Nova CS2 Skins
The Nova is the people's shotgun: $1,050 for a pump-action that one-shots at close range and pays a game-highest $900 per kill. On anti-eco rounds in tight map areas, no purchase converts kills into next-round rifles more efficiently.
Nova
The Nova is the people's shotgun: $1,050 for a pump-action that one-shots at close range and pays a game-highest $900 per kill. On anti-eco rounds in tight map areas, no purchase converts kills into next-round rifles more efficiently.
Nova in CS2: How It Plays
Each trigger pull sends nine pellets; land most of them on an unarmored chest or any of them on a head and close-range fights end instantly. The pump between shots (a slow ~68 RPM effective rate) means a missed first shot is a crisis, so Nova play is about engineering guaranteed-range fights: holding door frames, corners after a flash, and elevation tricks where enemies appear inside five metres. Shell-by-shell reloading is actually a feature — top up between fights and interrupt the reload the instant someone appears.
Economically it is the best money-printer in CS2: two Nova kills return $1,800 on a $1,050 investment while denying the enemy their eco steal. Buy it on anti-ecos in close-quarters roles, on your own light-force rounds to rebuild, and any round where you anchor a tight site corner. Its CT sibling the MAG-7 hits harder per pellet; the Nova's case is availability on both sides and the lowest price in the class.
Study the Nova's spray on the recoil patterns page, model exact shots-to-kill in the damage calculator, or browse all heavy.
Main rival: MAG-7 — see the full Nova vs MAG-7 comparison.
Combat Statistics
Economy Context
Verdict: The Nova is a mid-buy and force rounds weapon at $1,050 — 2 kills at $900 each cover its cost. The Sawed-Off costs $50 more if you're weighing the closest heavy alternative.
Pro Tips for the Nova
Hold positions where enemies must appear inside ~7 metres: doorways, corner wraps, and post-flash pushes.
Aim upper-chest to neck — pellet spread turns that hold point into head hits.
Farm anti-ecos: at $900 per kill, a double-kill Nova round out-earns almost anything else in the game.
Reload shells constantly between fights; the per-shell reload can be interrupted the moment a fight starts.
Never take open-ground fights — beyond 10 metres you are holding a $1,050 noisemaker.
On T-side force rounds, a Nova lurking a close flank routinely swings "unwinnable" rounds.
45 Available Skins
Browse all Nova skins with live market prices from major marketplaces.
Mil-SpecBlaze Orange
Mil-SpecModern Hunter
RestrictedBaroque Orange
ClassifiedBloomstick
Mil-SpecInterlock
ConsumerForest Leaves
ClassifiedHyper Beast
RestrictedSobek's Bite
ConsumerWalnut
RestrictedClear Polymer
Mil-SpecQuick Sand
RestrictedRed Quartz
Mil-SpecTempest
RestrictedGraphite
IndustrialGreen Apple
RestrictedToy Soldier
ClassifiedAntique
RestrictedRising Skull
IndustrialRust Coat
RestrictedRising Sun
RestrictedGila
ConsumerMoon in Libra
Mil-SpecPlume
RestrictedOcular
Mil-SpecWurst Hölle
Mil-SpecGhost Camo
Mil-SpecYorkshire
RestrictedWild Six
RestrictedKoi
Mil-SpecRanger
ConsumerArmy Sheen
ConsumerPolar Mesh
ConsumerSand Dune
Mil-SpecWood Fired
Mil-SpecExo
Mil-SpecWindblown
Mil-SpecDark Sigil
ConsumerPredator
IndustrialTurquoise Pour
IndustrialRain Station
IndustrialCandy Apple
IndustrialCaged Steel
ConsumerCurrents
ConsumerMandrel
ConsumerMarsh Grass
Cases Featuring Nova Skins
Best Nova Skins by Price
Best Nova Skins — Full Rankings →Budget (Under $10)
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why does the Nova give $900 per kill?
- All shotguns pay the game's highest kill reward — three times a rifle's $300 — to compensate for their tiny effective range. The design intent is economic: shotguns are anti-eco and force-buy tools, and the reward makes each close-range pick genuinely bankable.
- Can the Nova one-shot kill?
- Inside a few metres, yes — a full pellet connection on the upper body or any headshot pellet cluster kills even armored opponents. Damage drops off very steeply (0.70 range modifier across nine 26-damage pellets), so past ~10 metres kills take multiple pumps.
- Nova or MAG-7?
- On CT-side with $250 more to spend, the MAG-7 — higher per-pellet damage and a magazine reload. The Nova is the pick for T-side (where the MAG-7 doesn't exist), for both-sides flexibility, and for the absolute cheapest entry into $900 kill rewards.
- How much damage does the Nova do in CS2?
- The Nova deals 26 base damage per hit with 50% armor penetration. Headshot multiplier is 4x, meaning a headshot deals 104 damage before armor reduction.
- How much does the Nova cost in CS2?
- The Nova costs $1,050 to buy and gives a $900 kill reward. It's available to players on both sides.
- What is the Nova fire rate?
- The Nova fires at 68 rounds per minute (RPM) with a 8-round magazine. Reload time is 0.55 seconds.
- How many skins does the Nova have in CS2?
- The Nova currently has 45 skins available in Counter-Strike 2, ranging across multiple rarity tiers from Consumer Grade to Covert.
- Is the Nova good in CS2?
- The Nova is the people's shotgun: $1,050 for a pump-action that one-shots at close range and pays a game-highest $900 per kill. On anti-eco rounds in tight map areas, no purchase converts kills into next-round rifles more efficiently.