Fortnite was only two years ago in 2017, but has quickly become a cultural phenomenon. It is estimated that there are over 250 million registered Fortnite players today and the game seems to keep growing. One of the things Fortnite has become known for are its cosmetic items, especially its emotes and skins.
While many of today’s skins are super detailed, interesting, and make references to various pop culture, this was not the case with Fortnite’s early skins. Most of these first skins were plain and didn’t look much different from the base characters’ skins. Additionally, Fortnite had a much smaller number of players, which led to few people purchasing these early skins. Many of the skins on this list are rare because they were from Season 1 and have never been re-released. The other rare skins were holiday or console exclusives.
Please note that since there are no official numbers, no one knows exactly how rare these skins are. With the exception of the No. 1 item on this list, which a majority of Fortnite players agree is the rarest skin, the skins have been arranged by original release date. Also note that 1,000 V-bucks is worth $9.99.
- Eon
- Skull Ranger
- Double Helix
- Galaxy
- Royale Bomber
- The Reaper
- Merry Marauder and Ginger Gunner
- Black Knight
- Purple Glow Skull Trooper
- Renegade Raider
- Aerial Assault Trooper
- Recon Expert
Reason for Rarity: Xbox One S Fortnite Bundle Exclusive
Original Release Date: early 2019
Original Price: $299 for Xbox One S Fortnite Bundle
Character: Unknown
photo source: skin-tracker.com
Eon is a pretty new skin, but as an Xbox One S bundle exclusive, the skin is rare – because not many people are going to shell out $299 just for a new Xbox One. The Xbox One S bundle was released in early 2019 and comes with the Eon skin, an Aurora Glider, a Resonator Pickaxe, and 2,000 V-bucks.
Did You Know?
Rumors of the Xbox exclusive Eon skin bundle surfaced back in September 2018 and fans speculated/hoped that it would be available as a digital download for a few bucks.
Reason for Rarity: Only available for six days during Halloween 2018 season
Original Release Date: October 10, 2018
Original Price: 1,200 V-bucks
Character: Ramirez
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
When Epic Games decided to re-release the Skull Trooper skin in 2018, they made a female version of the skin dubbed Skull Ranger. While the original Skull Trooper is no longer rare since the re-release, Skull Ranger is now one of the rarest Fortnite holiday skins. Skull Ranger was only available for few different days in October 2018 and once on November 1 of that year.
Did You Know?
Like the re-released Skull Trooper, Skull Ranger came in both a plain version and a Green Glow version.
Reason for Rarity: Nintendo Switch Fortnite Bundle Exclusive
Original Release Date: October 5, 2018
Original Price: $299.99 for Nintendo Switch Fortnite Bundle
Character: Unknown
photo source: skin-tracker.com
Like Royale Bomber, the Double Helix skin was a console bundle exclusive, this time for the Nintendo Switch Fortnite Bundle. The bundle was released in early October 2018, just in time for the holiday season and had a retail price of $299.99. Besides the Double Helix skin, the Nintendo Switch Fortnite Bundle included a special Telemetry Back Bling, special Pinpoint Pickaxe, special Rotor Glider, and 1,000 V-bucks.
Did You Know?
Double Helix is actually a re-skin of Archetype – which is green and black instead of Double Helix’s white, red, and black color scheme. While Archetype is not necessarily as rare as Double Helix, it has only been featured in the Fortnite shop a few times.
Reason for Rarity: Only available on Fortnite Battle Royale Mobile version on a Samsung Galaxy Note 9 or Galaxy Tab 4
Original Release Date: early August 2018
Original Price: Skin was free with Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and Galaxy Tab 4, which retailed for $999 or $1,249 (Galaxy Note 9) and about $279
Character: Hawk
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
Galaxy was an ultra exclusive skin only available to players who purchased the new-at-the-time Samsung Galaxy Note 9 or Galaxy Tab S4. The skin was named after Samsung’s Galaxy line of devices and debuted just in time for Fortnite’s Android Beta. Since the Galaxy skin looks so cool, its one of the most sought after rare skins among the Fortnite player base.
Did you Know?
Since Galaxy only came with the Galaxy Note 9 or Galaxy Tab 4 Galaxy is technically the most expensive Fortnite skin ever released (depending on which device the player purchased – the Galaxy Note 9 retailed for about $1,000).
Reason for Rarity: European PS4 Bundle Exclusive
Original Release Date: July 16, 2018
Original Price: about £250 (about $305)
Character: Raptor
photo source: Fortnite Wiki
Royale Bomber was a European PS4 bundle exclusive that made hardcore Fortnite players in the rest of the world, especially the U.S., green with envy. Also included in the bundle was a standard slim PS4 and 500 V-bucks.
Initially, Epic Games said that buying the European PS4 bundle was the only way to get the Royale Bomber skin. However, in September 2018, a special PS4 controller bundle featuring the 500 V-bucks and Royale Bomber was released at select U.S. retailers for $60 for a limited time. While this did make Royale Bomber more widely available, the skin is still quite rare.
Did You Know?
Months before Epic Games made the official Royale Bomber announcement, dataminers at the Fortnite’s fansite Storm Shield revealed a number of unreleased skins and weapons, including the Royale Bomber, which led to the skin’s hype.
Reason for Rarity: Only available as Tier 100 Season 3 Battle Pass Reward
Original Release Date: February 22, 2018
Original Price: N/A – Season 3 Battle Pass Reward; Season 3 Battle Pass cost 950 V-bucks
Character: Mike
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
Did You Know?
If The Reaper skin looks familiar it’s because Fortnite fans believe the skin’s design was heavily influenced by popular movie character John Wick played by Keanu Reeves. While fans have been calling The Reaper John Wick since it was first released, Epic Games says that the resemblance was not intentional and an official John Wick did come out in May 2019.
Reason for Rarity: Released during the holiday season in 2017 and returned for a few days for 2018 holidays
Original Release Date: December 14, 2017
Original Price: 1,500 V-bucks each
Character: Unknown for Merry Marauder and Wildcat for Ginger Gunner
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
Merry Marauder and Ginger Gunner were Fortnite’s first holiday themed skins, released on December 14, 2017 and were only available until the end of January. These special gingerbread people skins did return for the 2018 holiday season, but only for a week between December 22 – December 29. No one knows yet whether or not Merry Marauder and Ginger Gunner will make another appearance in 2019.
Did You Know?
Because the Merry Marauder skin completely covers the character’s face, no one knows who is under there and it has never been revealed by Epic Games – the Ginger Gunner skin is for the character Wildcat.
Reason for Rarity: Only available as Tier 70 Season 2 Battle Pass Reward
Original Release Date: December 14, 2017
Original Price: N/A – Season 2 Battle Pass Reward; Season 2 Battle Pass cost 1,800 V-bucks
Character: Unknown
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
The Black Knight was part of Fortnite’s medieval series for Season 2 and was a high tier Battle Pass reward. The inaugural Battle Pass event had a tier cap of 70 and the Black Knight skin was this top level reward. While the Black Knight skin was technically free for reaching Tier 7, players had to pay 1,800 V-bucks for access to the Season 2 Battle Pass.
Did You Know?
There was also a Red Knight skin (the female counterpart of Black Knight) available in the Season 2 shop for 1,200 V-bucks, but she isn’t rare like the Black Knight, because Red Knight occasionally appears in the Daily Shop for 2,000 V-bucks.
Reason for Rarity: Only available to players who purchased the original Skull Trooper skin when it was first released in 2017
Original Release Date: October 4, 2017
Original Price: 1,200 V-bucks
Character: Jonesy
photo source: Pro Game Guides
Skull Trooper was the very first Halloween Fortnite skin released back in 2017 and since the game had a relatively small player base at the time, it was a rare skin. In 2018, Skull Trooper returned to the Fortnite shop for a few days, giving more people a chance to snag this rare skin.
Since this re-release reduced Skull Trooper’s rarity, Epic Games decided to reward players who had purchased the skin when it first came out the year before. These players were given a special Purple Glow Skull Trooper that has never been available for purchase, making it one of the most exclusive Fortnite skins.
Did You Know?
Skull Trooper came with special Skull Trooper Challenges and players who completed the challenges received a special Ghost Portal Back Bling.
Reason for Rarity: Only available for a short time and had to reach Level 20
Original Release Date: September 20, 2017
Original Price: 1,200 V-bucks
Character: Headhunter
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
Renegade Raider is another Season 1 skin that wasn’t very popular when it was first released. Like the other rare Season 1 skins, Renegade Raiders design was pretty plain and uncreative. Additionally, players needed to reach Level 20 to unlock Renegade Raider and drop 1,200 V-bucks to pick her up. It seems like not too many people were interested in spending their money on this skin.
Did You Know?
While there is no official confirmation from Epic Games, some fans believe Renegade Raider’s design was inspired by comic book character Tank Girl.
Reason for Rarity: Only available after reaching Level 15 during Season 1
Original Release Date: September 20, 2017
Original Price: 1,200 V-bucks
Character: Spitfire
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
The Aerial Assault Trooper is one of a handful of rare skins that came out during Fortnite’s very first season. Like these other skins, Aerial Assault Trooper was pretty basic and not many players were interested in buying it. Also at the time, Fortnite had a smaller player base and you they had to reach Level 15 before Aerial Assault Trooper unlocked in the shop.
Did You Know?
Even though the Aerial Assault Trooper skin is known for its rarity today, it’s hardly ever seen in game as those that do own the skin seem to not use it at all.
Reason for Rarity: Short availability and boring design led to few purchases
Original Release Date: October 30, 2017
Original Price: 1,200 V-bucks
Character: Banshee
photo source: FortniteSkins.net
Did You Know?
Although many players agree that Recon Expert is not an interesting skin, there has been renewed interest among the player base in bringing the skin back just because of its rarity.
