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Geo / Cortex / Economy first / OBSERVED BUILD

Starlight snipers

Cortex Geo build order · Supreme Isthmus

Geo rushes a second Vehicle Plant and Advanced Vehicle Plant to bring Starlight tachyon snipers to the middle by around 8:22, well ahead of the role's usual T2 bot timeline, using long range vehicle snipers instead of the standard Sheldon…

Usually blows up the commander for T2 (84%)

#t2 #push #artillery · 31 distinct matches · 20 players · 4% of Cortex Geo games · team won 61% of 31 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • StarlightT2 vehicle snipers from 8:22 · 6% of role by thenFrom the Advanced Vehicle Plant. Only 6% of Geo games have it by then; others who build it get it around 9:47
  • Advanced Vehicle PlantAdvanced Vehicle Plant in 94%5% of all Geo games by then
  • Vehicle PlantVehicle Plant in 94%6% of all Geo games by then
  • ProphetRadar vehicle in 94%17% of all Geo games by then
  • Bot LabBot Lab in 90%10% of all Geo games by then

Started with Starlight (97%), Negotiator (3%).

Where those units first fight, in 31 games with kill data: in the middle 87%, on their own side 13%.

Those units destroy a typical 6,613 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into Jaguar (20% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Advanced Vehicle Plant by 7:36

  1. Open standard mex and wind, drop a Bot Lab by 1:05.
  2. Get geo up, then push Advanced Metal Extractor by 5:26.
  3. Eat the Bot Lab, rebuild it, then eat it again for metal.
  4. Rush Vehicle Plant into Advanced Vehicle Plant by 7:36.
  5. Lead with Starlight, backed by Jaguar and Shredder, to front.
  6. Add T2 vehicle support (Prophet) and transition to T2 cons.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 31 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD GEO
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
PLAY THE OPENING

Follow the example game's first 9:23 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 Turbine3Wind
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 2 mex, 3 winddone ~1:05, middle half 0:54–1:13

    By 0:49 in all: 2 mex · 3 wind

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×3
    2. Solar
    3. Bot LabBot Labdone 1:05 · typical 1:05
  2. 2

    Bot Lab to 5:00

    Economy
    • Metal Extractor2Mex
    • Wind Turbine3Wind−2 vs standard
    • Energy Converter8Converter
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage
    Order
    1. Geothermal PowerplantGeo after 4 mex, 5 wind, 1 energy storage
    2. Bot LabEat Bot Lab
    Builders
    • Construction Turret6 Con turret
    • Graverobber4 Graverobber
    • Construction Bot2 Con bot
    • Graverobber1 Graverobber for allies
    • Construction Bot1 Con bot for allies

    By 5:00 in all: 4 mex · 6 wind · 1 geo · 8 converter · 1 energy storage · 6 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 20 steps
    1. GraverobberGraverobber ×4
    2. Construction BotCon botfor Beach sea
    3. Construction BotCon bot
    4. GraverobberGraverobberfor Beach sea
    5. Energy storage
    6. Con turret
    7. Mex
    8. Geothermal PowerplantGeodone 3:21 · typical 3:15
    9. Converter
    10. Con turret
    11. Converter
    12. Con turret ×2
    13. Converter
    14. Con turret
    15. Converter ×3
    16. Con turret
    17. Converter ×2
    18. Con turret
    19. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    20. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 5:09 · typical 5:30
  3. 3

    5:00 to Bot Lab

    Order
    1. Advanced Geothermal PowerplantAdvanced Geothermal Powerplant after 9 wind, 8 converter, 6 con turretin 61% of games
    2. Bot LabBot Lab after 7 wind, 8 converter, 6 con turretdone ~6:49, middle half 6:32–7:21

    Some games also: con turret (42%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 converter

    By 6:31 in all: 4 mex · 7 wind (standard 11) · 1 geo · 1 Advanced Geothermal Powerplant · 8 converter (standard 11) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    2. Advanced Geothermal PowerplantAdvanced Geothermal Powerplantdone 6:37 · typical 7:00
    3. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex ×2
    4. Bot LabBot Labdone 6:40 · typical 6:49
  4. 4

    Bot Lab to Advanced Vehicle Plant

    Order
    1. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plant after 8 wind, 9 converter, 6 con turret
    2. Advanced Vehicle PlantAdvanced Vehicle Plant after 8 wind, 10 converter, 6 con turretdone ~8:07, middle half 7:55–8:20
    Builders
    • Construction Bot1 Con bot
    • Construction Vehicle1 Con vehicle

    Some games also: converter (32%)

    By 7:35 in all: 4 mex · 8 wind (standard 12) · 1 geo · 1 Advanced Geothermal Powerplant · 10 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Construction BotCon bot
    2. Vehicle PlantVehicle Plantdone 6:51 · typical 7:18
    3. Construction VehicleCon vehicle
    4. Advanced Vehicle PlantAdvanced Vehicle Plantdone 7:35 · typical 8:07
  5. 5

    Advanced Vehicle Plant to T2 vehicle snipers

    Order
    1. Bot LabEat Bot Lab
    2. Vehicle PlantEat Vehicle Plant
    3. StarlightT2 vehicle snipers after 8 wind, 11 converter, 6 con turretdone ~8:43, middle half 8:23–9:03

    Some games also: T2 con vehicle for allies (35%)

    By 8:22 in all: 4 mex · 8 wind (standard 13) · 1 geo · 1 Advanced Geothermal Powerplant · 11 converter · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 4 steps
    1. Vehicle PlantEat Vehicle Plantreclaimed for its metal
    2. CitadelAnti-nukedone 13:18
    3. Bot LabEat Bot Labreclaimed for its metal
    4. StarlightStarlightdone 8:04 · typical 8:43
  6. 6

    T2 vehicle snipers to 10:00

    Army
    • Starlight2 Starlight +2 vs standard
    • Umbra1 Jammer

    Some games also: radar vehicle (45%) · converter (35%) · converter (32%) · Jaguar (32%)

    The standard build makes here, this one skips: 2 Sheldon

    By 10:00 in all: 4 mex · 8 wind (standard 17) · 1 geo · 1 Advanced Geothermal Powerplant · 12 converter (standard 16) · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 28 steps
    1. Converter
    2. Energy storage
    3. StarlightStarlight
    4. JaguarJaguar
    5. Converter
    6. JaguarJaguar
    7. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    8. Converter
    9. JaguarJaguar
    10. Converter
    11. JaguarJaguar
    12. Converter
    13. JaguarJaguar
    14. StarlightStarlight
    15. Converter ×3
    16. UmbraJammer
    17. ProphetRadar vehicle
    18. ShredderShredder ×3done 9:24
    19. StarlightStarlight ×3
    20. JaguarJaguar ×10
    21. Advanced Construction VehicleT2 con vehicle
    22. Metal storage
    23. Fusion ReactorFusiondone 13:55
    24. Advanced Vehicle PlantEat Advanced Vehicle Plantreclaimed for its metal
    25. Con turret ×2
    26. Advanced Bot LabAdvanced Bot Labdone 14:48
    27. Con turret
    28. PlatypusPlatypus

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is RefuseToLearn's (36 OS, 19/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Graverobber1 Graverobber to Beach seafirst at 2:06 · in 84% of games
  • Construction Bot1 Con bot to Beach seafirst at 2:31 · in 87% of games
  • Advanced Construction Vehicle1 T2 con vehicle to Front or Suicide frontfirst at 8:59 · in 74% of games

You get

  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Techfirst at 4:43 · in 100% of games
  • Advanced Metal Extractor1 T2 mex from Tech or Suicide frontfirst at 5:04 · in 39% of games

How it plays out

Typical game of this build against the role’s standard build, running totals by minute

  • This build
  • Standard geo

Metal produced

020k40k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

05k10k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02k4k6k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

31 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard geoEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard geoOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard geo
1:003313440000
2:007988740000
3:00160815010000
4:00263726360000
5:00371536950000
6:00582355010000
7:00815078160000
8:0011815108080000
9:0014949136802131043
10:001778616620298295130174
11:00206501942914641117260629
12:002345622513469522524501355
13:0026729252397700403316612260
14:0029902281348143580335803820
15:0032333311569942779254894959
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Far ahead of the role's norm, with much higher team win rate, more metal destroyed, and less lost by 15:00.

  • + Destroys 14281 enemy metal by 15:00 vs 8336 standard.
  • + Loses only 5650 metal by 15:00 vs 6575 standard.
  • − Reaching Advanced Vehicle Plant by 7:36 is rare, done by only 5% of role games.
  • − Eating both labs twice means committing hard to the vehicle line.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

RefuseToLearn

35.6 OS · 19/09/2026

Open source match ↗

3 received units · includes a constructor
499 metal received · 110820 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Bot Lab1:05Middle 50%: 0:54–1:13 · n=31
Geothermal Powerplant3:15Middle 50%: 3:09–3:30 · n=31
Advanced Metal Extractor5:30Middle 50%: 5:19–5:39 · n=31
Bot Lab6:49Middle 50%: 6:32–7:21 · n=28
Advanced Geothermal Powerplant7:00Middle 50%: 6:42–7:20 · n=24
Vehicle Plant7:18Middle 50%: 7:02–7:44 · n=29
Advanced Vehicle Plant8:07Middle 50%: 7:55–8:20 · n=30
Starlight8:43Middle 50%: 8:23–9:03 · n=30

Played most by

RefuseToLearn5games of this buildMilkdragon4games of this buildNazarid3games of this buildImmort2games of this buildXuunnY2games of this build