Patterns: the picture number of a skin
Two skins with the same name and the same float can look different. The difference comes from the picture number, called the pattern. On most skins it is barely visible, but for a few families the number decides the price. This page explains how it works and what it means for a craft. How the contract itself works is told on the page «How crafts work».
1What a pattern is
Besides float, every skin has one more hidden number: the picture number. In the game and on the Steam market it is labelled “Pattern Template”, the community calls it a pattern or a seed (paint seed). The number is given when the item appears: from a case, a contract or a drop. After that it never changes.
There are about a thousand numbers, from 0 to 1000. The item name on Steam does not include the number, so two listings with the same name and wear can look different.
| Float | Pattern | Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it sets | how many scuffs | where the picture lies on the model | which skin it is at all |
| Visible in the name on Steam | yes, as wear: from Factory New to Battle-Scarred | no | yes, except Doppler phases |
| Does it change | no | no | no |
Wear does not move the picture: a skin with the same number in Factory New and in Battle-Scarred is coloured the same, just with more scratches.
2How the number moves the picture
Every finish has a template picture, usually larger than fits on the weapon. A piece of it is laid on the model, as if through a window. The number decides where the window stands: how far it is shifted horizontally and vertically and how many degrees it is turned.
Horizontal offset 50%, vertical 50%, rotation 0°.
The diagram is illustrative: the template is drawn as an example, and the real offset and rotation are computed by the random number generator of the game within the limits of the finish.
Each finish has its own limits. On one the window turns a full circle, on another only twenty degrees, on a third it does not move at all, and then all numbers look the same. Most finishes are like that.
3Why different knives share the “best” numbers
The number is a seed for the random number generator of the game, and the formula is shared between finishes. So the same number gives a similar extreme offset or rotation on different knives. For example, according to pattern.wiki, number 412 gives the most extreme rotation on Karambit | Fade, on Survival Knife | Fade, and on Karambit | Marble Fade.
At the same time one number looks completely different on an AK-47 and on a knife: the models differ, and the window falls on each in its own way.
4Five kinds of dependence on the number
- Colouring (Case Hardened, Heat Treated). The template is mottled: blue, gold and purple spots. The number decides which colour ends up on the visible side. Lots of blue on top is called “blue gem”, almost solid gold is called “gold gem”. The diagram in section two works exactly like this.
- Gradient (Fade, Marble Fade). The template is made of colour bands, the number sets the angle. The angle decides how many colours reach the blade. Hence the “fade percentage” of Fade: a community convention, the angle converted to a percentage from 80 to 100. On Marble Fade at extreme angles only red and blue stay on the blade, such a look is called “Fire & Ice”.
- Phase (Doppler, Gamma Doppler). Here the number matters little, see the next section.
- Pattern in place (Crimson Web, Slaughter). The template has separate shapes: a web, a diamond, a heart. The number decides whether a shape lands whole in the middle of the visible side or goes over the edge.
- Picture in place (AWP | PAW, Glock-18 | Moonrise and others). An ordinary picture, but the number decides which part of it shows on top: for example, whether the star lands in the window of the grip. Little is written about these skins, and sites disagree on which numbers are good.
5Doppler phases do not depend on the number
Ruby, Sapphire, Black Pearl and Phase 1, 2, 3, 4 of Doppler, Emerald of Gamma Doppler look like one finish with different colouring. In fact each phase is a separate finish in the game with its own catalogue number. Some sites write that the pattern sets the phase: that is a mistake.
On the Steam market the phase is not in the name: “★ Karambit | Doppler (Factory New)” sells under one name whatever the phase. So Steam has one price for all phases, and the craft calculation uses it. The number still moves the colours inside a phase: on Phase 2 people look for an almost fully pink blade, on Phase 4 an almost fully blue one.
6Skins where the number makes the price
The table is counted from the skin catalogue of the site. One catalogue row is one skin on one weapon; for Doppler every phase counts separately.
| Finish | What the number decides | Skins | On what |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case Hardened | which colour is on the visible side: blue, gold or purple | 24 | 20 knives, Hydra Gloves, AK-47, Five-SeveN, MAC-10 |
| Heat Treated | which colour is on the visible side | 2 | Desert Eagle, Five-SeveN |
| Fade | gradient angle: how many colours reach the blade | 28 | 20 knives, Specialist Gloves, AWP, Glock-18, M4A1-S, MAC-10, MP7, R8 Revolver, UMP-45 |
| Marble Fade | swirl angle: at extreme angles only red and blue | 19 | 18 knives, Specialist Gloves |
| Doppler | not the phase: in the game a phase is a separate finish; the number moves the colours inside it | 126 | 18 knives |
| Gamma Doppler | as with Doppler; the top phase here is Emerald | 55 | 10 knives, Glock-18 |
| Crimson Web | how many webs are on the visible side and whether they are centred | 25 | 20 knives, Specialist Gloves, CZ75-Auto, Desert Eagle, R8 Revolver, SCAR-20 |
| Slaughter | where the shapes land: diamond, heart, angel | 21 | 20 knives, Hand Wraps |
Total in the table 300 skins.
Besides these families, the number visibly changes the look of a dozen ordinary guns with a picture, for example AWP | PAW and Glock-18 | Moonrise. There is little data on them, so the site does not mark them.
7Where the number does not matter
The number moves the picture on many skins: by the count of pattern.wiki, on 1150 of 8066. But on most of them the difference shows only when two skins sit side by side, and it does not affect the price.
A common mix-up: the black scope of the AWP | Asiimov comes from wear, float above 0.9. The number has nothing to do with it.
8How to find the number
- In the game. Inspect the item: the number is labelled “Pattern Template”.
- On the Steam market. In the new market (beta since May 2026) the number is shown on every listing.
- On trading platforms the number is usually shown on the listing card.
- Before buying for the number check it yourself in the game: a label in the listing name and the picture of the seller prove nothing.
9Pattern and craft
The game picks the number of a craft outcome at random, as when opening a case. Inputs cannot be chosen to get a particular number.
So the site values the outcome at the usual price, with no extra for the number. Knives and the skins from the table above carry the mark “pricier variants exist”: a copy with a lucky number can sell for more, but you cannot count on it.
For Doppler knives the phase is also drawn in a craft. The site takes the phase odds into account but uses the shared price, as on Steam: such an outcome says “price averaged”. Knife crafts
10Careful with rankings
- Lists of “best numbers” are made by the community. They are an opinion, not a rule of the game.
- Sites often disagree: for one skin different sites name different good numbers, and even the range of numbers is given differently, from 0 to 999 or from 1 to 999.
- How much people really pay extra for a number is almost nowhere backed by deals: guides say “several times more” without examples of sales.
- The site does not show number rankings and does not value numbers.
11Further reading
- pattern.wiki: a picture of every number, offset and rotation; there is a Russian version.
- steamdb.com: lists of skins by family and an article on Doppler phases.
- csdb.gg: a detailed guide to Case Hardened.
- Fade percentage calculator: open source on GitHub.
- wiki.cs.money: in Russian, the “Pattern” section on the page of a skin.
These are third-party sites; this site is not responsible for their accuracy.