M249 | Nebula Crusader (Minimal Wear)

Skin overview

The skin's main feature is its arcade theme: a cabinet-style graphic panel along the receiver and a magazine box with a character portrait and bold title text. In Minimal Wear the colours stay just as loud, and any marks are small enough to stay hidden among the busy artwork. It gives nearly the same look as the cleanest grade at a lower step.

Item type: machinegun. Restricted sits in the middle of the rarity scale: noticeably rarer than Mil-Spec, yet not truly rare.

Gunsmith: several techniques combined on one item; some parts rub off, others only dull.

How the skin looks in Minimal Wear

The receiver is dark navy with a cabinet-style art panel carrying yellow title lettering, a green figure and a round orange emblem. The box magazine is the centrepiece, painted like a game cover with a red-haired pilot portrait, bold yellow and orange text and a glossy, slightly iridescent sheen.

Wear is limited to tiny specks, usually on the corners of the magazine box and the leading edges of the receiver. The print and lettering stay fully legible. At normal distance in game it is practically indistinguishable from a Factory New copy.

Minimal Wear quality — float range 0.07–0.15

The float of M249 | Nebula Crusader ranges from 0 to 1; the Minimal Wear quality covers 0.07–0.15 — 8% of this skin’s scale. Within the range, copies with a lower float look cleaner and are valued higher.

Where the skin comes from: collection and case

M249 | Nebula Crusader belongs to The Shadow Collection, which holds 16 skins.

The source is Shadow Case (on sale since Sep 15, 2015).

Price by quality

Compared with the Minimal Wear quality, the others go like this:

• Factory New — 2.9× dearer
• Field-Tested — 2× cheaper
• Well-Worn — 2.2× cheaper
• Battle-Scarred — 2.2× cheaper

The comparison uses our cheapest listing of each quality; where there is none, the market reference.

Among 4 skins of the M249 in the Restricted grade and this quality, this skin is the dearest.

StatTrak™ and Souvenir

There is also a the StatTrak™ version: the counter on the weapon tracks kills. Right now it is 2.4× dearer than the regular one. There is also a the Souvenir version with tournament stickers.

Stickers and crafts

Retro, pixel-style or comic stickers fit the arcade cabinet theme best. Yellow, red and orange accents echo the title lettering, and placing them on the dark receiver area away from the art panel keeps the main graphic readable.

What to look at before you buy

• Check the magazine box in inspect, since its corners and printed cover show wear before other parts.
• Look at where the float sits within the wear grade, as copies near the cleaner end keep the lettering noticeably sharper.
• Make sure any applied stickers do not cover the receiver art panel if you want the arcade theme to stay visible.
• If a name tag or StatTrak counter matters to you, confirm it on the specific copy before buying.

Who the Minimal Wear quality suits

• Players who want an almost clean look while paying less than for the top grade.
• Sticker crafters who accept tiny marks hidden in the busy print.
• A sensible balance between appearance and cost.