Gut Knife Case Hardened: Blue Gem Seed Patterns
The Arms Deal update in Counter-Strike 2 brought with it the introduction of a new knife as a rare drop in 2013, which was the Gut Knife. It was one of five new knives introduced in the game, with 10 different finishes, one of which was the Case Hardened finish. The knife was immediately overshadowed by its peers, which to this day are still some of the top knives in the game, namely the Karambit and the M9 Bayonet.
The blade on the Gut is hefty with a hook on top and was inspired by knives typically used by Hunters for field dressing games. Even though the blade has a large surface area which depicts the finishes very nicely, its shape and the design of the handle are what has everyone giving the knife bad press over the years, firmly cementing its place as a low-tier knife. Although some finishes for this knife such as the Doppler variants gained popularity in recent years and became more expensive, the Blue Gem pattern of the Case Hardened finish for this knife remains the most expensive.
Now you might wonder why this Blue Gem finish is so expensive when we have amazing-looking finishes such as the various phases of the Dopplers already? There are multiple reasons why and for all the questions that you might have specifically about Blue Gems and other Case Hardened patterns, we will help by giving you a thorough understanding through this article. This includes insights into how you can get a Blue Gem, what patterns are more valuable, how much you should pay for a particular one, the historical inspiration behind the Case Hardened skins in the game, and much more, so read on.
List Of Gut Knife Case Hardened Patterns By Tier
Are you the proud owner of a Gut Knife Case Hardened? Are you searching online to find what yours might be worth? Or are you merely solidifying your knowledge of Case Hardened patterns for the Gut Knife? Either way, we believe this write-up is just what you need for these sorts of purposes.
Below, we have a comprehensive index that lists all the various patterns for the Gut Knife Case Hardened divided up into separate tiers. Some patterns in a particular tier are rarer, and thus more expensive, while patterns in another may be cheaper. Before we go into the details, take a look at our list:
| Group | Pattern Seeds |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 567, 962, 125, 60 |
| Tier 2 | 165, 799, 140, 171, 591, 215, 977, 723, 997, 644, 870, 724, 232, 939, 384, 756, 974 |
| Tier 3 | 50, 40, 730, 350, 477, 729, 218, 971, 836, 86, 691, 552, 540, 388, 662, 175, 785, 953, 66, 245, 806 |
| Tier 4 | 81, 766, 294, 832, 466, 272, 193, 167, 920, 286, 420, 890, 875, 619, 826, 92, 435, 342, 647, 759, 965, 998, 426, 37, 539, 829, 417, 53, 979, 525, 9, 808, 743, 906, 584, 514, 476, 213, 45 |
As is evident from the index, there are 4 tiers in which various pattern seeds are present. A seed pattern is the type of pattern that is transferred from the Case Hardened color sheet onto the weapon. This will be explained in further detail later. For now, all you need to know is that patterns with the highest amount of blue stain from the color sheet on the playside of the weapon skin are the most sought-after, while gold, purple, and gray colors are the least favored.
Tier 1 patterns have the highest amount of blue on the skin, while this amount keeps decreasing with each tier as we move down, and the least amount of blue will be found on patterns mentioned in Tier 4. Tier 1 patterns therefore also tend to be more expensive, with considerable premiums over the average market price, while Tier 4 patterns tend to be at the market average.
What Is The Case Hardened Finish?
The Case Hardened skins are one of the first skins released in CS2 - way back in 2013 during the Arms Deal update, initially for the AK-47 and the five different knives which were rare drops. The popularity of this skin rose immediately on release and players were frantically trying to get their hands on the best patterns.
The Case Hardened finish comes from a pre-designed color sheet which has a variety of mottled colors superimposed on a gray base. These colors include blotches of blue which turn slightly darker as they move away from the center, then forming thin layers of purple, after which comes the most prevalent color which is dull gold. The most desirable color from this palette is blue, where a knife with a major part of its blade covered in this stain has the potential to earn its owner thousands of dollars from collectors. On the other hand, knives, or guns with less blue and more gold tend to have their prices at the market average.
What Inspired The CS2 Case Hardened Finish?
Weapon manufacturers in the late 17th century were faced with a problem. The guns they were making could not withstand the stresses of use in battle and tended to break from firing or hard impacts.
After much deliberation and research, the presence of low carbon content in the steel they were using in the development of guns was determined to be the major cause of the brittleness. The manufacturers then had to overcome the challenge of finding a way to increase the amount of carbon in their steel and came up with an ingenious solution in cheap and easy-to-acquire materials. These were animal hides, hooves, bones, etc. which were to be placed with steel and sealed in a ‘case’ made of a strong material like ceramic that could withstand high temperatures. This case was then heated in a furnace, where the animal parts would vaporize and the resulting carbon emitted from them would form a hard outer shell on the surface of the steel, thus ‘hardening’ it. The last step of the process was to quench the steel in water, where air bubbles would give a mottled effect on the steel surface like the one found on Case Hardened skins. This design can still sometimes be seen on heritage models of some famous shotguns today.
What Is a Case Hardened Blue Gem Skin?
Case Hardened skins that have a majority of their playside covered in the blue stain of the Case Hardened color sheet are referred to as Blue Gems. This is the general consensus among the CS2 community, although a few minor exceptions exist. For instance, knives such as the Bowie, Huntsman, and Gut have large blades that may not fully be covered in blue like other knives and may have some blemishing or minor gold stains on the blade, even on their respective #1 Blue Gem patterns. Blue Gem patterns are a highly sought-after commodity by members of the community and generate extensive amounts of overpay.
How Valuable Are These Blue Gem Skins?
There is no straight answer to this question. There are a total of 19 different knives in this game, and each has its own place in the hierarchy of desirability. This trend is also reflected in the price of their Blue Gem variants. For instance, the Navaja is a low-tier knife that is not very desirable among the community, and as such, its Blue Gem is only worth a few thousand dollars, but a Blue Gem version of the Butterfly Knife, which is a top tier knife and highly valued, will run into the tens of thousands of dollars, maybe even hundreds.
However, the fact remains that the Blue Gem Case Hardened pattern for any particular knife will be its most valuable skin, surpassing the value of even a Doppler Sapphire or Black Pearl. The primary reason is that it’s an extremely rare pattern that may on average take up to 3.7 million case openings for the number one Blue Gem to drop.
The most highly valued Blue Gem is for a Karambit in Factory New condition with seed pattern #387, with an asking price of USD 1.5 million. It was initially bought for USD 100K by a Chinese collector, and even though it has not been sold yet, it only remains a matter of time till it does.
How Much Is a Blue Gem Gut Knife Worth?
The number one Blue Gem Case Hardened with seed pattern #567 for the Gut Knife is currently valued at USD 3k in Minimal Wear condition and as usual stands as the most expensive finish for this knife.
How Can I Get a Blue Gem Gut Knife?
There are multiple approaches to acquiring a Blue Gem Gut Knife. Considering the fact that Blue Gems for the Gut knife are not the most expensive skins in the game, they may be found listed on various third-party marketplaces. The Steam Community Market, however, should not be considered for Tier 1 patterns as their price might be more than the USD 2k cap for listings allowed by the SCM. Tier 2 patterns, though, may be listed commonly and purchasable for a good price.
Another method is to reach out to the community members on the various CS2 forums, and someone just might be able to point you in the right direction.
Probably the least viable method at this point in time is that of case openings. There are a total of 11 cases in which the Case Hardened Gut Knife can be found:
- CS2 Weapon Case
- CS2 Weapon Case 2
- CS2 Weapon Case 3
- eSports 2013 Case
- eSports 2013 Winter Case
- eSports 2014 Summer Case
- Operation Bravo Case
- Operation Phoenix Weapon Case
- Operation Vanguard Weapon Case
- Revolver Case
- Winter Offensive Weapon Case
Although it might seem like a nice idea at first, considering there are so many options to choose from. The bad news is that three of these cases, namely the eSports 2013 Case, the eSports 2013 Winter Case, and the eSports 2014 Summer Case have been discontinued from the drop pool and there are only a handful of them listed in either the SCM or third-party marketplaces. The rest of the cases are all in the rare drop pool, the cheapest among them being the Revolver and the Vanguard Case. However, all these cases were released years ago, and their numbers are limited. Considering the fact that it may take a few million cases to unbox a Blue Gem, this option stands as the least viable and has a high risk of making a loss.
Gut Knife: Case Hardened
Even though Blue Gems for most knives are considered to be good investments that may rise exponentially in value over the years, the same cant be said for a Gut Knife. Since this is a low-tier knife and not as popular in the CS2 community, this is reflected in the low price of its Blue Gem variant, which is cheaper than even a Doppler of a top-tier knife.
But if it’s something that you really want, or perhaps just looking to make it part of your collection, then you can perhaps strike a good deal with someone who owns it or find one through a listing. The #1 Blue Gem pattern of the Gut knife does not have the full blade covered in the blue stain of the Case Hardened pattern, with the area around the handle and a small area around the tip being gold and gray. The Gut Knife Case Hardened finish comes in all wears starting from Factory New (0.00) to Battle-Scarred (1.00). With higher wear levels, the colors of the Case Hardened pattern turn a darker shade. Check out the market listings below to find the pattern you are looking for:
Concluding Remarks
Blue Gem patterns are perhaps the most expensive finishes in Counter-Strike 2 and this comes as a result of how rarely they drop from cases. This is also why they are so highly regarded by the CS2 community, with everyone wanting to get their hands on one. If you want to be part of the exclusive club of players who possess a Blue Gem, we believe this is the right place to start. Purchasing a Gut Knife Blue Gem Case Hardened can be your first step in building a Blue Gem collection.
