Spelled items and their absurd prices

[requiem.]

I see these "normal" hats and weapons up on the Promoted listings section up for sale for a key all the time and they have a Halloween spell on them. What's with Halloween spells and why are they worth so much?

[JayTuut]

They look coolz

[NeoXenoZ]

Because all Halloween Spells that look like potions were deleted from inventories after November 9, 2012, if the user has it in their inventory launches Team Fortress 2, which supply had dropped and prices increase, and in Scream Fortress 2015 all kinds Halloween Spells are made Un-tradable by Valve. So, the Halloween Spells legacy is in the form of cosmetics and weapons which had Halloween Spells applied to them prior to said November 6th

[R3SP4WN]

55 minutes ago, NeoXenoZ said:

Because all Halloween Spells that look like potions were deleted from inventories after November 9, 2012, if the user has it in their inventory launches Team Fortress 2, which supply had dropped and prices increase, and in Scream Fortress 2015 all kinds Halloween Spells are made Un-tradable by Valve. So, the Halloween Spells legacy is in the form of cosmetics and weapons which had Halloween Spells applied to them prior to said November 6th

Not the explanation OP was looking for I think.

 

There are three main types of spells, footprint, color change, and weapon changes. 

 

Footprint spells: by far the most expensive, these guys are culprits for the bruisers bandannas that are constantly being listed for 15-20 keys. Footprint spells are extremely cool because they leave a trail behind your character, and effects like Rotton Orange and Headless Horseshoes are very noticeable. I’m thinking of picking up a Corpse Gray bruiser’s bandanna (green footprints) so that it combos with my scorching all class.

 

Color change: These are spells applied to hats that make their color phase in and out. Spectral spectrum and Chromatic Corruption are super noticeable and ultra cool if you build a load out with three cosmetics all with spells, as your entire loadout slowly fades in and out of a color.

 

Weapon Change: Halloween fire is my personal favorite, nothing cooler than a flamethrower that shoots green flames (ESPECIALLY since I have a scorching all class). Other effects of the spells include a purple trail on rockets, and little ghosts that appear upon a kill.

 

To sum it up, spells are really cool. What makes them so expensive though is that the community has been unable to make anymore spelled items since 02. Seeing opportunity, high tier traders began to rake in a shit load of spelled items. With so much of the spell market in these few individuals’ hands, they are able to charge ridiculous prices for them.

 

The last deciding factor was that many people didn’t even see the spells that often because they can ONLY be seen during full moon, Halloween!!! However, with the emergence and popularity of trading servers (which have Halloween mode always on), people started to collect them to show off with their unusuals.

 

hope this helped

[Tasty Salamanders]

4 hours ago, NeoXenoZ said:

Because all Halloween Spells that look like potions were deleted from inventories after November 9, 2012, [...] and in Scream Fortress 2015 all kinds Halloween Spells are made Un-tradable by Valve.

 

3 hours ago, R3SP4WN said:

What makes them so expensive though is that the community has been unable to make anymore spelled items since 02.

 

Some misinformation here.

 

Spells could be obtained in 2012, 2013, and 2014. While spells were set to expire at the end of each of those events they could still be preserved until the next Halloween after.

Spells weren't made untradable in Scream Fortress 2015, but rather at the release of the Tough Break update (Christmas 2015). So while spells couldn't be obtained in Scream Fortress 2015, it was still possible to use old spells obtained in prior years during and immediately after that event.

[kaytradamus]

I actually sold a spelled bruisers bandana with orange footprints for an Nuts N bolts tyrants helm once. I buy and sell spelled items for high prices mostly because of their rarity and in game effects. I think everyone else does too. Now with them not dropping anymore, the prices will only ever go up until they level off.