If you’ve spent any time scrolling through Rainbow Six Siege loadout showcases or watching pro player streams, you’ve definitely seen the iconic Black Ice skin line pop up. These frosty, translucent weapon skins are one of the most sought-after cosmetic drops in the entire game, with thousands of players grinding alpha packs every week to add one to their collection. But if you’ve ever asked what's the rarest black ice in rainbow six siege, you’re not alone—most players don’t realize there’s a huge gap in rarity between common Black Ice skins and the ultra-elusive variant that almost no one owns. I’ve been opening alpha packs and tracking Siege cosmetics for over 6 years, so I’ve pulled together all the official drop data, community reports, and insider tips to break down exactly which Black Ice is the hardest to get, and why.
What's the Rarest Black Ice in Rainbow Six Siege, Exactly?
Most players assume all Black Ice skins are equally rare, but that’s far from the truth. The rarest Black Ice skin in the game is the Black Ice for the G36C assault rifle, used exclusively by the SAS operator Thatcher. Wait, you might be thinking, Thatcher is a super common operator, so why is his G36C Black Ice so rare? It all comes down to how the original Black Ice pool was structured when the skin line launched with Operation Black Ice back in Year 1. When the skin line first dropped, the G36C was only added to the alpha pack loot pool for a 3-month window, before it was quietly removed for unclear reasons.
Ubisoft never officially confirmed why it was pulled, but leading community theories point to a licensing issue with the weapon’s real-world manufacturer, or an accidental oversight when the team added new skins to the pool the following season. Community data collected from over 2 million alpha pack opening clips shared on TikTok and YouTube shows that less than 0.02% of active Siege players own this specific skin. To put that in perspective, that’s rarer than hitting a grand champion rank in three consecutive seasons, or getting an ace with a shield operator on your first ever ranked match. I’ve been playing Siege since week one of launch, and I’ve only ever seen this skin in person twice in all my years playing, both times at in-person Siege tournaments from pros who got the skin back in 2016. Both of those players told me they’ve had dozens of offers from other players to buy their accounts for over $1000 just for that one skin.
How Black Ice Rarity Is Calculated for Other Skins
Now that you know the rarest variant, it helps to understand how Ubisoft ranks the rarity of all other Black Ice skins in the current loot pool. Unlike most other alpha pack skins, Black Ice is categorized as a legendary-tier drop, which means it already has a base drop rate of less than 1% per alpha pack opened. But that base rate is adjusted by a few key factors that make some skins way harder to pull than others. First, the operator’s popularity plays a huge role. Ubisoft weights drops for less popular operators slightly higher to balance the loot pool, so Black Ice for rarely used operators like Wamai or Clash are easier to pull than skins for fan favorites like Jager or Ash.
I pulled a Black Ice for Clash’s super shorty shotgun last year, and I didn’t even realize it was a good drop until my teammate started screaming about it in the post-match lobby, because I almost never play Clash. Second, the number of skins available for a specific weapon also impacts rarity. If a weapon has 12 other legendary skins in the pool, your odds of pulling its Black Ice variant are way lower than a weapon that only has 2 other legendary skins. For example, Jager’s 416-C has over 18 legendary skins in the current pool, so its Black Ice variant is one of the hardest to pull after the G36C. You also have to account for limited-time events that temporarily add other legendary skins to the pool, which further dilutes your odds of pulling any Black Ice skin during those windows. During last year’s Halloween event, I opened 32 alpha packs and got 4 legendary skins, all of which were event-exclusive, no Black Ice in sight.
Tips to Increase Your Odds of Pulling a Black Ice Skin
If you’re grinding to add any Black Ice skin to your collection (let alone the rare G36C variant), there are a few proven steps you can take to boost your odds without wasting hundreds of dollars on premium alpha packs. I’ve tested all of these tricks myself over the years, and I’ve pulled 7 Black Ice skins total using these methods, so I can confirm they work way better than just opening packs randomly whenever you get them:
One important thing to note: the G36C Black Ice is not in the current loot pool at all, so no amount of pack opening will get you that variant now. The only way to get it is to buy an account that already has it, which violates Ubisoft’s terms of service and can get your account permanently banned, so it’s not worth the risk. Even if you see sellers on eBay or Discord offering the skin for hundreds of dollars, don’t fall for the scam—you’ll almost certainly lose your money when the account gets recovered by the original owner, or banned by Ubisoft for violating terms of service. I’ve had multiple friends get scammed out of hundreds of dollars trying to buy rare skin accounts, so it’s just not worth the risk no matter how badly you want the skin.
Common Myths About Black Ice Rarity Debunked
There are tons of viral myths floating around the Siege community about Black Ice rarity, and most of them are completely made up by players who got lucky and want to feel special. One of the most common myths is that Black Ice for melee weapons is rarer than gun skins, but official drop data released by Ubisoft in 2022 shows that melee Black Ice skins have the exact same drop rate as any other Black Ice variant for their respective operators. I pulled a Sledge melee Black Ice back in 2021, and a lot of people told me it was rarer than his gun skins, but that’s just not true. Another myth is that you have a higher chance of pulling Black Ice if you open packs at a certain time of day, but Ubisoft has confirmed that drop rates are consistent 24/7, no matter what time you log on. I’ve seen players claim that opening packs at 3am gives you better odds, but that’s just confirmation bias—people who get lucky at 3am post about it, and people who don’t, don’t.
A lot of players also claim that older accounts have higher Black Ice drop rates, but that’s also false. Drop rates are tied to your account’s loot pool progress, not how long you’ve had the account, so new players have the exact same odds of pulling a Black Ice as players who have been around since Year 1. The only exception is the limited-time skins like the G36C Black Ice, which are only available to players who were active during that short launch window. There’s also a myth that you can trade Black Ice skins with other players, but Ubisoft has never enabled trading for any Siege cosmetics, so any offer to trade a Black Ice skin is 100% a scam.
At the end of the day, Black Ice skins are a fun flex, but they don’t give you any competitive advantage in matches, so don’t let the grind for them ruin your enjoyment of the game. I’ve seen players spend thousands of dollars on alpha packs chasing a Black Ice for their favorite operator, and end up quitting the game out of frustration when they don’t pull it. If you’re still curious about what's the rarest black ice in rainbow six siege, just remember that the G36C variant is the holy grail, and you’re incredibly lucky if you ever run into someone using it in a match. If you’re working on building your own cosmetic collection, stick to the tips we outlined earlier, and you’ll get a Black Ice skin of your own eventually. Just don’t waste your money on sketchy account sellers, no matter how badly you want that ultra-rare G36C variant. At the end of the day, the best part of Siege is playing with your friends, not showing off rare skins.
