Editing Bolter (section)

==Modifications==
[[File:Bolt_ammo.png|300px|right|thumb|Different Bolt rounds. From left to right: a Kraken Bolt, a Dragonfire Bolt, a Hellfire Round and a Vengeance round. All the colors of the death rainbow.]]
[[File:Bolt_Ammunition_Descriptions.png|300px|right|thumb|Bolt Rounds and their description.]]
40k being 40k, and despite its cool fluff, regular Boltguns are kind of average weapons. [[Necron]] [[Gauss Flayer]]s are superior all round compared to them in that they can rape vehicles. [[Tau]] [[Pulse Rifle]]s and [[Pulse Carbine|Carbines]] have better range as well as strength. [[Eldar]] [[Shuriken Catapult]]s get their semi-Rending "Bladestorm" rule. Even [[Ork]] [[Shoota]]s and [[Imperial Guard|Guard]] [[Lasgun]]s have something to say, as the first lot has identical strength as of 8th and better auto range, and the second lot gains the benefit from Rank Fire, which is to say, being cheap enough that 50 guardsmen can all first rank fire, second rank fire against a ten man squad of marine. And yet, with enough money (''a shitload of it, actually''), and a few Mechanicum friends, Bolters can become the most versatile weapon of the 41st millennium. First off, there is a wide variety of ammo for you to actually load them with:

*'''Inferno Bolts''' – with promethium-filled warhead, these bolts turn the Bolter into a semi-flamethrower, as they set people, or the cover they're hiding behind on fire.
*'''Hellfire Rounds''' – filled with a poisonous mutagenic acid that can turn a mob of monstrous creatures into indistinguishable goo; it has thousands of needles that fire into the target's flesh on impact, pumping the acid into the target. Obviously made developed especially to combat Tyranids, which wonders how the Hive Mind has yet to adapt to this substance yet when they could tank [[Exterminatus|Virus Bombings.]]
*'''Vengeance Rounds''' – can pierce through Power Armour with unstable melta warheads, but they tend to overheat the gun (how that works is anybody's guess). The Vengeance moniker comes from the fact that it was designed specifically to be fired on traitor Astartes, who wear Power Armour.
*'''Kraken Pattern Penetrator Rounds''' – adamantium in heart and tip along with heavier charges overall, this increases the effective range of a weapon as well as allowing it to pierce Carapace Armour, or just about anything, depending on your fluff source. The Kraken moniker likely stems from the larger detonation charge, making the final explosion more extreme, the shrapnel dispersing like a Kraken's tentacles.
*'''Metal Storm Frag Shells''' – replacing the mass reactive cap with a proximity detector, the bolt actually explodes into shrapnel a few meters before the target, essentially turning the Bolter into an air burst grenade launcher, something closer to our current technology.
*'''Stalker Silenced Shells''' – instead of standard charge, these bolts use gas cartridges for silent firing. There is also the solidified mercury slug instead of the usual detonation cap providing a slight increase in density for penetration as well as having a sub-sonic projectile speed; someone has watched ''The Day Of The Jackal'' a few too many times. Stalker shells are commonly used with Stalker Bolters, which are Bolters fitted with an M40 targeting system, a longer barrel and whatnot to make them viable at longer ranges.
*'''Gas-Powered Rounds''' - the more common and simpler variant of the Stalker Shells. These Bolter shells are propelled only by the gas expelled from the barrel. As they lack the secondary rocket ignition, they are substantially more quiet than standard bolt rounds at the cost of limiting its effective range. As a result, they are used for stealth operations.
*'''Korvidari Bolts''' - with ''that'' name, you know [[Raven Guard|who it's used by.]] These are etched with [[Derp|raven-feather charms]] and sport an abnormally long range. The bolts are packed with extra propellant for superior range and accuracy. Each bolt also houses a minute, hyper-sensitive targeting and flight correction relay, allowing for a marksman's accuracy even against heavily obscured foes.
*'''Dragonfire Bolts''' – the payload of these bolts is superheated gas. The logic here is that cover means nothing when hot air burns your balls off; the gas discharge ensuring that struck targets receive full damage, even if partially protected.
*'''Tempest Bolts''' - bolts used specifically against machines like a mini [[Arc Weaponry|Arc weapon.]] Incorporate tiny plasma shock generators that emit electromagnetic and thermal radiation when the shell detonates. Produced only on Mars.
*'''Seeker Bolts''' - the aimbot variant, like a mini fire-and-forget missile. Special rounds used by Chaplain Boreas of the Dark Angels. Each handcrafted round contains a miniature cogitator capable of steering the bolt towards the heat signature of a target.
*'''Thermic Penetrator Rounds''' - a problem with bolters is that their rounds are relatively low velocity in contrast to conventional firearms. The [[Deathwatch]] decided to get around this problem. These bolts are supplemented by thermic acceleration and released at hypervelocities, that result in near-instant hits.
*'''Inertial Fusion Bolts''' - a goddamned [[Grav-Weaponry|gravity round.]] Used by the Deathwatch, these bolts cause a series of micro vacuum wells to collapse on detonation. Like a crushing fist, they violently implode and cause horrendous, gaping craters in whatever the bolts penetrate.
*'''Gatebreaker Bolts''' - these bolts are hollow, with a reservoir of liquid theldrite inside. When the bolt hits its target, the theldrite slams forward and solidifies, adding the force of a [[Land Raider]] impact to the shot. Since they're designed to aid in siegebreaking, you can [[Imperial Fists|guess who uses them]].
*'''Quake Bolts''' - these bolts, on impact, release a shockwave that tends to punt the target off his feet and onto the ground. Now defenseless, the [[Blood Angels|noblest Chapter of the Imperium]]'s assault troops can cut the felled foe down.
*'''Tranquilizer Rounds''' - a bizarre variant, this is a rare variety of boltgun ammunition filled with a powerful tranquillizing agent in lieu of explosives. Silent when fired from a Stalker Bolter, a single shot is capable of incapacitating a full-grown Ork. Issued one to a magazine, Tranquilizer Rounds saw service with Raven Guard forces seconded to the Deathwatch during the War of the Beast in mid-M32. We assume that the bolt has a [[Needler|giant ass needle]] to penetrate whatever thick hides it is putting down to sleep.
*'''Antiphasic Shells''' – these bolts are fitted with miniature dimensional stabilizers which prevent 5th-dimensional evasion. They are silver bullets tailormade for [[Necron|Space Zombie Terminator Egyptians]].
*'''Derevenant Shells''' - sister counterpart of the Antiphasic Shells. Used by the [[Deathwatch]], the Shells were developed by survivors from Fort Volossia. They contain a cyclic temporal core found to disrupt the Necron's reanimation long enough for their remains to vanish entirely.
*'''Psycannon Bolts''' - the ''''infamous'''' anti-Chaos ass fucker supreme. Are used by the [[Inquisition]], primarily the [[Ordo Malleus]] and [[Grey Knights]], in [[Psycannon]]s. They are etched with anti-daemonic runes with some rumors even going as far as stating that each Bolt carries a tiny fragment of the Emperor's golden toilet.
*'''Nullbolts''' - A rare form of anti-warp rounds used exclusively by the Grey Knights. These shells blast shards of warp-dampening material into the victim, severing their connection to the Immaterium. Those not slain outright are overcome with a smothering inertia, severing them from the warp’ emotions, as well as denying the most vivid sensations of the physical realm.
*'''Ensorcelled Rounds''' – these are etched with psychic-reactive runes that turn them into armor-piercing spells.
*'''Helspears''' - another variant of the Ensorcelled and Psybolts, this time meant for assfucking [[Daemon]]s back to the [[Warp]]. Used by the Deathwatch, these bolts are sheathed in a proscribed material and can pierce the hellish defences of any entity hiding behind the Warp's corrupting power.
*'''Witchseeker Bolts''' - Used by the Black Templars. These consist of metal casings forged from the [[Wat|blades of fallen Battle-Brothers]] and blessed by Ecclesiarchy Priests. These bolts have an unnerving talent for finding their way into the heart of a Psyker.
*'''Vortex Bolts''' - The most rapetastic version to date. These immensely rare rounds are [[Rape|miniature ''Vortex Missiles'']] which creates miniature vortexes within the target upon detonation. Such an event causes catastrophic damage to even the largest enemies (including titans) and Psykers who miraculously survive are driven mad by the creatures of the Warp that pour from the tear in reality.
*'''Bloodshard Shells''' – used only by the [[Sanguinary Guard]] of the [[Blood Angels]], they are filled with razor filaments to shred armour to pieces.
*'''Quake Bolts''' - for when you want to turn your Bolter into a miniature [[Demolisher Cannon]]. Crafted individually by a Magos, each bolt contains a warhead that emits a pulsed shock wave.
*'''Banestrike Rounds''' – developed before the Horus Heresy by the Alpha Legion, they can easily penetrate Astartes Power Armour, and they were used to devastating effect on the Loyalists at Isstvan V.
*'''Banebolts of Eryxia''' - the [[Mary Sue]] of bolt rounds. So named after its creator, Arch-Magister Eryxia, who spent her entire life in search of the perfect bolt shell. She spent decades working with the [[Deathwatch]] and some of Eryxia's finest creations are still extant, housed within ammunition clips chased in ''platinum''. Often requires one shot to slay a target because it is [[Mary Sue|''that good'']].

There are even more exotic ammo types such as the psychic-guided Odysseus bolts, and even the ridiculously expensive Warp shells used by some of the most pimpin' Chaos Lords; these in particular fire essentially miniature vortex-grenades. Thank the God-Emperor that they rarely have more than one shell at a time. If you do get a few types of ammo, you may as well add a cheap and effective ammo selector to easily switch between them. You can also add a different barrel, like the aforementioned silenced Stalker pattern, and then add a scope and/or red-dot sight. Then you may mount something underneath or above your barrel. The cheapest and nonetheless effective variant is a bayonet, which may be a mono-filament blade preferable by the Bolter Bitches, or a chain bayonet, popular among Chaos dudes. But you want to get more Dakka, didn't you? So you may add a one-shot Melta, Plasma, Flamer, or Grav-gun to your Bolter, turning it into a Combi-weapon. Now your Bolter can deal with enemy armour, heavy infantry and hordes, but it is only one shot and need to be disassembled to be reloaded/recharged, which you do not have the time to do in the heat of the battle. If you want more reliability, you may consider an auxiliary grenade launcher, which can lob Krak or Frag shots in a full-auto mode. and while lacking the sheer power of Combi-attachments, it does not run out of ammo after the first shot as well as being able to perform multiple roles. After spending a fortune on ammo, upgrades, and bribing Mechanicum weaponsmiths, you may now enjoy the ultimate personal weapon of the 41st millennium.