Hats
From TF2 Wiki
Hats (or Headwear) are items of equipment with their own 'head' section in the loadout screen. They have no effect on gameplay and are for cosmetic purposes only. Hats are unlocked at random during in-game playtime. The current drop rate for hats is 3.5714 percent; meaning every 4 hours, 17 minutes, and 10 seconds (15,430 seconds in total) you have a chance of receiving a hat.[1]
In total, there are 37 unlockable hats as well as 3 unlockable 'hatless' models; these 'hatless' hats, available only for the Scout, Engineer and Sniper remove the player's standard hat and display their styled hair underneath. There are also four special hats that were awarded on special occasions that are wearable on all classes. There are also 3 special 'miscellaneous' items, available only for the Soldier, Spy, and Medic that gives them an extra item to wear with their hats.
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A Brief History of Hats
| “ | "Throughout history, men have worn hats as a way of showing how much better they are than other men. “I buy hats,” a behatted man seems to say. “I am better than you.”
In wartime, hats were a useful way of conferring rank, and ensuring that casualties were confined to the lower classes — Hats: The Ultimate Status Symbol.[2]
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The first nine hats were introduced into the game with the Sniper vs Spy Update. They were announced at the end of the update as an added surprise bonus. The next set of hats came with the the Classless Update, which included 18 new hats and three 'hatless' models. It also introduced a "misc" item for the Soldier; the Gentle manne's service medal. The medal was awarded to the first 11,111 users who stumbled upon the hidden page on the Team Fortress blog, and each medal features a unique number. The medal can no longer be obtained.
Since the release of the first hats, third-party programs emerged which simulated a normal game server in which players could "idle" in, thus increasing their playing time and their chances of receiving a hat. Valve then took a stance against this, implementing a policy against the use of all external idling applications, and removing items and hats obtained with them.[3] The players who did not use such programs were awarded with the first special all-class hat, the Cheater's lament.
The next set of hats entered the game with the 2009 Halloween special. These were two special, all-class hats; the Ghastly Gibus, and the Mildly disturbing Halloween mask. The Gibus was first announced on the Team Fortress 2 Blog and was offered to the first 10,319 users of a hidden web page. The hat was subsequently made available to all, along with the Halloween mask by obtaining special Halloween achievements. The Gibus can still be worn by players today, however, the Halloween mask was limited to the event only and cannot be worn anymore.
On November 2, 2009, they added Bill's hat, another special, all-class hat, which was given to all players who pre-ordered the Valve game Left 4 Dead 2. It is based upon a hat that the character Bill in the original Left 4 Dead wore; its explanation for appearing in the Team Fortress universe was that "while conducting a science experiment on parallel dimensions, the hat fell off a table".[4]
As part of the WAR! Update the Camera beard for the Spy became a "misc" item (like the medal), allowing it to be worn with other hats for the class. This however increased its drop rate to that of normal weapons, resulting in a loss of its rare value and an significant increase in the amount of players that own it.
On January 27, 2010, they added three new hats: The Towering pillar of hats, the Noble amassment of hats, and the Modest pile of hat. They also gave special versions of these hats to the three winners of the Propaganda contest, with first, second, and third placed ribbons attached.
On March 18 2010, the first set of community hats from Valve's Contribute! site were patched in. The eight new hats include the Heavy's Hound Dog, the Demoman's Hustler's Hallmark, the Spy's Magistrate's Mullet, the Engineer's Hotrod, the Scout's Troublemaker's Tossle Cap, the Pyro's Triboniophorus Tyrannus, the Soldier's Killer's Kabuto, and the Sniper's Shooter's Sola Topi. A new misc item was added for the Medic, the Physician's Procedure Mask.
Drop Statistics
Currently, the game rolls an 84-sided die every 4 hours, 17 minutes, and 10 seconds (15,430 seconds in total). A hat is given on a roll of 1, 2, or 3 (3.5714% chance).[1]
The following table outlines the probability of receiving at least one hat and the average expected number of hats.
| Rolls | Hours | Odds of 1+ | Avg Hats |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 3.6 | .04 |
| 2 | 9 | 7.0 | .07 |
| 5 | 21 | 16.6 | .18 |
| 10 | 43 | 30.5 | .36 |
| 20 | 86 | 51.7 | .71 |
| 50 | 214 | 83.8 | 1.79 |
| 75 | 321 | 93.5 | 2.68 |
| 100 | 429 | 97.4 | 3.54 |
Hats
Miscellaneous items
Certain wearable items can be obtained that fit in their own Misc slot rather than the head slot:
| Class | Item |
|---|---|
| Soldier | Gentle manne's service medal |
 | |
| Spy | Camera beard |
 | |
| Medic | Physician's Procedure Mask |
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References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=951207
- ↑ http://www.teamfortress.com/classless/day01.php
- ↑ http://teamfortress.com/post.php?id=2787
- ↑ http://teamfortress.com/post.php?id=3045
External links
- Interview: Valve's Robin Walker on Item Drops and the Future of Team Fortress 2
- Sniper vs. Spy Update Bonus Day
- Classless Update- Official Hat Announcement.
- Classless Update- An Editorial Cartoon of Some Insighte
- Classless Update- Barbary
- TF2 Official Blog- Incoming!
- TF2 Official Blog- Nice goin', pardner
