BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
Front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard front

Standard Front play: Bot Lab immediately, expanding economy with an Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:00, then defending the wider gap with bots like Thug, Grunt and Aggravator as the middle firms up.

#eco #defence · 171 distinct matches · 62 players · 63% of Cortex Front games · team won 43% of 173 · Recently observed

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Bot Lab by 0:40

  1. Take 3 mex, then wind before opening Bot Lab.
  2. Finish Bot Lab, start producing Thug, Grunt and Aggravator.
  3. Send early units to coast first to stop leaks, not straight to mid.
  4. Add Twin Guard and Radar Tower to hold the wider gap.
  5. Bring Advanced Metal Extractor online as army transitions to T2.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 171 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 mex, 1 winddone ~0:40, middle half 0:34–0:46

    Some games also: wind (50%)

    By 0:24 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
    • Thug6 Thug
    • Aggravator5 Aggravator
    • Grunt4 Grunt

    Some games also: con turret (42%) · Radar Tower (36%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 49 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GruntGrunt ×2
    3. GraverobberGraverobber
    4. Construction BotCon bot
    5. Mex
    6. Con turret
    7. ThugThug ×2
    8. Mex
    9. ThugThug
    10. Energy storage
    11. ThugThug
    12. Mex
    13. Wind
    14. ThugThug
    15. Wind
    16. ThugThug
    17. Mex
    18. Wind
    19. GuardGuard
    20. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    21. ThugThug
    22. Wind
    23. ThugThug
    24. Mex
    25. AggravatorAggravator
    26. Converter
    27. ThugThug
    28. Converter
    29. ThugThug
    30. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    31. Wind
    32. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    33. ThugThug
    34. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    35. Wind
    36. ThugThug
    37. Wind
    38. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    39. ThugThug
    40. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    41. Wind
    42. ThugThug
    43. Wind
    44. ThugThug
    45. Wind
    46. ThugThug
    47. Wind
    48. ThugThug
    49. Wind
  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
    • Grunt7 Grunt
    • Thug1 Thug

    Some games also: aggravator (47%) · energy storage (43%) · Twin Guard (36%) · Radar Tower (35%) · converter (34%)

    By 10:00 in all: 7 mex · 24 wind · 1 energy storage · 3 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 137 steps
    1. ThugThug
    2. Wind
    3. ThugThug
    4. Wind
    5. ThugThug ×3
    6. GraverobberGraverobber
    7. Converter
    8. ThugThug
    9. Converter
    10. ThugThug
    11. Converter
    12. ThugThug
    13. Converter
    14. ThugThug
    15. GruntGrunt
    16. Con turret
    17. GruntGrunt
    18. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    19. GruntGrunt
    20. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    21. GruntGrunt ×2
    22. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    23. GruntGrunt
    24. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    25. GruntGrunt
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    27. GruntGrunt
    28. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    29. GruntGrunt ×2
    30. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    31. GruntGrunt ×3
    32. Bot LabBot Labdone 7:37
    33. GruntGrunt ×3
    34. Wind
    35. GruntGrunt
    36. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    37. GruntGrunt
    38. Wind
    39. GruntGrunt ×2
    40. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    41. GruntGrunt
    42. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    43. GruntGrunt ×3
    44. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    45. GruntGrunt ×5
    46. Wind
    47. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:48 · typical 9:12
    48. GruntGrunt ×2
    49. Wind ×2
    50. GruntGrunt ×2
    51. Wind
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. ThugThug
    54. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. Wind
    57. GruntGrunt
    58. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    59. GuardGuard
    60. Wind
    61. AggravatorAggravator
    62. GuardGuard
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. Wind ×2
    65. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    66. Wind
    67. Construction BotCon bot
    68. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    69. Wind
    70. GruntGrunt
    71. Construction BotCon bot
    72. GruntGrunt
    73. Wind
    74. Construction BotCon bot
    75. GruntGrunt
    76. Wind
    77. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    78. Construction BotCon bot
    79. GruntGrunt ×2
    80. Wind
    81. GruntGrunt ×3
    82. Wind
    83. GruntGrunt ×3
    84. Con turret
    85. GruntGrunt
    86. Wind
    87. GruntGrunt ×3
    88. Wind
    89. GruntGrunt ×3
    90. Con turret
    91. GruntGrunt
    92. Advanced solar
    93. GruntGrunt
    94. Con turret
    95. GruntGrunt ×13
    96. Wind
    97. GruntGrunt ×6
    98. Wind
    99. GruntGrunt ×4
    100. Wind
    101. GruntGrunt ×7
    102. Wind
    103. GruntGrunt ×3
    104. Cloakable Fusion ReactorCloakable Fusion Reactordone 14:43
    105. GruntGrunt ×5
    106. CastroCastro
    107. GruntGrunt
    108. Wind
    109. GruntGrunt ×11
    110. ThistleThistle
    111. GruntGrunt ×3
    112. Con turret
    113. GruntGrunt
    114. Wind
    115. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    116. GruntGrunt ×2
    117. Con turret
    118. GruntGrunt
    119. Wind ×2
    120. GruntGrunt ×2
    121. Con turret
    122. GruntGrunt ×3
    123. Wind ×2
    124. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    125. GruntGrunt ×3
    126. Wind
    127. GruntGrunt ×2
    128. Wind
    129. GruntGrunt
    130. Wind
    131. GruntGrunt ×4
    132. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    133. GruntGrunt ×8
    134. Wind
    135. GruntGrunt ×2
    136. Wind
    137. GruntGrunt ×2

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Buckyo's (37 OS, 29/09/2026); 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 68% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:34 · in 66% 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

173 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016248686
4:002686350336
5:003810938895
6:00504016971662
7:00633025242607
8:00769533073575
9:00914138954317
10:001085943745102
11:001287050665960
12:001507052866978
13:001774558947597
14:002023963458690
15:002294371609707
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

This build has the worst win rate of the roles shown and trails Suicide front on kills while losing nearly as much metal.

  • + Produces more metal than Suicide front by 15:00 (22286 vs 18297).
  • + T2 constructor lands slightly faster (7:41) than Suicide front's 8:07.
  • − Loses 9797 own metal by 15:00, close to what it destroys (6775).
  • − Wins only 40% of games, well below every other role shown.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

Buckyo

37.1 OS · 29/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
10 metal received · 39454 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=158
Advanced Metal Extractor9:12Middle 50%: 8:10–10:30 · n=136

Played most by

watermeloans19games of this buildHummell16games of this buildiLike2Eco12games of this buildCentientWaffle8games of this buildGeeGee8games of this build