BAR / BUILD ATLAS
← All builds
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 · 447 distinct matches · 138 players · 65% of Cortex Front games · team won 50% of 464 · 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 447 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 · 31 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GruntGrunt
    3. Wind
    4. GraverobberGraverobber
    5. Construction BotCon bot
    6. GruntGrunt ×2
    7. Construction BotCon bot
    8. GruntGrunt ×2
    9. ThugThug ×2
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. AggravatorAggravator
    12. Mex
    13. AggravatorAggravator
    14. ThugThug
    15. GuardGuard
    16. ThugThug ×2
    17. AggravatorAggravator
    18. GruntGrunt
    19. Mex
    20. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    21. Mex
    22. ThugThug ×2
    23. GraverobberGraverobber
    24. Mex
    25. ThugThug ×2
    26. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    27. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    28. ThugThug
    29. Mex
    30. ThugThug ×4
    31. Construction BotCon bot
  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 (42%) · 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 · 99 steps
    1. Con turret
    2. ThugThug ×14
    3. Con turret
    4. ThugThug ×7
    5. Con turret
    6. ThugThug ×2
    7. Wind
    8. ThugThug
    9. Wind
    10. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    11. Wind
    12. GraverobberGraverobber
    13. Bot LabBot Labdone 8:19
    14. Wind
    15. ThugThug
    16. Wind
    17. Con turret
    18. GruntGrunt
    19. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:58
    20. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    21. Wind
    22. GruntGrunt ×2
    23. Wind
    24. GruntGrunt ×3
    25. Con turret
    26. GraverobberGraverobber
    27. Wind
    28. ThugThug
    29. Mex
    30. GruntGrunt
    31. Wind
    32. GruntGrunt
    33. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    34. Wind
    35. GruntGrunt ×2
    36. Wind
    37. GruntGrunt ×2
    38. Wind
    39. GruntGrunt ×2
    40. CastroCastro
    41. GruntGrunt
    42. Wind
    43. GruntGrunt ×6
    44. Wind
    45. GruntGrunt ×2
    46. Con turret
    47. Wind
    48. GruntGrunt
    49. Wind
    50. Con turret
    51. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. Wind
    54. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. GraverobberGraverobber
    57. GruntGrunt
    58. Wind
    59. GruntGrunt ×6
    60. Wind
    61. GruntGrunt
    62. Energy storage
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. Wind
    65. GraverobberGraverobber
    66. Wind
    67. GruntGrunt ×3
    68. Wind
    69. GruntGrunt ×2
    70. Wind
    71. GruntGrunt ×2
    72. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    73. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    74. GruntGrunt
    75. Wind
    76. GraverobberGraverobber
    77. Wind
    78. GruntGrunt ×3
    79. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    80. Wind
    81. GruntGrunt ×2
    82. Wind
    83. GruntGrunt ×3
    84. Wind
    85. GruntGrunt
    86. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    87. GruntGrunt ×2
    88. Wind
    89. GruntGrunt
    90. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 11:45
    91. GruntGrunt
    92. Wind ×2
    93. GruntGrunt
    94. Wind
    95. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    96. Wind ×4
    97. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    98. MammothMammothnot finished by 15:00
    99. Wind ×6

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Flerpz's (31 OS, 05/10/2026); 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

464 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085400
3:00162710286
4:002707387345
5:003850917839
6:00510515861559
7:00638923652478
8:00772631103385
9:00914638064291
10:001077345215079
11:001264252035987
12:001455356906925
13:001682962067650
14:001901866638566
15:002063272469349
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

Flerpz

31.1 OS · 05/10/2026

Open source match ↗

1 received units · includes a constructor
152 metal received · 162489 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=451
Advanced Metal Extractor9:23Middle 50%: 8:19–10:45 · n=341

Played most by

iLike2Eco31games of this buildTheGeneraI27games of this buildSauceDispenser27games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildEl_Turco15games of this build