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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 · 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
    • 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 · 39 steps
    1. GruntGrunt ×2
    2. Mex
    3. Wind
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Wind
    6. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    7. Mex
    8. ThugThug
    9. Mex
    10. ThugThug ×3
    11. Mex
    12. ThugThug
    13. GuardGuard
    14. ThugThug ×2
    15. GuardGuard
    16. ThugThug
    17. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    18. ThugThug ×2
    19. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    20. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    21. ThugThug
    22. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    23. ThugThug
    24. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    25. ThugThug
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    27. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    28. ThugThug ×2
    29. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×2
    30. ThugThug
    31. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    32. ThugThug
    33. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    34. ThugThug
    35. Con turret
    36. Wind
    37. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    38. ThugThug
    39. 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
    • 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 · 77 steps
    1. ThugThug
    2. Wind ×2
    3. ThugThug
    4. Mex
    5. Wind
    6. ThugThug
    7. Wind
    8. ThugThug
    9. Wind
    10. ThugThug
    11. Wind
    12. ThugThug
    13. Wind
    14. Construction BotCon bot
    15. Wind
    16. Construction BotCon bot
    17. Wind
    18. ThugThug ×2
    19. Wind
    20. Converter
    21. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    22. GraverobberGraverobber
    23. Wind
    24. GraverobberGraverobber
    25. Wind
    26. GraverobberGraverobber
    27. Wind
    28. ThugThug
    29. Wind
    30. Converter
    31. ThugThug
    32. Wind
    33. Con turret
    34. Energy storage
    35. ThugThug
    36. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:19 · typical 9:13
    37. Wind
    38. Converter
    39. Wind
    40. ThugThug
    41. Wind
    42. ThugThug
    43. Wind
    44. ThugThug
    45. Converter
    46. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    47. Wind
    48. ThugThug
    49. Wind ×2
    50. Converter
    51. Wind
    52. ThugThug
    53. Construction BotCon bot
    54. ThugThug
    55. GraverobberGraverobber
    56. Mex
    57. Converter
    58. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    59. GraverobberGraverobber
    60. Wind
    61. Converter
    62. ThugThug
    63. Wind
    64. Converter
    65. ThugThug
    66. Mex
    67. Con turret
    68. Wind
    69. ThugThug
    70. Wind
    71. ThugThug ×2
    72. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    73. ThugThug
    74. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 11:04
    75. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    76. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    77. MammothMammothnot finished by 15:00

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Slump's (38 OS, 09/10/2026); 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

Slump

37.8 OS · 09/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
468 metal received · 23430 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
Standard front · Cortex Front build order · BAR Build Atlas