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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 · 188 distinct matches · 64 players · 62% of Cortex Front games · team won 45% of 191 · 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 188 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 0:33–0:46

    Some games also: wind (49%)

    By 0:24 in all: 2 mex

    The example game in this phase · 2 steps
    1. Mex
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:26 · 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 (41%) · Radar Tower (35%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 40 steps
    1. Mex
    2. GruntGrunt ×2
    3. Wind
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. GraverobberGraverobber
    6. Wind
    7. Mex
    8. Construction BotCon bot
    9. Mex
    10. Construction BotCon bot
    11. Mex
    12. Construction BotCon bot
    13. ThugThug ×2
    14. Mex
    15. ThugThug
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug
    18. Mex
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug ×2
    21. GuardGuard
    22. Wind
    23. ThugThug
    24. GuardGuard
    25. ThugThug
    26. Wind
    27. Mex
    28. ThugThug
    29. ThistleThistle
    30. Wind
    31. GuardGuard
    32. GraverobberGraverobber
    33. Wind
    34. GraverobberGraverobber
    35. ThugThug ×2
    36. Mex
    37. ThugThug
    38. Wind
    39. ThugThug ×4
    40. Wind
  3. 3

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor1Mex
    • Wind Turbine17Wind
    Builders
    • Construction Turret2 Con turret
    • Graverobber2 Graverobber
    • Construction Bot2 Con bot
    Army
    • Guard1 Guard
    • Grunt7 Grunt
    • Thug2 Thug

    Some games also: aggravator (49%) · energy storage (41%) · Radar Tower (38%) · Twin Guard (36%) · converter (35%)

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

    The example game in this phase · 83 steps
    1. ThugThug ×2
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. Wind
    4. ThugThug ×2
    5. Wind
    6. ThugThug ×2
    7. GraverobberGraverobber
    8. Con turret
    9. ThugThug
    10. GraverobberGraverobber
    11. Energy storage
    12. ThugThug ×2
    13. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    14. Wind
    15. ThugThug
    16. Wind
    17. ThugThug
    18. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug
    21. Wind
    22. GruntGrunt
    23. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 7:57 · typical 9:12
    24. GruntGrunt
    25. Twin GuardTwin Guard
    26. GruntGrunt ×4
    27. Wind
    28. GruntGrunt ×2
    29. Wind
    30. GruntGrunt
    31. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    32. GruntGrunt ×3
    33. Wind
    34. GruntGrunt ×3
    35. Wind
    36. GruntGrunt ×2
    37. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    38. GruntGrunt
    39. RocketeerRocketeer ×2
    40. GruntGrunt
    41. Wind
    42. GruntGrunt
    43. RocketeerRocketeer ×2
    44. GruntGrunt ×2
    45. Wind
    46. GruntGrunt
    47. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    48. GruntGrunt ×2
    49. GraverobberGraverobber
    50. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    51. GraverobberGraverobber
    52. Wind
    53. GruntGrunt ×4
    54. Wind
    55. GruntGrunt ×3
    56. Construction BotCon bot
    57. Wind
    58. GruntGrunt
    59. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    60. GruntGrunt
    61. Mex
    62. GruntGrunt ×2
    63. Wind
    64. GuardGuard
    65. GruntGrunt ×3
    66. Con turret
    67. GuardGuard
    68. GruntGrunt
    69. Wind
    70. ThistleThistle
    71. GruntGrunt ×2
    72. GraverobberGraverobber
    73. Con turret
    74. ThistleThistle
    75. Wind
    76. Con turret
    77. GraverobberGraverobber
    78. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    79. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labnot finished by 15:00
    80. GruntGrunt
    81. Wind
    82. GruntGrunt ×2
    83. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is GuiTou's (36 OS, 03/10/2026); 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 67% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Geo or Techfirst at 7:33 · 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

191 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016238686
4:002684366326
5:003814938875
6:00505116511622
7:00631023642607
8:00765531393548
9:00902136104317
10:001084842455102
11:001278048825948
12:001495252076900
13:001730857597591
14:001971462628368
15:002249370189398
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

GuiTou

35.8 OS · 03/10/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
34 metal received · 11203 energy received

Allied construction assistance is unknown. Timings are observations, not a promise of solo reproducibility.

Typical milestones

Bot Lab0:40Middle 50%: 0:33–0:46 · n=179
Advanced Metal Extractor9:12Middle 50%: 8:11–10:29 · n=150

Played most by

Hummell20games of this buildwatermeloans19games of this buildiLike2Eco13games of this buildGeeGee11games of this buildErilium10games of this build
Standard front · Cortex Front build order · BAR Build Atlas