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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 · 467 distinct matches · 145 players · 64% of Cortex Front games · team won 51% of 484 · 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 467 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 (40%)

    By 0:23 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:35 · 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 (46%) · Radar Tower (34%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 23 steps
    1. GruntGrunt
    2. Wind
    3. GruntGrunt
    4. Construction BotCon bot
    5. Wind ×2
    6. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    7. Mex
    8. AggravatorAggravator
    9. GruntGruntfor Geo
    10. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    11. Construction BotCon bot
    12. Mex
    13. GraverobberGraverobber
    14. AggravatorAggravator
    15. Mex ×2
    16. AggravatorAggravator ×4
    17. GraverobberGraverobber
    18. GuardGuard
    19. AggravatorAggravator ×4
    20. GruntGrunt ×3
    21. AggravatorAggravator
    22. GraverobberGraverobber
    23. AggravatorAggravator ×3
  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 (43%) · converter (37%) · energy storage (36%) · Twin Guard (34%) · eat Bot Lab (37%)

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

    The example game in this phase · 136 steps
    1. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    4. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    5. GruntGrunt
    6. Mex
    7. GruntGrunt ×4
    8. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    9. Mex
    10. GruntGrunt ×2
    11. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    12. GuardGuard
    13. AggravatorAggravator
    14. Construction BotCon bot
    15. GraverobberGraverobber
    16. GuardGuard
    17. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:27 · typical 9:24
    18. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    19. Construction BotCon bot
    20. Wind
    21. Construction BotCon bot
    22. Wind
    23. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    24. Construction BotCon bot
    25. Wind ×2
    26. GruntGrunt ×2
    27. Wind
    28. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    29. Wind
    30. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    31. AggravatorAggravator
    32. Wind
    33. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    34. Wind
    35. Construction BotCon bot
    36. Wind ×2
    37. GraverobberGraverobber
    38. Wind ×2
    39. GruntGrunt
    40. Wind
    41. GruntGrunt ×2
    42. Wind
    43. GruntGrunt
    44. Wind
    45. GruntGrunt
    46. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    47. Wind
    48. GruntGrunt
    49. Wind
    50. GruntGrunt ×2
    51. Wind
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. Wind
    54. Con turret
    55. GruntGrunt
    56. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    57. GruntGrunt
    58. Mex
    59. GruntGrunt ×4
    60. Wind
    61. GruntGrunt
    62. Wind
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. Wind
    65. GruntGrunt ×2
    66. Wind
    67. Construction BotCon bot
    68. Wind
    69. WardenWarden
    70. Construction BotCon bot
    71. Wind ×2
    72. Construction BotCon bot
    73. Wind ×2
    74. GruntGrunt
    75. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    76. Wind
    77. GruntGrunt
    78. Construction BotCon bot
    79. Wind ×2
    80. GraverobberGraverobber
    81. Wind
    82. GruntGrunt ×2
    83. Wind ×2
    84. GruntGrunt ×2
    85. Wind
    86. GruntGrunt ×2
    87. Wind ×2
    88. GruntGrunt ×2
    89. Wind
    90. GruntGrunt
    91. Wind
    92. GruntGrunt
    93. Wind
    94. GruntGrunt ×2
    95. Wind
    96. GruntGrunt
    97. Wind
    98. GruntGrunt
    99. Energy storage
    100. GruntGrunt ×4
    101. Wind
    102. GruntGrunt ×4
    103. Wind
    104. GruntGrunt ×2
    105. Energy storage
    106. GruntGrunt
    107. Wind
    108. Con turret
    109. GruntGrunt
    110. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    111. Wind
    112. GruntGrunt
    113. Con turret
    114. GruntGrunt
    115. Wind
    116. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 14:36
    117. GruntGrunt
    118. Wind ×2
    119. GruntGrunt
    120. Wind ×2
    121. GruntGrunt
    122. Wind
    123. GruntGrunt
    124. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    125. GruntGrunt
    126. Wind
    127. GruntGrunt
    128. Wind ×2
    129. GruntGrunt
    130. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    131. GruntGrunt
    132. Wind
    133. GruntGrunt ×3
    134. Wind
    135. SumoSumonot finished by 15:00
    136. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is HomeLessPxrnStar's (33 OS, 25/09/2026); 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 65% 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

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

484 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:00163410686
4:002721386337
5:003870934840
6:00512515901543
7:00643123912460
8:00778131523353
9:00924039004271
10:001092346205077
11:001274552835996
12:001460357696895
13:001691862597614
14:001915268088539
15:002086575039380
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

HomeLessPxrnStar

32.8 OS · 25/09/2026

Open source match ↗

6 received units · includes a constructor
1041 metal received · 17784 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=468
Advanced Metal Extractor9:24Middle 50%: 8:19–10:44 · n=351

Played most by

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