StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl (Factory New)

StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl in Factory New (FN): a kill counter on the only Contraband item in CS2. The finish was pulled from the game over an authorship complaint about its artwork, and no new copies are issued. The premium for the counter peaks in this grade, at a little over twice the plain version.

What the StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl looks like in Factory New

The base is a dark gray, close to black, with ragged red bands over it. The head of a howling wolf takes the left side of the receiver: orange-yellow, with a red mane, drawn eyes and bared teeth. Red fills the barrel shroud, the pistol grip, the magazine's lower part and the stock edges; the carry handle and iron sights stay dark gray.

Everything is painted but the muzzle and front sight. No lettering or numbers appear: pattern and wolf take up the whole body. In Factory New the red holds full tone on the raised parts too, with no pale patches on handguard or butt plate. Lower grades lose the color from exactly there.

Where the StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl came from

The finish was released on May 1, 2014, and six weeks later a separate Valve note changed its rarity, moving the item from Covert to Contraband. The trigger was a complaint over the authorship of the Workshop submission. The wolf seen today was drawn by Valve and sits on every current copy, counter version included.

The same note removed the finish from the Huntsman Weapon Case and its collection. Valve's catalog of finishes numbers the item 309.

What to check before buying

On this rifle it is worth confirming:

• the counter reading, which cannot be reset and passes to the new owner as it stands;


• the float, since this grade spans 0.00–0.07;


• stickers on the body and a rename, if one has been applied.

The grade fits inside 0.00–0.07, so listings look the same. The artwork is identical on every copy, and the pattern index is nothing to pay extra for.

What the StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl costs in Factory New

The counter adds the largest share of the price: a little over double the plain version, the widest gap within this finish.

Inside the StatTrak version, Minimal Wear is about two fifths cheaper and Field-Tested close to half. Nothing compares by rank, since CS2 holds no other Contraband item. Among all M4A4 listings this is the most expensive.

Getting the StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl

The skin belongs to no case and no collection, and contracts work only inside a collection, so the counter version cannot be crafted. A ready listing is what remains.

StatTrak and Souvenir

Without the counter the finish has a plain version, a separate product with its own page and price; in Factory New it costs half as much. There is no Souvenir release at all: the M4A4 | Howl came from an ordinary case, and Souvenir packages are built only for tournament map collections.

Stickers and craft on the StatTrak™ M4A4 | Howl

Flat ground for a sticker is scarce: red bands cover handguard and stock, and the wolf's face holds the receiver side. Cool and white stickers read against the dark base; red ones get lost in the pattern. Craft here is permanent, since a sticker cannot be lifted without a trace.

Who this wear suits

This grade makes sense if:

• you want an untouched body and a kill counter in the same item;


• status matters: Contraband is a rank of one, and no new copies are coming;


• doubling the price against the plain version is not a problem.

In a match the distinction from lower grades does not show. The payment is made twice: once for a clean body, once for the counter.