. Mex
    21. AggravatorAggravator
    22. GuardGuard
    23. Wind
    24. GuardGuard
    25. Wind
    26. GuardGuard ×2
    27. Converter
    28. AggravatorAggravator
    29. GuardGuard
    30. Wind
    31. Converter
    32. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    33. AggravatorAggravator
    34. Wind
    35. Converter
    36. AggravatorAggravator
    37. GruntGrunt
    38. Wind
    39. Converter
  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 · 122 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. Wind
    3. Converter
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Wind ×2
    6. GruntGrunt
    7. Con turret
    8. Wind
    9. GruntGrunt
    10. Wind
    11. GruntGrunt
    12. Wind
    13. Mex
    14. GruntGrunt
    15. Wind ×2
    16. GruntGrunt
    17. Wind
    18. GruntGrunt
    19. Wind
    20. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    21. Wind
    22. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    23. GruntGrunt
    24. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    25. GruntGrunt
    26. Wind ×2
    27. GruntGrunt
    28. Wind
    29. Con turret
    30. GruntGrunt ×3
    31. Wind
    32. GruntGrunt ×3
    33. Wind
    34. GruntGrunt ×3
    35. GuardGuard
    36. GruntGrunt ×4
    37. GuardGuard
    38. GruntGrunt ×2
    39. GuardGuard
    40. GruntGrunt
    41. Wind
    42. GruntGrunt ×3
    43. Wind
    44. GuardGuard
    45. GruntGrunt
    46. Wind
    47. GruntGrunt
    48. Wind
    49. GruntGrunt
    50. Bot LabBot Labdone 7:12
    51. GuardGuard
    52. Wind
    53. GruntGrunt ×2
    54. GuardGuard
    55. GruntGrunt ×2
    56. Wind ×2
    57. GruntGrunt ×14
    58. Wind
    59. GruntGrunt
    60. Wind
    61. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:10 · typical 9:24
    62. GruntGrunt ×5
    63. Mex
    64. GruntGrunt ×4
    65. Converter
    66. Wind ×2
    67. GruntGrunt ×4
    68. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    69. Converter
    70. GruntGrunt
    71. Wind ×2
    72. GruntGrunt ×3
    73. Wind ×2
    74. GruntGrunt ×5
    75. Converter
    76. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    77. GruntGrunt ×4
    78. Wind ×2
    79. GruntGrunt ×2
    80. Advanced solar
    81. GruntGrunt ×4
    82. Wind ×2
    83. GuardGuard
    84. GruntGrunt
    85. Advanced solar
    86. GruntGrunt ×3
    87. GuardGuard
    88. GruntGrunt ×6
    89. GuardGuard
    90. GruntGrunt ×6
    91. GuardGuard
    92. GruntGrunt ×9
    93. GuardGuard
    94. GruntGrunt ×7
    95. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    96. GruntGrunt ×20
    97. Construction BotCon bot
    98. GruntGrunt ×6
    99. Con turret
    100. GruntGrunt
    101. Con turret
    102. GruntGrunt ×7
    103. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    104. GruntGrunt ×7
    105. Con turret
    106. GruntGrunt
    107. Con turret
    108. Bot LabBot Labdone 11:48
    109. GruntGrunt ×3
    110. Construction BotCon bot
    111. GruntGrunt ×2
    112. Bot LabBot Labdone 11:56
    113. GruntGrunt ×12
    114. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    115. GruntGrunt ×13
    116. Advanced solar
    117. GruntGrunt ×21
    118. Advanced solar
    119. GruntGrunt ×17
    120. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    121. Advanced solar
    122. GruntGrunt ×20

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is El_Turco's (39 OS, 12/10/2026); 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 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

462 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085400
3:00162510186
4:002704386341
5:003848916838
6:00509915851559
7:00638823642474
8:00771130943385
9:00914237694271
10:001074145005077
11:001262251885987
12:001450856906925
13:001681462067650
14:001896966488566
15:002060472399349
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

El_Turco

39.2 OS · 12/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
916 metal received · 17106 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=449
Advanced Metal Extractor9:24Middle 50%: 8:19–10:45 · n=340

Played most by

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