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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 · 173 distinct matches · 62 players · 63% of Cortex Front games · team won 43% of 175 · 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 173 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
    • Wind Turbine1Wind
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 2 mex, 1 winddone ~0:40, middle half 0:34–0:46

    By 0:24 in all: 2 mex · 1 wind

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:46 · 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 (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 29 steps
    1. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    2. GruntGrunt ×9
    3. Construction BotCon bot ×3
    4. Mex
    5. Construction BotCon bot
    6. ThugThug ×2
    7. Mex
    8. ThugThug ×4
    9. Converter
    10. ThugThug
    11. Wind
    12. ThugThug ×2
    13. Mex
    14. ThugThug
    15. Converter
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug ×3
    18. Wind
    19. ThugThug
    20. Converter
    21. ThugThug
    22. Wind
    23. ThugThug ×2
    24. Con turret
    25. Wind
    26. Converter
    27. ThugThug ×2
    28. Wind
    29. Con turret
  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 · 72 steps
    1. ThugThug
    2. Converter
    3. Wind
    4. Con turret
    5. ThugThug
    6. Converter
    7. ThugThug
    8. Wind
    9. Converter
    10. Con turret
    11. Wind
    12. GuardGuardfor Geo
    13. ThugThug
    14. Con turret
    15. Wind
    16. GuardGuard
    17. Converter
    18. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 8:03 · typical 9:12
    19. ThugThug
    20. Wind
    21. ThugThug
    22. GruntGrunt ×2
    23. Wind
    24. GruntGrunt ×2
    25. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    26. GruntGrunt ×2
    27. Mex
    28. GruntGrunt ×8
    29. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    30. GruntGrunt ×4
    31. Mex
    32. GruntGrunt ×3
    33. GuardGuard
    34. GruntGrunt ×2
    35. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    36. GruntGrunt
    37. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    38. GruntGrunt
    39. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    40. Bot LabBot Labdone 9:59
    41. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    42. Wind ×2
    43. CenturionCenturion
    44. Wind ×2
    45. Mex
    46. Wind ×2
    47. CenturionCenturion
    48. Wind ×2
    49. CenturionCenturion
    50. Wind ×3
    51. CenturionCenturion
    52. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    53. Wind ×2
    54. CenturionCenturion
    55. CastroCastro
    56. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    57. TickTick
    58. CenturionCenturion
    59. Wind
    60. TickTick
    61. Wind
    62. CenturionCenturion
    63. Wind
    64. TickTick
    65. CenturionCenturion
    66. Wind
    67. TickTick
    68. CenturionCenturion
    69. Solar ×4
    70. TickTick
    71. Solar
    72. Twin GuardTwin Guard

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is El_Turco's (36 OS, 06/08/2026); 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 67% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:30 · 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

175 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016248686
4:002686350336
5:003810938902
6:00504016861676
7:00633024302607
8:00768733073575
9:00902138954317
10:001084843745102
11:001285150665960
12:001505952866978
13:001772857647597
14:002019663178650
15:002293570989660
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

El_Turco

36.1 OS · 06/08/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
172 metal received · 24374 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=160
Advanced Metal Extractor9:12Middle 50%: 8:10–10:30 · n=137

Played most by

watermeloans19games of this buildHummell16games of this buildiLike2Eco12games of this buildCentientWaffle9games of this buildGeeGee8games of this build
Standard front · Cortex Front build order · BAR Build Atlas