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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 0:41 · 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 · 22 steps
    1. GraverobberGraverobber
    2. Mex
    3. Wind ×2
    4. GruntGrunt ×3
    5. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    6. ThugThug
    7. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    8. Mex
    9. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    10. GruntGrunt
    11. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    12. GuardGuard
    13. AggravatorAggravator
    14. Mex ×2
    15. AggravatorAggravator
    16. GuardGuard
    17. AggravatorAggravator ×5
    18. Con turret
    19. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    20. Con turret
    21. Construction BotCon bot
    22. Twin GuardTwin Guard
  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 · 144 steps
    1. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    2. Mex
    3. AggravatorAggravator
    4. Wind
    5. AggravatorAggravator
    6. Wind
    7. AggravatorAggravator
    8. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    9. Wind
    10. AggravatorAggravator
    11. Wind
    12. AggravatorAggravator
    13. Wind
    14. AggravatorAggravator
    15. GraverobberGraverobber
    16. Wind
    17. GraverobberGraverobber
    18. AgitatorAgitatordone 7:16
    19. Wind
    20. AggravatorAggravator
    21. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    22. Wind ×7
    23. Bot LabBot Labdone 7:55
    24. Wind
    25. GuardGuard
    26. Wind
    27. Con turret
    28. AggravatorAggravator
    29. CastroCastro
    30. GruntGrunt
    31. Wind
    32. GruntGrunt ×2
    33. Wind
    34. GruntGrunt
    35. RocketeerRocketeer
    36. Wind
    37. GruntGrunt
    38. Wind
    39. GruntGrunt ×10
    40. GraverobberGraverobber
    41. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:56 · typical 9:13
    42. Energy storage
    43. GraverobberGraverobber
    44. Metal storage
    45. GraverobberGraverobber ×4
    46. Con turret
    47. Wind
    48. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    49. Wind
    50. GruntGrunt ×2
    51. Wind
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    54. Wind
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. Wind
    57. Con turret
    58. GruntGrunt
    59. Wind
    60. GruntGrunt
    61. Wind
    62. SharpshooterSniper botdone 10:34
    63. Wind ×3
    64. GruntGrunt ×2
    65. Wind
    66. GruntGrunt ×4
    67. Wind
    68. GruntGrunt
    69. Con turret
    70. Wind
    71. GruntGrunt
    72. Wind
    73. GruntGrunt
    74. Wind ×2
    75. GruntGrunt
    76. Wind ×2
    77. GraverobberGraverobber
    78. Wind ×2
    79. GruntGrunt
    80. Wind
    81. GruntGrunt
    82. Wind ×2
    83. GruntGrunt
    84. Wind
    85. GruntGrunt
    86. Wind ×2
    87. GruntGrunt
    88. Wind ×2
    89. GruntGrunt
    90. Wind
    91. GruntGrunt
    92. Wind
    93. GruntGrunt
    94. Wind
    95. Con turret
    96. GruntGrunt
    97. Wind ×2
    98. GruntGrunt
    99. Wind
    100. GuardGuard
    101. GruntGrunt
    102. Wind
    103. GruntGrunt
    104. Wind
    105. GruntGrunt
    106. Wind
    107. GruntGrunt
    108. Wind
    109. GruntGrunt ×2
    110. Wind
    111. GruntGrunt
    112. GuardGuard
    113. GruntGrunt ×6
    114. GuardGuard
    115. GruntGrunt ×4
    116. Bot LabBot Labdone 13:16
    117. GruntGrunt ×4
    118. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    119. GruntGrunt ×6
    120. Con turret
    121. GruntGrunt ×5
    122. Con turret
    123. GruntGrunt
    124. Construction BotCon bot
    125. GruntGrunt
    126. Construction BotCon bot
    127. Energy storage
    128. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    129. GruntGrunt
    130. Construction BotCon bot
    131. GruntGrunt
    132. Construction BotCon bot
    133. Energy storage
    134. GruntGrunt
    135. Construction BotCon bot
    136. GruntGrunt
    137. Construction BotCon bot
    138. GruntGrunt
    139. Construction BotCon bot
    140. GruntGrunt ×20
    141. Mex
    142. GruntGrunt ×20
    143. Mex
    144. GruntGrunt ×10

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Ev1lPotat0's (41 OS, 08/10/2026); 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

Ev1lPotat0

41.3 OS · 08/10/2026

Open source match ↗

17 received units · includes a constructor
486 metal received · 11557 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