Item quality
“ | Hmmm, have a gander at this little beauty.
Click to listen
— The Sniper on the quality of his gear.
|
” |
All items have an associated quality or rarity. The quality of an item determines the color of its displayed name and influences its perceived trade value.
The names of item qualities, and the term "quality" itself, are derived from the game files.
Contents
Normal items
The Normal quality is assigned to Stock weapons. These are the standard weapons that all players start with and are not stored in the backpack. Therefore they are the only available weapons if the game cannot connect to Steam. Unique variants of these items are created when using a Name Tag or Description Tag with a Stock weapon, which are seen by checking the "Show Stock Items" box in the backpack view.
Unique items
Unique is the quality assigned to items which can be found through random drops during gameplay, obtained through achievements, crafted, or purchased from the Mann Co. Store. As such, Unique is regarded as the "default" quality for items.
Vintage items
Vintage Natascha
Level 5 Minigun
On Hit: 100% chance to slow target
-25% damage done
30% slower spin up time
Vintage quality was introduced alongside the Mann-Conomy Update, in which certain items were assigned this quality to increase their appeal in trading; however, they bear no functional difference to their Unique counterparts. In some cases, items that have been re-granted to users by Steam support were assigned Vintage quality.
Genuine items
Genuine Sun-on-a-Stick
Level 10 RIFT Mace
100% critical hit vs burning players
-25% damage done
Spiky end goes into other man.
The Genuine quality was originally introduced alongside the RIFT promotion. Genuine quality is used to distinguish items obtained as part of a cross-game promotion, opposed to items gained via other methods such as random drops or crafting. There is no functional difference between Genuine items and their Unique counterparts.
Strange items
Introduced in the Über Update, Strange quality weapons can be found by unboxing Supply Crates of a certain series. Kills made with a Strange quality weapon are recorded as an item attribute. New prefixes are assigned by the game based on the weapon's rank.
Unusual items
Unusual hats
Unusual hats are hats with an attached particle effect.
The only methods of obtaining an Unusual hat are by unlocking a Mann Co. Supply Crate with a Mann Co. Supply Crate Key, or via trading. Unusual versions of the hats contained in a Festive Winter Crate could also be obtained by unlocking the crate with a Festive Winter Crate Key during the Australian Christmas event.
Unusual's as they are often referred to, are of considerable value when compared to their Unique and Vintage counterparts. This is due to the particle effect that each unusual hat possesses and its ability to make the user stand out from others. The actual value of the unusual headgear differs greatly upon both the effect and the headgear itself. Additionally, the effects can be listed can placed into separate tiers which, along with the specific piece of headgear, frequently govern the value of the unsual hat. However, exceptions also exist which make valuation of unusual's difficult and only achievable on a case by case basis. For example, Ze Goggles with Haunted Ghosts effect is considered a themed hat due to its references to the film Ghostbusters and this particular effect and unusual hat combination are not alone, several other themed unusual hats exist.
As time has progressed, the unusual hat market has expanded and the trading of unusual headgear is now commonplace amongst the Team Fortress 2 community. Not only are unusual hats traded for other unusuals hats, but they are frequently traded for Promotional items in particular Earbuds, Bill's Hat and Max's Severed Head. The reason for these items being the favoured currency for unusual trading is solely down to their rarity and the fact they can no longer be obtained, giving them significant value and prestige amongst the community.
Unusual headgear can in fact come in the form of a miscellaneous item as well as conventional hats, The Villain's Veil and the Blighted Beak being just two of the unusual miscellaneous items available for users to wear. Furthermore, an unusual hat, indeed unique and vintage hats as well, can be combined and worn simultaneously with the miscellaneous unusual to create double effect (in the case of the unusual hat) and, in many cases, improve the aesthetic appeal of the headgear.
Crafting together two Unusual hats will not produce an Unusual hat in return; it will simply produce a Unique hat.
Scream Fortress Update
Two new items with the Unusual quality were introduced with this update: the Haunted Metal Scrap and the Horseless Headless Horsemann's Headtaker. Besides bearing the Unusual quality, the Horseless Headless Horsemann's Headtaker has no discerning attributes from the Eyelander.
Community items
Community Medi Gun
Level 50 Medi Gun
Effect: Community Sparkle
Given to valuable Community Contributors
( Not Tradable or Usable in Crafting )
Items bearing the Community quality are specially granted by Valve to individuals who have made significant, valuable contributions to the Team Fortress 2 community. Community items have the Community Sparkle particle effect attached and an additional description string set to "Given to valuable Community Contributors". Community items derived from certain Stock weapons receive an additional boost to their Phong shading exponent, resulting in the weapon having a more glossy appearance.
Community Stock weapons that existed prior to the introduction of name and description tags are derived from the original Normal variants. This makes them unable to be described or named, however newer variants are derived from the Unique variants; and behave as expected.
Self-Made items
Self-Made Dalokohs Bar
Level 50 Lunch Box
Adds +50 max health for 30 seconds.
Effect: Community Sparkle
I made this!
( Not Tradable or Usable in Crafting )
The Self-Made quality is assigned to items specially granted by Valve to their creators. Like Community items, they have the "Community Sparkle" particle effect attached and an additional description string set to "I made this!". See the Contribution page for when the items were added in-game.
- Selfmadedalokohs.png
In-game example
Valve items
Valve Rocket Launcher
Level 100 Rocket Launcher
+1009900% damage done
+109900% clip size
+75% faster firing speed
On Hit: +250 health
On Kill: 10 seconds of 100% critical chance
+50% projectile speed
+100% faster move speed on wearer
Effect: Flying Bits
( Not Tradable or Usable in Crafting )
Valve items are given to Valve employees. In some cases they have the Flying Bits particle effect attached. Because of their nature as developer weapons, some Valve items possess stacked attributes as seen in the backpack example; however, these additional attributes are not part of the Valve quality itself. The Valve weapon shown in the backpack example is Robin Walker's Rocket Launcher.
Flying Bits attached to an Equalizer
Item name colors
Color | Quality Name | Example |
---|---|---|
#B2B2B2 | Normal | Scattergun |
#FFD700 | Unique | The Degreaser |
#476291 | Vintage | Vintage Natascha |
#4D7455 | Genuine | Genuine Sun-On-A-Stick |
#CD9B1D | Strange | Strange Minigun |
#8650AC | Unusual | Unusual Napper's Respite |
#70B04A | Community | Community Medi Gun |
Self-made | Self-Made Dalokohs Bar | |
#A50F79 | Developer | Valve Rocket Launcher |
Unused colors
Color | Quality Name | Example |
---|---|---|
#8D834B | Rarity2 | Rarity2 |
#CF6A32 | Rarity3 | Rarity3 |
#476291 | Customized | Customized |