Souvenir M4A1-S | Guardian (Minimal Wear)

Skin overview

The Guardian relies on one calm colour, cobalt blue, set against the dark barrel, grip and silencer. In Minimal Wear that contrast is unchanged, and any marks are too small to notice in a normal match. It gives nearly the same look as the cleanest grade at a lower step.

Item type: rifle. The weapon is available only on the Counter-Terrorist side. Classified is the second-rarest weapon tier, only Covert sits above it.

Custom Paint Job: hand-painted across the whole body; this is the type where wear shows most, the artwork rubs down to metal.

The remaining qualities of this skin: Field-Tested, Well-Worn and Battle-Scarred. The same quality also exists as the StatTrak™ version.

How the skin looks in Minimal Wear

The receiver, handguard, carry handle and stock are painted cobalt blue, while the barrel, pistol grip and silencer remain dark grey. The magazine carries a stencilled CT emblem in a muted gold tone, and fine stencil text runs along the receiver and the silencer.

Tiny scuffs may appear on the tips of the handguard ribs and on magazine corners, visible only on close inspection. The emblem and stencil text remain fully legible. At normal distance in game it is practically indistinguishable from Factory New. The stock, receiver and carry handle still look clean.

Minimal Wear wear: float 0.07–0.15

The whole float range of Souvenir M4A1-S | Guardian is 0–0.5; Minimal Wear takes the 0.07–0.15 segment (16% of the scale). Within the range, copies with a lower float look cleaner and are valued higher.

Origin of the skin

Souvenir M4A1-S | Guardian belongs to The Winter Offensive Collection, which holds 13 skins.

The source is Winter Offensive Weapon Case (on sale since Dec 18, 2013).

What it costs in each quality

Taking Minimal Wear as the baseline, Factory New — 4% dearer. The comparison uses our cheapest listing of each quality; where there is none, the market reference.

By price this skin is 5th of 13 skins Classified M4A1-S in this quality (the first being the dearest).

Souvenir version

This is the Souvenir version: such copies dropped to tournament viewers in souvenir packages; the team stickers and signatures on them cannot be removed or chosen. Souvenir items never carry StatTrak™. There is also the regular version without tournament stickers.

Which stickers suit it

Gold, white and blue stickers match the cobalt paint and the gold-toned CT emblem. Small stickers placed in a line along the receiver keep the clean colour block intact, while a single gold accent works well near the magazine.

What to look at before you buy

• Check the float within the grade, since lower values keep cleaner handguard ribs and magazine edges.
• Look at the CT emblem on the magazine, which is the first detail to fade on worn copies.
• Inspect the rear of the stock and the carry handle for chips that show dark metal through the blue.
• Note any applied stickers and name tag, as they change how the plain blue finish looks.

Who should buy Minimal Wear

• Players who want a near-perfect look without paying for the top grade.
• Sticker crafters, as small marks are hidden by the solid blue.
• A sensible balance between appearance and cost.