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Thug bot assault

Cortex Pond build order · Supreme Isthmus

Pond adds Thugs from its Bot Lab around 5:13 for an early bot push, fighting mostly on its own side at first before moving to the middle.

#push · 24 distinct matches · 16 players · 3% of Cortex Pond games · team won 54% of 24 · Recently observed

THE CATCH, AND WHAT COMES WITH IT
  • ThugT1 bot assault from 4:11 · 3% of role by thenFrom the Bot Lab. Only 3% of Pond games have it by then; others who build it get it around 5:58
  • ThugThug in 79%2% of all Pond games by then
  • GruntGrunt in 46%9% of all Pond games by then

Where those units first fight, in 24 games with kill data: in the middle 88%, on their own side 13%.

Those units destroy a typical 1,875 metal of enemy units by 15:00.

Then transitions into grunt (13% of army).

HOW TO PLAY IT

Key timing: Thug push by 3:58

  1. Open tidal-heavy economy, then Bot Lab by 3:15.
  2. Push Thugs out of Bot Lab toward the middle.
  3. Keep Thug numbers up as the main front-line unit.
  4. Eat the old Bot Lab for metal once replaced.
  5. Mix in Grunt and transition toward T2 constructor.

Phase by phase

TYPICAL OF ITS 24 GAMES · AGAINST STANDARD POND
  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 Extractor4Mex
    • Tidal Generator6Tidalfor allies−2 vs standard
    • Wind Turbine3Wind
    • Tidal Generator1Tidal
    • Energy Storage1Energy storage
    Order
    1. Bot LabBot Lab after 4 mex, 3 wind, 1 tidaldone ~3:32, middle half 2:41–3:56

    By 3:17 in all: 4 mex · 3 wind · 1 tidal · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 3 steps
    1. Mex ×2
    2. Wind ×2
    3. Bot LabBot Labdone 0:46 · typical 3:32
  2. 2

    Bot Lab to T1 bot assault

    Order
    1. ThugT1 bot assault after 4 mex, 7 wind, 1 energy storage
    Builders
    • Construction Bot1 Con bot

    Some games also: wind (46%) · con turret (42%) · Graverobber (38%)

    By 4:08 in all: 4 mex · 7 wind (standard 3) · 1 tidal · 1 energy storage

    The example game in this phase · 11 steps
    1. Wind
    2. GraverobberGraverobber
    3. Wind
    4. GruntGrunt
    5. Energy storage
    6. Construction BotCon bot
    7. Wind ×2
    8. GruntGrunt
    9. Mex
    10. GruntGrunt ×2
    11. ThugThugdone 2:03
  3. 3

    T1 bot assault to 10:00

    Economy
    • Wind Turbine12Wind−8 vs standard
    • Energy Converter2Converter−2 vs standard
    Order
    1. Bot LabEat Bot Lab in 67% of games
    Builders
    • Construction Turret1 Con turret
    • Graverobber2 Graverobber +2 vs standard
    Army
    • Thug13 Thug +13 vs standard

    Some games also: Radar Tower (50%) · con bot (46%) · Guard (42%) · mex (38%) · grunt (38%)

    By 10:00 in all: 4 mex · 21 wind · 2 tidal · 3 converter (standard 6) · 1 energy storage · 2 con turret

    The example game in this phase · 230 steps
    1. Mex
    2. Construction BotCon bot ×2
    3. Mex
    4. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    5. ThugThug
    6. Mex
    7. ThugThug ×4
    8. GuardGuard
    9. ThugThug ×2
    10. Mex
    11. Radar TowerRadar Tower
    12. ThugThug
    13. GruntGrunt
    14. Con turret
    15. ThugThug
    16. GuardGuard
    17. GruntGrunt
    18. ThugThug
    19. Wind
    20. ThugThug
    21. Wind
    22. ThugThug
    23. Wind
    24. ThugThug
    25. Wind ×2
    26. ThugThug ×2
    27. Wind ×2
    28. ThugThug
    29. Wind
    30. GuardGuard
    31. ThugThug
    32. Wind ×3
    33. ThugThug
    34. Metal storage
    35. Wind
    36. ThugThug
    37. Con turret
    38. Mex
    39. ThugThug
    40. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    41. Wind ×3
    42. ThugThug
    43. Wind
    44. ThugThug
    45. Construction BotCon bot
    46. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    47. Wind ×2
    48. ThugThug ×2
    49. Wind
    50. GruntGrunt
    51. Wind
    52. GruntGrunt
    53. ThugThug
    54. Wind
    55. Con turret
    56. GruntGrunt
    57. ThugThug
    58. Wind ×2
    59. GruntGrunt
    60. ThugThug ×2
    61. Wind
    62. Con turret
    63. ThugThug ×2
    64. Wind
    65. ThugThug ×2
    66. Wind
    67. GuardGuard
    68. ThugThug ×2
    69. WardenWarden
    70. Wind
    71. ThugThug
    72. Wind
    73. ThugThug ×2
    74. Wind
    75. ThugThug
    76. Wind
    77. ThugThug
    78. Wind
    79. AgitatorAgitatordone 8:32
    80. ThugThug ×2
    81. MaceMace
    82. ThugThug ×3
    83. RocketeerRocketeer
    84. ThugThug
    85. RocketeerRocketeer
    86. MaceMace
    87. AggravatorAggravator
    88. CastroCastro
    89. RocketeerRocketeer
    90. AggravatorAggravator
    91. RocketeerRocketeer ×4
    92. ThugThug ×3
    93. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mexdone 10:26 · typical 9:05
    94. ThugThug
    95. Con turret
    96. GraverobberGraverobber
    97. Con turret ×2
    98. Converter
    99. Bot LabBot Labdone 10:23
    100. Wind
    101. Converter
    102. Cortex CommanderCortex Commander
    103. ThugThug
    104. Construction BotCon bot
    105. ThugThug ×2
    106. Converter
    107. ThugThug
    108. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    109. ThugThug
    110. Converter
    111. Exploiter
    112. ThugThug
    113. Construction BotCon bot
    114. Wind
    115. Converter
    116. ThugThug ×3
    117. Construction BotCon bot
    118. ThugThug
    119. Converter
    120. Wind
    121. ThugThug ×2
    122. GraverobberGraverobber
    123. ThugThug
    124. Construction BotCon bot
    125. Wind
    126. GraverobberGraverobber ×2
    127. Converter
    128. GraverobberGraverobber
    129. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    130. Wind
    131. GraverobberGraverobber
    132. Converter
    133. ThugThug ×2
    134. Wind
    135. ThugThug ×2
    136. Converter
    137. ThugThug ×2
    138. Converter
    139. Wind
    140. ThugThug ×3
    141. Wind
    142. ThugThug
    143. Wind
    144. ThugThug ×2
    145. Wind
    146. ThugThug ×2
    147. Wind
    148. ThugThug
    149. Con turret
    150. ThugThug
    151. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    152. ThugThug
    153. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    154. ThugThug
    155. Con turret
    156. ThugThug
    157. Wind
    158. ThugThug
    159. Con turret
    160. TrasherTrasher
    161. ThistleThistle
    162. TrasherTrasher
    163. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    164. TrasherTrasher
    165. Wind ×4
    166. Con turret
    167. TrasherTrasher
    168. Wind
    169. Energy storage
    170. Wind
    171. Dragon's MawDragon's Maw
    172. TrasherTrasher
    173. Wind
    174. Energy storage
    175. Wind ×3
    176. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    177. GruntGrunt ×2
    178. Wind
    179. GruntGrunt
    180. Wind ×2
    181. GruntGrunt
    182. Wind
    183. GruntGrunt
    184. Wind
    185. GruntGrunt
    186. Wind
    187. GruntGrunt
    188. Wind
    189. Con turret
    190. Wind
    191. GruntGrunt
    192. Wind
    193. GruntGrunt
    194. Wind
    195. GruntGrunt
    196. Wind
    197. GruntGrunt ×4
    198. Wind
    199. GruntGrunt
    200. Wind
    201. GruntGrunt ×2
    202. Wind
    203. GruntGrunt
    204. Wind ×3
    205. GruntGrunt ×2
    206. Wind
    207. GruntGrunt
    208. Wind ×3
    209. GruntGrunt
    210. Wind
    211. GruntGrunt
    212. Wind
    213. GruntGrunt
    214. Wind ×2
    215. GruntGrunt ×2
    216. Wind ×3
    217. GruntGrunt
    218. Wind
    219. GruntGrunt
    220. Wind
    221. Advanced Metal ExtractorT2 mex
    222. GruntGrunt ×2
    223. Wind
    224. GruntGrunt ×2
    225. Wind
    226. GruntGrunt
    227. Wind
    228. GruntGrunt ×2
    229. Wind ×2
    230. GruntGrunt ×3

Counts are medians over the build's games: half of them build more, half fewer. The example game is spieriz's (32 OS, 18/09/2026); pick another.

Team trades

IN AT LEAST 30% OF ITS GAMES

You hand over

  • Tidal Generator8 Tidal to Suicide front or Frontfirst at 0:09 · in 54% of games

You get

  • Advanced Construction Bot1 T2 con bot from Tech or Geofirst at 7:26 · in 83% of games

How it plays out

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

  • This build
  • Standard pond

Metal produced

010k20k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Enemy metal destroyed

02k4k6k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

Own metal lost

02k4k6k
0:005:0010:0015:00

metal

24 games.

Show as table
ByMetal produced: This buildMetal produced: Standard pondEnemy metal destroyed: This buildEnemy metal destroyed: Standard pondOwn metal lost: This buildOwn metal lost: Standard pond
1:001151150000
2:003582600000
3:009137520000
4:00158514140000
5:00237721420000
6:0032572951253000
7:004213383942704100
8:005384491396651101573
9:007045634014401851650172
10:008492775117793212040513
11:0010409989922847402287796
12:0011991123512618114233811054
13:0014080149103769157545531637
14:0015917172093863183745992073
15:0016396199344234262347142966
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY

Slightly outperformed the standard build's win rate while destroying more enemy metal by 15:00.

  • + Destroys 4346 enemy metal by 15:00 vs 3127 standard.
  • + Team win rate 54% vs standard's 46%.
  • − Own metal lost by 10:00 is 2511 vs 755 for standard.
  • − Metal produced by 15:00 trails standard, 15858 vs 19066.
THE EXAMPLE YOU ARE READING

spieriz

31.6 OS · 18/09/2026

Open source match ↗

12 received units · includes a constructor
1332 metal received · 50295 energy received

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

Typical milestones

Bot Lab3:32Middle 50%: 2:41–3:56 · n=24
Advanced Metal Extractor9:05Middle 50%: 7:54–10:25 · n=19

Played most by

FrontLiner69er4games of this buildRysica4games of this buildspieriz2games of this buildYogaBoy1584972games of this build[AFUS]Trotski1game of this build