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Front / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard front

Standard Front play: Bot Lab immediately, expanding economy with an Advanced Metal Extractor around 9:00, then defending the wider gap with bots like Thug, Grunt and Aggravator as the middle firms up.

#eco #defence · 171 distinct matches · 62 players · 63% of Cortex Front games · team won 43% of 173 · 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 171 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 · 1 step
    1. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:20 · 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 (36%)

    By 5:00 in all: 6 mex · 5 wind

    The example game in this phase · 37 steps
    1. GraverobberGraverobber
    2. Construction BotCon bot
    3. GuardGuard ×2
    4. Mex
    5. Construction BotCon bot
    6. Mex
    7. Construction BotCon bot
    8. Mex
    9. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    10. Mex ×2
    11. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    12. GuardGuard
    13. AggravatorAggravator
    14. Mex
    15. GuardGuard
    16. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    17. GuardGuard
    18. AggravatorAggravator
    19. GuardGuard
    20. Wind
    21. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    22. Wind
    23. AggravatorAggravator ×3
    24. Wind
    25. AggravatorAggravator
    26. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    27. AggravatorAggravator
    28. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×3
    29. GraverobberGraverobber
    30. Wind
    31. GraverobberGraverobber
    32. AggravatorAggravator
    33. Wind
    34. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    35. Wind
    36. AggravatorAggravator ×2
    37. RocketeerRocketeer
  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 · 157 steps
    1. AggravatorAggravator ×5
    2. GuardGuard
    3. GraverobberGraverobber
    4. Con turret
    5. GraverobberGraverobber
    6. GuardGuard ×2
    7. Construction BotCon bot
    8. Con turret
    9. Construction BotCon bot
    10. Energy storage
    11. Wind
    12. Construction BotCon bot
    13. Wind
    14. Mex
    15. Construction BotCon bot
    16. Wind
    17. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    18. Construction BotCon bot
    19. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    20. Wind
    21. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth
    22. Mex
    23. Dragon's TeethDragon's Teeth ×4
    24. Wind
    25. Advanced solar
    26. Converter
    27. Wind ×2
    28. Advanced solar
    29. Wind ×2
    30. Converter
    31. Wind
    32. Advanced solar
    33. Wind ×5
    34. Converter
    35. Advanced solar
    36. Wind
    37. Con turret
    38. Construction BotCon bot
    39. Wind ×2
    40. Construction BotCon bot
    41. Converter
    42. Wind ×2
    43. Construction BotCon bot
    44. Wind
    45. Converter
    46. Wind ×3
    47. Construction BotCon bot
    48. Converter
    49. Wind ×2
    50. Construction BotCon bot
    51. Wind
    52. Mex
    53. Converter
    54. Wind ×2
    55. Converter
    56. Wind ×4
    57. Converter
    58. Wind ×4
    59. Converter
    60. Wind ×2
    61. Converter ×2
    62. Wind
    63. Con turret
    64. Wind
    65. Converter
    66. Wind ×4
    67. Converter
    68. Wind ×3
    69. Converter
    70. Wind
    71. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 10:29 · typical 9:12
    72. Wind
    73. Converter
    74. Wind ×2
    75. Converter
    76. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    77. Wind ×3
    78. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    79. Wind
    80. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 12:28
    81. Wind
    82. Converter
    83. Con turret
    84. Converter
    85. Con turret
    86. Wind ×3
    87. Converter ×2
    88. Wind
    89. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    90. Wind
    91. Converter
    92. Wind ×5
    93. Energy storage
    94. Wind
    95. Converter
    96. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    97. Wind
    98. Converter
    99. Wind ×2
    100. Converter
    101. Wind ×4
    102. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 13:18
    103. Wind
    104. Converter
    105. Wind
    106. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    107. Wind ×2
    108. Converter
    109. Wind ×5
    110. Converter
    111. Wind ×2
    112. SumoSumodone 13:27
    113. Wind
    114. Fortification WallFortification Wall ×2
    115. Wind
    116. SumoSumo
    117. Wind
    118. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    119. Wind
    120. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    121. Con turret
    122. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    123. SumoSumo
    124. Wind
    125. Converter
    126. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    127. Wind
    128. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    129. Wind
    130. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    131. SumoSumo
    132. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    133. Wind ×2
    134. Converter
    135. SumoSumo
    136. Wind ×3
    137. Fortification WallFortification Wall ×2
    138. Wind
    139. SumoSumo
    140. Wind
    141. Fortification WallFortification Wall ×2
    142. Converter
    143. VeilVeil
    144. SumoSumo
    145. Wind ×2
    146. SumoSumo
    147. Wind
    148. Converter
    149. Wind
    150. Fortification WallFortification Wall
    151. Wind
    152. SumoSumo
    153. Wind ×2
    154. SumoSumo
    155. Wind ×2
    156. SumoSumo
    157. Wind

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is Erilium's (46 OS, 29/09/2026); 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 68% 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

173 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0033100
2:0085800
3:0016248686
4:002686350336
5:003810938895
6:00504016971662
7:00633025242607
8:00769533073575
9:00914138954317
10:001085943745102
11:001287050665960
12:001507052866978
13:001774558947597
14:002023963458690
15:002294371609707
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

Erilium

46.2 OS · 29/09/2026

Open source match ↗

5 received units · includes a constructor
130 metal received · 41739 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=158
Advanced Metal Extractor9:12Middle 50%: 8:10–10:30 · n=136

Played most by

watermeloans19games of this buildHummell16games of this buildiLike2Eco12games of this buildCentientWaffle8games of this buildGeeGee8games of this build