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Standard front

Cortex Front build order · Supreme Isthmus

The role's default economy-first play: Bot Lab right away, Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:12, transitioning into the usual Thug/Grunt/Aggravator mix to hold the wider gap and feed the middle.

#eco #defence · 209 distinct matches · 68 players · 63% of Cortex Front games · team won 44% of 212 · 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 209 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 · 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
    • Thug7 Thug
    • Aggravator5 Aggravator
    • Grunt4 Grunt

    Some games also: con turret (42%) · Radar Tower (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 27 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. Mex
    3. Wind ×2
    4. GraverobberGraverobber
    5. GruntGrunt
    6. Wind ×2
    7. GruntGrunt
    8. Construction BotCon bot
    9. GruntGrunt ×2
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. Mex
    12. Construction BotCon bot
    13. AggravatorAggravator
    14. Mex
    15. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    16. ThugThug
    17. Mex
    18. ThugThug ×2
    19. GuardGuard
    20. ThugThug
    21. WardenWarden
    22. ThugThug
    23. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    24. Con turret
    25. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    26. Mex
    27. ThugThug ×9
  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
    • Thug2 Thug

    Some games also: aggravator (47%) · energy storage (40%) · Radar Tower (39%) · converter (36%) · Twin Guard (36%) · eat Bot Lab (37%)

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

    The example game in this phase · 99 steps
    1. ThugThug ×6
    2. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    3. Wind ×2
    4. ThugThug
    5. Wind
    6. ThugThug
    7. GuardGuard
    8. Wind
    9. ThugThug
    10. Wind
    11. ThugThug
    12. Wind
    13. ThugThug
    14. Wind
    15. ThugThug
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug
    18. Wind
    19. ThugThug
    20. Wind
    21. ThugThug ×2
    22. Wind
    23. ThistleThistle
    24. ThugThug
    25. Wind
    26. ThugThug
    27. Con turret
    28. Wind
    29. ThugThug
    30. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    31. Wind ×2
    32. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 8:27
    33. Wind ×2
    34. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:15 · typical 9:13
    35. Wind ×5
    36. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    37. Wind
    38. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Wind
    41. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    42. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    43. Wind
    44. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    45. Wind
    46. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    47. IncisorIncisor
    48. Wind
    49. RascalRascal
    50. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    51. RascalRascal ×3
    52. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    53. RascalRascal
    54. Wind
    55. RascalRascal ×2
    56. Wind
    57. RascalRascal ×3
    58. Con turret
    59. Wind
    60. RascalRascal ×3
    61. Wind
    62. RascalRascal
    63. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    64. RascalRascal
    65. Wind
    66. RascalRascal
    67. Con turret
    68. RascalRascal ×3
    69. Wind
    70. Con turret
    71. Wind ×2
    72. Con turret
    73. Pit BullPit Bull
    74. Con turret ×2
    75. Bot LabBot Labdone 12:50
    76. Wind ×11
    77. GruntGrunt ×2
    78. Wind
    79. GruntGrunt
    80. Wind
    81. GruntGrunt ×2
    82. Wind
    83. GruntGrunt
    84. Wind
    85. GruntGrunt ×3
    86. Wind ×2
    87. GruntGrunt ×4
    88. Wind ×2
    89. GruntGrunt
    90. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00
    91. GruntGrunt
    92. Wind ×2
    93. GruntGrunt ×2
    94. Wind
    95. Con turret
    96. Wind
    97. Energy storage
    98. GruntGrunt ×3
    99. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is MarcoRalseks's (35 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 66% 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

212 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016238686
4:002685356326
5:003812920862
6:00505516461608
7:00632923862536
8:00769131743348
9:00914638224242
10:001088743925077
11:001282749235936
12:001501152976967
13:001732959477650
14:001970263318543
15:002237471809445
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

MarcoRalseks

35.1 OS · 10/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
222 metal received · 27833 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=196
Advanced Metal Extractor9:13Middle 50%: 8:15–10:29 · n=166

Played most by

Hummell23games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildiLike2Eco13games of this buildErilium11games of this buildGeeGee11games of this build