MAC-10 Case Hardened: blue gem pattern guide
The MAC-10 got its Case Hardened late (Kilowatt era) and the hunt is still young. There is no single god seed here: five seeds share tier 1, with #667 the fan favourite - a large bright-blue top and centre of the receiver rolling into a golden rear.
HOW THE PATTERN WORKS
Case Hardened is one big mottled texture of blue, purple and gold patina; the pattern index (0-1000) rolled when the item drops picks which slice of it lands on the model. Blue occupies the smallest share of that texture, so a seed that lands heavy blue on the side you actually see - the playside - is the rare one. The blue never fades with wear: float adds scratches and darkens the golds, but a blue gem stays blue even Battle-Scarred.
Pattern tiers (playside blue)
TIER 1
239, 349, 406, 503, 667
Treated as equals by most lists; #667 has the fan following, #239 the fullest blue top.
TIER 2
80, 195, 199, 251, 292, 315, 345, 381, 400, 414, 475, 598, 807, 972
TIER 3
182, 889, 964, 95, 546, 285, 959, 147, 311, 328, 652, 570, 885, 788, 899
Top of a ~100-seed ranked list; the full ranking lives in the Steam guide below.
GOLD
87, 338, 467, 777, 874
Community gold lists vary; a proper gold MAC should show no grey patches at all.
WHAT COUNTS ON THIS ITEM
Everything is decided on the big boxy receiver playside - top and side. The texture wraps over the top toward the backside, and the rear of the gun stays gold on almost every seed, tier 1 included.
Because the pool of unboxed MAC-10s is still small, tier-1 asks swing wildly - from a couple hundred in honest wear to four-figure listings from optimists. If you are hunting one, buy the pattern, not the listing copy.
OBLIGATORY PLUG
Or skip the optimist tax: when a Case Hardened lands in our draws the pattern index is printed on the page before a single ticket sells. For a chance at one, check the draws. Browse the draws ->
Knowledge base: Steam guide: MAC-10 Case Hardened patterns · Hotspawn tier list
