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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 · 5 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Wind ×2
    3. Mex
    4. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    5. Bot LabBot Labdone 1:37 · 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 · 18 steps
    1. GraverobberGraverobber
    2. GruntGrunt ×3
    3. Solar
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Solar
    6. GruntGrunt
    7. ThugThug ×4
    8. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    9. ThugThug ×2
    10. Mex
    11. ThugThug ×3
    12. Mex
    13. ThugThug ×3
    14. GruntGrunt ×4
    15. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    16. GruntGrunt
    17. Con turret
    18. GruntGrunt
  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 · 86 steps
    1. GruntGrunt ×3
    2. GuardGuard
    3. GruntGrunt ×2
    4. GuardGuard
    5. GruntGrunt ×2
    6. GuardGuard
    7. GruntGrunt
    8. Con turret
    9. GuardGuard
    10. GruntGrunt
    11. GuardGuard
    12. GruntGrunt ×2
    13. Solar
    14. GruntGrunt ×2
    15. Solar
    16. GruntGrunt
    17. Solar
    18. ThugThug
    19. ThistleThistle
    20. Solar
    21. ThugThug
    22. Construction BotCon bot
    23. Wind
    24. ThugThug
    25. Wind ×2
    26. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 7:15
    27. Wind ×5
    28. WolverineWolverine
    29. Wind
    30. WolverineWolverine
    31. Converter
    32. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    33. WolverineWolverine ×2
    34. Converter
    35. WolverineWolverine
    36. Converter
    37. LasherLasher
    38. Converter
    39. LasherLasher
    40. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 10:03 · typical 9:23
    41. Converter
    42. LasherLasher
    43. Converter
    44. PounderPounder
    45. Converter
    46. PounderPounder
    47. GuardGuard
    48. Wind
    49. GuardGuard
    50. Wind
    51. PounderPounder
    52. Wind ×2
    53. WolverineWolverine
    54. Wind ×2
    55. WolverineWolverine
    56. Wind ×2
    57. WolverineWolverine
    58. IncisorIncisor ×2
    59. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    60. IncisorIncisor ×7
    61. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    62. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    63. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    64. IncisorIncisor ×4
    65. Advanced solar
    66. IncisorIncisor
    67. Energy storage
    68. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    69. Advanced solar
    70. IncisorIncisor
    71. Advanced solar
    72. IncisorIncisor ×2
    73. Advanced solar
    74. IncisorIncisor
    75. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    76. IncisorIncisor
    77. Mex
    78. IncisorIncisor
    79. Con turret ×2
    80. IncisorIncisor ×2
    81. Con turret
    82. Mex
    83. Con turret
    84. IncisorIncisor ×6
    85. Mex
    86. IncisorIncisor ×11

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is _Polygon's (34 OS, 10/10/2026); 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

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

_Polygon

34.2 OS · 10/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
131 metal received · 5277 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