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Pond / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Standard pond

Economy-first Pond that builds tidal generators and wind for the fronts, often receives a Fatboy from an ally early, then adds a lab and sends units forward while boosting eco throughout.

#eco #team support · 102 distinct matches · 28 players · 40% of Cortex Pond games · team won 55% of 104 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • FatboyFatboy from an ally in 43%18% of all Pond games by then

Then transitions into grunt (23% of army), tick (15% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: T2 constructor by 7:57

  1. Drop 10 tidal generators immediately to boost front's wind.
  2. Take 3 mex, then a fourth, and get a bot lab by 3:02.
  3. Layer in wind and a guard for base defense.
  4. Push for your own T2 constructor once eco is stable.
  5. Transition into advanced mex and small bot army like Grunt and Tick.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 102 GAMES
  1. 1
  2. 2
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 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor4Mex
    • Tidal Generator8Tidalfor allies
    • Wind Turbine8Wind
    • Tidal Generator2Tidal
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage

    Some games also: converter (48%)

    By 5:00 in all: 4 mex · 8 wind · 2 tidal · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 9 steps
    1. Tidal
    2. Tidal ×8for Suicide front
    3. Energy storage
    4. Mex ×4
    5. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 2:58
    6. HerculesLight transport ×4
    7. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    8. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    9. Con turret ×2
  2. 2

    5:00 to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine3Wind

    Some games also: converter (45%) · con turret (39%) · wind (33%) · grunt (33%) · con turret (31%)

    By 10:00 in all: 4 mex · 16 wind · 2 tidal · 4 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 185 steps
    1. HerculesLight transport
    2. Bot LabBot Labdone 5:26
    3. HerculesLight transport
    4. Wind ×2
    5. GraverobberGraverobber
    6. Wind
    7. Construction BotCon bot
    8. Wind
    9. Construction BotCon bot
    10. Wind ×3
    11. Construction BotCon bot
    12. Wind ×5
    13. Construction BotCon bot
    14. Wind ×2
    15. GruntGrunt
    16. Wind ×2
    17. GruntGrunt
    18. Wind ×3
    19. GruntGrunt
    20. Wind ×2
    21. GruntGrunt
    22. Wind ×4
    23. GruntGrunt
    24. Construction BotCon bot
    25. Wind ×9
    26. GruntGrunt
    27. Wind
    28. Converter
    29. Wind ×2
    30. Converter
    31. Wind
    32. GruntGrunt
    33. Converter
    34. Wind
    35. Converter
    36. GruntGrunt
    37. Wind
    38. Converter
    39. GruntGrunt ×2
    40. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 9:22 · typical 9:23
    41. GruntGrunt
    42. Converter
    43. GruntGrunt ×2
    44. Converter
    45. GruntGrunt
    46. Wind
    47. Converter ×2
    48. GruntGrunt ×4
    49. Wind
    50. GruntGrunt ×5
    51. Wind
    52. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    53. GruntGrunt ×5
    54. Wind
    55. GruntGrunt ×2
    56. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    57. GruntGrunt ×5
    58. Wind
    59. GruntGrunt ×6
    60. Aircraft PlantAircraft Plantdone 11:04
    61. GruntGrunt ×2
    62. Wind
    63. GruntGrunt
    64. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    65. HephaestusHeavy transport
    66. Wind ×2
    67. GruntGrunt
    68. ShurikenShuriken
    69. Wind
    70. ShurikenShuriken ×2
    71. GruntGrunt
    72. Wind ×2
    73. ShurikenShuriken
    74. GruntGrunt
    75. Wind
    76. ShurikenShuriken
    77. Wind ×2
    78. ShurikenShuriken
    79. GruntGrunt
    80. Wind
    81. ShurikenShuriken
    82. GruntGrunt
    83. Wind
    84. ShurikenShuriken
    85. GruntGrunt
    86. ShurikenShuriken
    87. Wind
    88. GruntGrunt
    89. Wind
    90. ShurikenShuriken
    91. Wind
    92. GruntGrunt
    93. Wind ×2
    94. GruntGrunt ×2
    95. Wind
    96. GruntGrunt
    97. Wind ×2
    98. GruntGrunt
    99. Wind
    100. GruntGrunt
    101. Wind
    102. GruntGrunt
    103. Wind
    104. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    105. Wind
    106. GruntGrunt
    107. Wind
    108. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    109. GruntGrunt
    110. Wind
    111. Con turret
    112. Wind
    113. GruntGrunt
    114. Wind
    115. GruntGrunt
    116. Wind
    117. Con turret
    118. Wind
    119. GruntGrunt
    120. Wind
    121. Converter
    122. GruntGrunt
    123. Wind
    124. Con turret
    125. Wind
    126. GruntGrunt
    127. Con turret
    128. GruntGrunt
    129. Converter
    130. Wind ×3
    131. GruntGrunt
    132. Con turret
    133. Wind
    134. Converter
    135. GruntGrunt
    136. Wind ×2
    137. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    138. GruntGrunt
    139. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    140. GruntGrunt
    141. Wind
    142. Converter
    143. Wind ×2
    144. GruntGrunt
    145. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    146. GruntGrunt
    147. Con turret
    148. GruntGrunt ×2
    149. Wind
    150. Converter
    151. Fusion ReactorFusionnot finished by 15:00
    152. GruntGrunt
    153. Wind ×2
    154. GruntGrunt ×4
    155. Wind ×2
    156. Converter
    157. GruntGrunt
    158. Bot LabBot Labdone 14:20
    159. Wind
    160. GruntGrunt
    161. Wind
    162. Con turret
    163. GruntGrunt
    164. Converter
    165. Wind ×2
    166. GruntGrunt
    167. Con turret
    168. Wind
    169. GruntGrunt ×2
    170. Converter
    171. Con turret
    172. Construction AircraftCon aircraft
    173. Wind
    174. GruntGrunt
    175. Wind ×2
    176. GruntGrunt ×4
    177. Converter
    178. Wind ×2
    179. GruntGrunt ×4
    180. Wind ×2
    181. GruntGrunt ×2
    182. Wind
    183. GruntGrunt
    184. Converter
    185. GruntGrunt ×4

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is EpicTyrannus's (41 OS, 14/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Tidal Generator8 Tidal to Suicide front or Frontfirst at 0:11 · in 97% of games

You get

  • Construction Bot1 Con bot from Geo or Beach seafirst at 2:27 · in 35% of games
  • Hephaestus1 Heavy transport from Air or Techfirst at 4:42 · in 37% of games
  • Fatboy1 Fatboy from Techfirst at 5:18 · in 43% of games
  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 7:47 · in 94% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build, running totals by minute

Metal produced

010k20k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

02k4k6k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02k4k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

104 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: This buildOwn metal lost: This build
1:0011500
2:0027800
3:0081600
4:00151000
5:00221700
6:00296200
7:0038262880
8:0046231070189
9:0055351507591
10:0066512171899
11:00825026931360
12:001019431341695
13:001257434542159
14:001466838212820
15:001700442743392
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Standard pond wins slightly more than half its games while producing far less metal than most roles, matching its support job.

  • + Team win rate at 52%, the highest among the six standard builds shown.
  • + 42% of games receive a Fatboy from an ally by 5:17, well above the 18% role norm.
  • − Metal produced by 15:00 is only 16843, the lowest of all builds listed.
  • − Own metal lost climbs to 3271 by 15:00 despite the defensive role.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

EpicTyrannus

41.1 OS · 14/09/2026

Open source match ↗

4 received units · includes a constructor
321 metal received · 126697 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Advanced Metal Extractor9:23Middle 50%: 8:39–10:27 · n=99

Played most by

[Grump]Matsuri24games of this buildDeathkebab11games of this buildBoozha9games of this buildEXZoPrimer37games of this buildNazarid7games of this build

Supporting games

Pick a game to read and play it above.

Boozha25/09/2026 · 36 OS↗JustSomeGuy25/09/2026 · 38 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri25/09/2026 · 39 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri25/09/2026 · 39 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri25/09/2026 · 39 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri25/09/2026 · 39 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri25/09/2026 · 39 OS↗Boozha25/09/2026 · 36 OS↗EpicTyrannus14/09/2026 · 41 OS↗
32 more of 96, the most recentCommandoMan25/09/2026 · 35 OS↗Deathkebab24/09/2026 · 36 OS↗Boozha24/09/2026 · 36 OS↗[Cookie]Maco23/09/2026 · 53 OS↗Deathkebab23/09/2026 · 36 OS↗Deathkebab23/09/2026 · 36 OS↗PongoPygmaeus23/09/2026 · 36 OS↗zeus_on_god23/09/2026 · 37 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri23/09/2026 · 39 OS↗CommandoMan23/09/2026 · 35 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri22/09/2026 · 40 OS↗hihimik21/09/2026 · 35 OS↗zeus_on_god21/09/2026 · 38 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri21/09/2026 · 39 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri21/09/2026 · 39 OS↗Boozha20/09/2026 · 36 OS↗Espera20/09/2026 · 38 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri20/09/2026 · 41 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri19/09/2026 · 41 OS↗zeus_on_god17/09/2026 · 37 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri17/09/2026 · 40 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri17/09/2026 · 40 OS↗[Grump]Matsuri17/09/2026 · 40 OS↗Boozha16/09/2026 · 38 OS↗MischievousDragonGF16/09/2026 · 41 OS↗Boozha16/09/2026 · 38 OS↗[Cookie]Maco15/09/2026 · 52 OS↗MischievousDragonGF15/09/2026 · 42 OS↗MischievousDragonGF15/09/2026 · 42 OS↗MischievousDragonGF15/09/2026 · 42 OS↗EpicTyrannus15/09/2026 · 42 OS↗
Supreme Isthmus v2.1
Beyond All Reason test-31251-0ceadc7
Naval balance tweaks on