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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 · 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 · 32 steps
    1. Construction BotCon bot
    2. Mex
    3. Wind
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Wind
    6. GruntGrunt
    7. GraverobberGraverobber
    8. GruntGrunt ×2
    9. Mex
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. AggravatorAggravator
    12. Mex
    13. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    14. ThugThug
    15. Mex
    16. ThugThug
    17. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    18. ThugThug ×2
    19. GuardGuard
    20. Wind
    21. ThugThug
    22. Wind
    23. GuardGuard
    24. ThugThug
    25. Wind
    26. ThugThug
    27. GuardGuard
    28. ThugThug ×7
    29. GuardGuard
    30. ThugThug
    31. Mex
    32. ThugThug ×4
  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 · 88 steps
    1. TrasherTrasher ×2
    2. Construction BotCon bot
    3. Wind
    4. GuardGuard
    5. Construction BotCon bot
    6. ThugThug
    7. Wind ×2
    8. TrasherTrasher
    9. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    10. TrasherTrasher
    11. ThugThug
    12. Wind
    13. GraverobberGraverobber
    14. ThugThug ×3
    15. AggravatorAggravator
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug ×3
    18. GraverobberGraverobber
    19. Construction BotCon bot
    20. Wind
    21. GruntGrunt
    22. ThugThug
    23. GruntGrunt ×3
    24. GuardGuard
    25. GruntGrunt ×2
    26. Wind
    27. GruntGrunt
    28. GuardGuard
    29. GruntGrunt ×2
    30. GuardGuard
    31. GruntGrunt ×2
    32. Wind
    33. GruntGrunt
    34. GuardGuard
    35. GruntGrunt ×3
    36. GuardGuard
    37. Wind
    38. GruntGrunt ×5
    39. Wind
    40. GruntGrunt ×2
    41. ThistleThistle
    42. GruntGrunt ×4
    43. GuardGuard
    44. GruntGrunt
    45. Wind
    46. GruntGrunt ×3
    47. ThistleThistle
    48. GruntGrunt ×2
    49. Wind
    50. GruntGrunt ×2
    51. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:50 · typical 9:24
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. Con turret ×2
    54. GruntGrunt ×2
    55. Con turret
    56. GruntGrunt
    57. GuardGuard
    58. GruntGrunt ×2
    59. GuardGuard
    60. GruntGrunt ×3
    61. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    62. GruntGrunt
    63. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    64. GruntGrunt
    65. GraverobberGraverobber
    66. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 11:58
    67. GraverobberGraverobber
    68. GuardGuard ×2
    69. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    70. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    71. Con turret
    72. GraverobberGraverobber
    73. GuardGuard
    74. GraverobberGraverobber
    75. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:44
    76. GuardGuard ×3
    77. Energy storage
    78. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    79. Mex
    80. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    81. AugurRadar bot
    82. DeceiverJammer bot
    83. Mex
    84. SheldonSheldondone 14:07
    85. Con turret
    86. SheldonSheldon ×4
    87. Bot LabBot Labnot finished by 15:00
    88. SheldonSheldon

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Vaik's (32 OS, 07/10/2026); 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

Vaik

31.9 OS · 07/10/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
110 metal received · 21561 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