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The Bolter, also called a Boltgun, and its variants are some of the most powerful hand-held ballistic anti-personnel weaponry in use by the military forces of the Imperium of Man. It is a powerful assault weapon that fires explosive kinetic rounds colloquially referred to as bolts. The Bolter is a weapon synonymous with the Adeptus Astartes, and rightly so. However, although the Space Marines are its primary user, the Bolter finds itself in use in military organisations throughout the Imperium. The weapon is fearsome, with explosive rounds capable of ripping through or blowing apart a foe. The Chaos Space Marines of the Traitor Legions were issued their Legions' Bolters before the Horus Heresy, and therefore, use generally older variants than the patterns available to present-day Loyalist Space Marines.

The Bolter is a mid-range anti-personnel ballistic weapon that lies between the lighter Bolt Pistol and the more effective Heavy Bolter. The standard pattern Bolter can easily be wielded by a Space Marine, but smaller pattern Bolters must be used by the Battle-Sisters of the Adepta Sororitas.

For both the Space Marines and the Sisters of Battle of the Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, the Bolter is viewed as a weapon intended by the Emperor of Mankind to bring his wrath to the enemies of Mankind. Both a weapon and an item of devotion to the Emperor, an Astartes' Bolter is carefully tented to by its user. Indeed, a good part of the daily firing rituals performed by the Space Marines when not at war is spent carefully tending to the Bolter's multiple mechanisms and entreating its Machine Spirit, to ensure the weapon is always ready for war. Every Astartes carries a Bolter lovingly handcrafted by the Artificers of his Chapter's Armoury or by one of the Adeptus Mechanicus Forge Worlds. At each point in its construction, special rituals are observed by the Artificers or Tech-priests. The Bolters used by the Space Marines are known to be coded to Astartes genetic signatures so that they are only functional for members of the Adeptus Astartes.

Description

Overview

The Bolter is a large .75 calibre assault weapon. It has a much greater mass than most standard-issue Imperial weapons such as the Lasgun, although it is slightly shorter in length. Unlike most Imperial ranged infantry weapons, it lacks a stock, resulting in a grip much like a pistol's or a submachine gun's. A Space Marine's bulky Power Armour would make shouldering a stock an awkward experience, but Power Armour is most likely also able to compensate for vibrations and oscillation, making a stock redundant. Stocks are sometimes used, however, with an extended barrel and an M40 Targeter System to transform the Bolter into a sniping weapon system. These sniper Bolters, known as Stalker Pattern Bolters, are most often used with Stalker Silenced Shells.

The variant of Bolter weapon used by most current Space Marine Chapters is the Astartes Mark Vb Godwyn Pattern Bolter. This variant has a built-in ammunition counter which indicates how many rounds are remaining in the weapon on an external display. The number of remaining rounds will also be shown in the auto-senses display of an Astartes' helmet. The Mark Vb Godwyn Pattern uses a Sinister/Dexter locking mechanism with a sickle-shaped magazine that carries 30 bolts and can fire in bursts of up to four rounds with a single trigger pull. Other features include a biometric sensor integrated into the weapon's grip that allows the Bolter to identify its user's genetic signature so that only Astartes can make use of the Bolter. The Godwyn Pattern also possesses an integral targeter that links with the Space Marine's auto-senses for enhanced accuracy. Bolters make a unique roaring sound when fired, which is caused as the propellant in their shells ignites followed by an explosion when the bolt detonates upon hitting its target.

Like other Space Marine weaponry, Astartes Bolters are designed to be handled by their superhuman physique. The weight of each Godwyn Pattern Bolter means that most normal humans cannot handle the weapon comfortably without the aid of a supporting brace and even the weapon's handgrips are too large for a mortal to grasp without assistance. However, even if a mortal were to fire the Bolter, the resulting recoil would most likely rip his or her arm from its socket. It is illegal within the Imperium for a non-Astartes to wield an Astartes Bolter, which is one reason why the weapons are genetically coded so that only a Space Marine can fire them. An Imperial citizen caught in unauthorised possession of a Bolter or even of just a bolt can be harshly sentenced by the Adeptus Arbites. However, some Bolter patterns like the Godwyn-De'az or Locke patterns are specifically built to be wielded by unaugmented humans, and the weapon is sometimes favoured by officers of the Imperial Guard and members of the Adeptus Arbites who require a weapon with more stopping power.

The major advantage of the Bolter in comparaison to the ubiquitous Lasgun is its stopping power, as the bolt's kinetic force and explosive head can deliver much more damage on a target than the coherent light beam from a Lasgun. However, the major reason that the Bolter never was favoured as a weapon for the soldiers of the Imperial Army is that next to its mass and weight, it is also a temperamental weapon that requires lots of care and maintenance to function properly. Where the Lasgun only requires a quick daily disassembly and cleaning while mumbling a prayer to its Machine Spirit to keep it going for over 10,000 shots, the Bolter requires much more careful tending and cleaning to ensure its proper function. While a centuries-old Astartes Veteran can tend to his Bolter blindfolded in less time than a freshly recruited Guardsman tends to his Lasgun, such familiarity with a weapon is impossible to attain for the average human soldier, hence the need for a simpler standard armament. Another disadvantage of the Bolter is the need for its heavy and cumbersome ammunition compared to the small and easily recharged power packs of the Lasgun. While this is seldom an issue for the Astartes, due to their focus on rapid and overwhelming assault tactics, the risk of finding oneself out of ammunition is very real for Imperial Guardsmen who favour the weapon during prolonged operations, or on missions where resupply is improbable or difficult.

Standard Bolter Round

Bolter ammunition (a bolt) is primarily a solid .75 calibre slug. Conventional solid slugs utilise a propellant charge contained in a casing that, when ignited, forces the bullet out of the barrel. In contrast, a bolt is self-propelled; it features its own integrated solid propellant that propels the bolt at high speeds, essentially acting like a miniature rocket. The propellant itself is shaped to control the bolt's direction and speed; however, this method of rocket propulsion would normally warp the barrel due to gas pressure. The Bolter uses an ingenious method to prevent this.

As well as the rocket propellant, a tiny amount of conventional charge is also utilised. This charge is just strong enough to force the bolt out of the barrel and ignite the bolt's propellant. The rocket-propellant is carefully fused to ignite just after leaving the barrel, alleviating any possibility of pressure build-up. The bolt then accelerates away towards the target under its own power.

The standard Bolter ammunition is designed to penetrate the target and then detonate, causing immense damage to the target and leaving little opportunity for survival.

Construction

The Bolter is complex to produce and requires dedicated maintenance, which prevents it from being issued more widely throughout the Imperial Guard. The standard pattern Bolter is also simply far too heavy to be wielded effectively by the average human being or Imperial Guard soldier. The Bolter is far more susceptible to being fouled by dirt and mishandling than the basic Lasgun issued to Imperial Guardsmen, requiring much more training to use than the Guard is ready to invest in the standard line Guardsman. The Bolter's need for physical ammunition as opposed to power packs demands far more logistical organisation to supply than the standard Lasgun, and Astartes Chapters have been known to go through a mountainous stockpile of rounds during a single campaign. However, the Space Marines wear massive suits of Power Armour that further enhance their already prodigious genetically-enhanced strength and allows them to control the powerful recoil of the weapon, and the armour also enhances the already prodigious skill of the individual warrior with autosense uplinks and suit-integrated targeting systems. This makes the Bolter a good fit as the primary weapon for the Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes, who have used it since the Space Marine Legions were first raised at the dawn of the Great Crusade in the late 30th Millennium.

Known Bolter Patterns

Over the millennia, the Bolter has been improved and changed many times. There have been hundreds of variants, but only a few have made any radical differences in the weapon's function. All of these variant patterns have the same basic features, but each has different additional features (depending on the weapon's pattern) that seek to improve upon its basic design. The current standard-issue Bolter for the Space Marines is the .75 calibre Astartes Mark Vb Godwyn Pattern Bolter.

Angelus Pattern Bolter - The Sanguinary Guard of the Blood Angels and their Successor Chapters make use of a wrist-mounted, drum-fed variation of the Bolter called the Angelus Bolter that fires potent Bloodshard Shells filled with razor-filament that is very effective against most known forms of armour.
Baal Pattern Bolter - The Blood Angels and their Successor Chapters make use of a variant of the standard Godwyn Pattern Bolter known as a Baal Pattern Bolter after their homeworld of Baal.
Ceres Pattern
Condemnor Pattern - The Condemnor Pattern Bolter is a highly specfialised Combi-weapon used almost exclusively by the operatives of the Ordo Hereticus. It combines a Bolter with a single-shot crossbow armature. Though archaic in appearance, the crossbow fires a silver stake engraved with sigils of disruption that destabilise a psyker's connection with the Warp. A direct hit from the crossbow will therefore not only deal a severe wound to a psyker, it will also send his power spiralling out of control, consuming the user in a storm of untrammelled psychic energy.
Crusade Pattern - The Crusade Pattern Bolter is the original type of Bolter used by the Astartes of the Space Marine Legions during the Great Crusade of the 31st Millennium.
Filienostos Pattern
Gilded Bolter - The Gilded Bolter is a master-crafted Artificer Bolter of unsurpassed beauty, workmanship and artistry. It is a weapon used by certain Space Marine Captains and has been given as a gift to such powerful Imperial officials as Sector Governors. The weapon has been used by some of the most notable Ultramarines Astartes to have served in the Deathwatch in the tempestuous region of space known as the Jericho Reach.
Godwyn Mark IIIa Pattern - The Godwyn Mark IIIa is an older pattern of Bolter still used by the Astartes of the Dark Angels Chapter.
Godwyn Mark Vb Pattern - The current, most widely-used pattern of Astartes Bolter in the Imperium as described above.
Godwyn Ultima Pattern - The Godwyn Ultima Pattern Bolter is a weapon very similar to the Godwyn Mark Vb Bolter that was known to have been used by the Minotaurs and Exorcists Chapters during the Badab War.
Godwyn-De'az Pattern - The Godwyn-De'az Pattern Bolter is the standard pattern of Bolter used by all of the Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas since their formation in the 36th Millennium. This pattern has been in use by the Sisters of Battle since that time because it remains more reliable and more potent than any other pattern of Bolter developed for use by the Sororitas. The Godwyn-De'az Pattern is designed to be used by a normal human and thus is much smaller than an Astartes Bolter. This pattern of Bolter is designed to make use of the Sarissa as an attachment. The Sarissa is a vicious, curved, bayonet-like blade that can transform the Godwyn-De'az Bolter into an effective close combat weapon even as it retains all of its ranged functionality.
Hesh Pattern - Since the 36th Millennium, the Astartes of the Deathwatch have been equipped with the Hesh Pattern Bolter, created by Magos Cymbry Jamis of the Adeptus Mechanicus as a reward for the Deathwatch's exemplary service to the Imperium. The Bolters of this pattern are more compact than other variants and show unusually skilled craftmanship on the order of a master-crafted weapon. Due to their smaller size, Hesh Pattern Bolters are well-suited for fighting in confined spaces and they are also favoured by Astartes vehicle crews and by certain Assault Marines. Hesh Pattern Bolters incorporate an integral folding stock, a motion detector and preysense sensors that connect to an Astartes' Auto-senses. Deathwatch Astartes who complete their term of service with the Chamber Militant of the Ordo Xenos are permitted to keep their Hesh Pattern Bolters when they return to their home Chapter.
Heresy Pattern - Heresy Pattern Bolters first appeared during the Horus Heresy. Cut off from regular sources of supply and maintenance, many Astartes were forced to cobble together non-standard Bolters using a variety of different parts drawn from different patterns and existing variants of the weapon. These ancient weapons are collectively known as Heresy Pattern Bolters.
Locke Pattern - The Locke Pattern Bolter is a variant of an older pattern of Bolter used by the Adeptus Arbites, and is now the most common pattern of Bolter in use in the Koronus Expanse. Like the Bolter patterns used by the Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, the Locke Pattern Bolter can be used without difficulty by normal-sized humans.
Mark III Pattern - The Mark III Pattern Bolter was produced by the manufactora of Badab Primaris during the Badab War and was used by the Astral Claws Chapter.
Mark IV Pattern - The Mark IV Pattern Bolter was an earlier standard variant of the Astartes Bolter that made use of a 20 bolt magazine and possessed the capability for both single-shot and three-bolt burst fire. The Mark IV Bolter also incorporated a biometric sensor in its handgrip to identify its wielder using his unique genetic imprint.
Mars Pattern Mark II Scourge - The Mars Pattern Mark II Scourge Bolter is the preferred pattern of Bolter used by the Battle-Sisters of the Order of the Ebon Chalice's Abbey of Dawn on the world of Iocanthos in the Calixis Sector. Like the Godwyn-De'az Pattern Bolter, the Mark II Scourge Bolter can be used without difficulty by normal-sized humans. It also can make use of a Sarissa blade as a close-combat attachment.
Nocturne-Ultima Pattern - The Astartes of the Salamanders Chapter are known to have made use of Nocturne-Ultima Pattern Bolters during the Badab War. The Nocturne-Ultima Pattern seems to be a modification of the standard Godwyn Ultima Pattern Bolter carried out solely by the Artificers of the Salamanders on their Chapter homeworld of Nocturne, hence the name of the pattern.
Nostra Pattern
Perinetus Mark II Solo Pattern - This pattern of Bolter is considered to be heretical in the eyes of the Machine God by some members of the Adeptus Mechanicus. It is far less sophisticated than the other extant patterns of Bolter and lacks the capability for automatic fire, allowing it to shoot only a single bolt at a time. However, the loss of this capability is made up for by the weapon's greater range, increased accuracy and enhanced reliability in adverse environmental conditions. This pattern of Bolter is intended to be used by normal humans and is sized accordingly. The Perinetus Pattern Bolter is very popular as a weapon with certain Planetary Defence Force garrisons and certain rebel groups within the Imperium.
Phobos Pattern - The Phobos Pattern Bolter is perhaps the most venerable design of the sacred Bolter used by the Astartes. This weapon was hand-crafted by the Fabricators of Mars at the very birth of the Imperium, to ensure that every Marine had the finest wargear with which to reunite the scattered elements of Humanity.
Skapulan Bolter - The Deathwatch of the Jericho Reach is strangely silent about the history of Watch Station Skapula, and how this lethal Bolter remains from the abandoned station. Techmarines fortunate enough to examine the advanced weapon frequently debate the number and nature of Machine Spirits necessary to achieve its flawless performance, but the most widely accepted theories place a union of over one hundred Machine Spirits within the casing of tenebrous alloys. In addition to accuracy and power unrivalled in other Bolters of its size, the Skapulan Bolter integrates a Fire Selector, a Targeter, and a melee attachment equivalent to a master-crafted Combat Knife. The Skapulan Bolter is unique and there are no other known Bolters of this type currently in existence.
Stalker Pattern - The Stalker Pattern Bolter is a standard Godwyn Mark Vb Pattern Bolter modified with an M40 Targeter System and an elongated barrel so that is can also serve as a Sniper Rifle.
Ryza-Ultima Pattern - The Star Phantoms Chapter are known to have made use of Ryza-Ultima Pattern Bolters during the Badab War. The Nocturne-Ultima Pattern seems to be a modification of the standard Godwyn Ultima Pattern Bolter that first originated on the Forge World of Ryza.
Mark II Ultra Pattern - The Mark II Ultra Pattern Bolter was known to be used by the Red Scorpions Chapter during the Imperial operation on the Tyranid-infested world of Beta Anphelion IV. It made use of a Dark Eye nightscope that greatly enhanced the weapon's accuracy during nighttime operations.
Mark IV Ultra Pattern - The Mark IV Ultra Pattern Bolter was used by the Red Scorpions and carried a standard 25-bolt sickle magazine, and possessed a built-in ammunition counter, an Auto-senses targetting uplink and a biometric handgrip sensor for genetic identification of its user as standard features.
Tigrus Pattern - There are many types and patterns of the mighty and iconic boltgun used by the Adeptus Astartes, and the Tigrus Pattern Bolter is one such variant. First discovered in the depths of Forge World Tigrus, the Standard Template Construct (STC) data for this sleek weapon was quickly disseminated throughout the Imperium before the outbreak of the shadowed Horus Heresy. This noble bastion of Mars suffered irreparable damage at the hands of the Traitor Legions, yet the bolters that bear its name continue to see service in the 41st Millennium; revered and honoured as ancient relics of Mankind’s lost glory.
Umbra Pattern - The Umbra Pattern Bolter is one of the earliest patterns of Astartes Bolter and was produced in large quantities early in the Great Crusade for the Space Marine Legions. It is still manufactured in the forges of some present-day Space Marine Chapters, including those of the Mantis Warriors, Executioners and Carcharodons Chapters, who made use of them during the Badab War.
Umbra Ferrox Pattern - The Umbra Ferrox Pattern Bolter is a variant of the ancient Umbra Pattern that was mass-produced by the Techmarines of the Space Marine Legions in the midst of the Horus Heresy. Unlike the standard Umbra Pattern Bolter, the Umbra Ferrox is capable of replacing its sickle-shaped magazine with a box magazine with a greater ammunition capacity if the need arises and incorporates Target Reciprocator Systems that enhance the weapon's range and allow it to better integrate its targeting system with an Astartes' Auto-senses.

Bolter Ammunition Types

Standard Bolt

The Standard Bolt is the standard-issue antipersonnel ammunition for the Bolter. It is designed to penetrate a target and detonate, causing horrific injuries.

Internal Details

A solid-fuel rocket propellant base
An outer casing containing conventional charge
Gyrostabilizer
Mass-reactive fuse. Has a split-second timer to delay detonation upon impact until after the shot penetrates the target.
Hardened diamantine penetrating tip. This allows for the bolt to penetrate most armour before detonation.
Main Charge
Depleted uranium core. This is a very dense material, adding weight and thus momentum to the round when in flight. This aids in the bolt's penetration of the victim.

Kraken Penetrator Rounds

Kraken Penetrator Rounds are potent, more power armour-piercing rounds than the standard bolt. The uranium core is replaced by a solid adamantium core and uses a heavier main charge. Upon impact, the outer casing peels away and the high-velocity adamantium needle accelerates into the victim, where the larger detonator propels shards of super-hardened metal further into the wound. These are effective against heavily-armoured infantry.

Internal Details

The main charge is increased to enable a larger explosion.
The uranium core is replaced by a core of pure adamantium to optimize the penetration of reinforced armour.

Inferno Bolt

Inferno Bolts are designed to immolate their targets and destroy them with superheated chemical fire. The uranium core is replaced with an oxy-phosphorus gel, known as Promethium. However, due to the decreased projectile mass, armour-piercing capabilities are compromised.

(It should be noted that the Thousand Sons Traitor Legion has their own similarly-named but unrelated type of Inferno Bolts, which are actually psychically-bound slugs that release arcane energies; these slugs explode with sorcerous Warp energies upon impact.)

Internal Details

In this bolt, the uranium core is replaced with a special gel that ignites with oxygen.

Hellfire Bolt

Hellfire Bolts are designed for use against organic targets, specifically the Tyranids. The core and tip are replaced with a vial of mutagenic acid and thousands of needles. When the round enters the target's body, the vial shatters and the needles pierce the victim's flesh, pumping the acid into the target.

Internal Details

In this bolt, the uranium core is replaced with a vial of mutagenic acid. The point is also replaced with a chemical substance that causes the vial to detonate once it has penetrated the enemy's armour.

Metal Storm Frag Bolt

In the Metal Storm Frag Bolt, the mass-reactive fuse of the standard bolt is replaced with a proximity fuse, and the uranium core and Diamantine tip are replaced with increased high-explosives and a fragmentation casing. This means the bolt explodes when it nears an enemy, creating a lethal hail of shrapnel. This bolt is capable of inflicting casualties on multiple lightly-armoured targets, but its effectiveness is dramatically reduced when facing heavily-armoured foes like Chaos Space Marines.

Internal Details

Mini-gyrostabilizer
Fragmentation Casing
Increased Charge
Fragmentation Charge
Proximity Detector

Stalker Silenced Shells

Stalker Silenced Shells are Bolter rounds with low sound signatures, meant for covert fighting. They are often used in conjunction with an M40 Targeter System, an extended barrel, and a stock to create a sniping weapon system. A gas cartridge replaces both the propellant base and main charge for silent firing, but this sacrifices muzzle velocity as a result. A solidified mercury slug replaces the mass-reactive warhead for lethality at sub-sonic projectile speed. These rounds are used when stealth and precision are required.

Internal Details

Gas Cartridge
Solidified Mercury Slug
Smooth Diamantine Tip

Bloodshard Shells

Bloodshard Shells are large, bolt-shaped shells intended to be fire only by the Angelus Pattern Bolter used by the Sanguinary Guard of the Blood Angels Chapter and their Successor Chapters. Each Bloodshard contains a payload of razor-filament that can shred most known forms of armour upon impact.

Dragonfire Bolts

Dragonfire Bolts are hollow-shelled bolts used by Sternguard Veterans that explode with a gout of superheated gas that can eliminate the value of cover for enemy troops as any targets struck receive full damage even when partially protected by cover.

Kraken Bolts

Kraken Bolts were specialised Bolter shells with an enhanced adamantium core and improved propellant utilised by Seeker Squads during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras of the late 30th and early 31st Millennia. They possessed superior armour-piercing properties and increased range compared to standard bolts, but the expense and resources required to create them kept them in limited issue.

Psycannon Bolts

Psycannon Bolts are used by the Inquisition, primarily the Ordo Malleus and its secret Grey Knights Space Marine Chapter. They are very similar in nature to the rounds fired by their namesake, the Psycannon, and are similarly used against psychic Heretic and daemonic targets. Of all the rounds available to the Bolter, these are the most expensive, as each and every bolt is inscribed with arcane runes on a microscopic level. According to some sources the bolts derive their anti-psychic effect from being impregnated with an extremely rare negative psychic energy; the sole source of this energy is a metabolic byproduct of the Emperor of Mankind's Golden Throne. The anti-psychic nature of these rounds are not only effective at destroying daemonic targets but also highly efficient at piercing the powerful barriers created by force field generators (such as the Tau Shield Generator and the Imperium's own Iron Halo, Conversion Field and Storm Shield).

Scorpius Bolts

During the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras of the late 30th and early 31st Millennia, Scorpius Bolts were individually hand-crafted by the Techmarines of a Space Marine Legion's armoury. These specialised shells utilised a two-stage warhead which contained a micro-guidance system and a needle-like sabot dart which vapourises when striking an armoured target, providing enhanced armour penetration effects. Scorpius Bolts were rare and temperamental munitions which were hand loaded into a Bolter for firing.

Seeker Bolts

Seekers Bolts are unique, hand-crafted rounds created by Chaplain Boreas of the Dark Angels Chapter. Each bolt contains a miniaturised Cogitator that detects the infrared heat signature of a target and then steers the bolt unerringly towards it.

Tempest Bolts

Tempest Bolts replace the standard mass-reactive core and armour-piercing tip of a bolt round with a fragmentation shell encasing a powerful micro-explosive proximity charge. This has the effect of showering a target with a murderous storm of shrapnel. These heavier rounds, however, lack range compared to standard bolt shells. Produced only on Mars, Tempest Bolts were designed to be particularly effective at incapacitating machines and other electronic devices. Such bolts are highly effective against targets like combat robots and cyborgs whose bodies are now more machine than organic tissue.

Vengeance Rounds

Vengeance Round bolts were created using unstable flux core technology that makes them hazardous to use but extremely potent at penetrating through heavily armoured targets. As their name implies, these bolts were developed by the Imperium specifically to target the Chaos Space Marines of the Traitor Legions.

Bolter Magazines

As well as the different types of ammunition available for the weapon, there have also been several different types of magazines. The standard magazine for the Bolter is the Sickle Magazine.

Sickle Magazine: The standard-issue magazine, seen on most Bolter patterns. The magazine's shape is slightly curved to take up less space. Carries 20 to 30 bolts.
Straight Magazine: A straight version of the sickle magazine. Holds less ammunition (only 10 to 20 bolts), but is easier to load in more intense situations.
Drum Magazine: Drum magazines are a relatively rare sight in the 41st Millennium. This is due to their unreliability; drum magazines have an unfortunate tendency to jam. However, drums can carry 40, 60 or even 100 bolts, negating the need to reload as often. Despite the frequent jamming, they still brook some favor with local Hive Gangs or planetary defense militia. They are also frequently seen on Storm Bolters or in brutal assaults, where running empty in a firefight can mean certain death.
Belt Feed: Some troops forgo using magazines at all, preferring to feed the bolts directly into the firing chamber using a linked belt. Because the belt is exposed to the elements, it is frequently clogged with dirt or dust. This can, like the Drum Mag, lead to jamming, and is rarely used within the Imperium, although it is very commonly used by the Chaos Space Marines of the Ruinous Powers. Note that Space Marine Heavy Bolters have the ammunition belt protected by a tough, flexible feed chute.
Duplus X: This type of magazine is quite popular amongst local planetary law enforcement or Hive Gangs. It involves two standard Sickle Magazines which are attached together by some means, usually a band of cloth or tape (similar to the "ready-mags" of ancient Terra). This means when the weapon has to be reloaded, the user can simply flip the magazines around and insert the loaded magazine. This type is rarely produced officially, usually being "manufactured" by those who utilise it.

Other Bolt Weapons

Although the Bolter is the Adeptus Astartes' weapon of choice for Space Marine Tactical Squads, it is by no means the only bolt weapon in the Astartes arsenal. As well as the variants of the standard Bolter, there are several different bolt weapons.

Bolt Pistol

The Bolt Pistol is a common variant of the Bolter, and apart from the Space Marines, is also available to officers and seasoned veterans of the Imperial Guard. They are awarded to Commissars, both for battle and to perform field executions of those too cowardly to serve the Emperor properly, leading to the weapon being nicknamed the "Bravery Bolter". A standard Bolt Pistol magazine, due to varying manufacturing skills and machinery, is capable of housing between 6 and 12 rounds of ammunition. Such weapons are often used by the Assault Squads of the Space Marines, the Sisters of Battle, and the Chaos Space Marines. Many users of the Bolt Pistol prefer to wield a Bolt Pistol in one hand and a melee weapon, such as a Chainsword, in the other, allowing them to switch from a firefight to a close-quarters battle instantly. In extended engagements, when reloading can mean almost certain death, a drum magazine can be utilized, with the same capacity as those used on Storm Bolters.

Combi-Bolter

Similar to the Storm Bolter, the Twin-Linked Bolter or Combi-Bolter is simply two standard pattern Bolters slaved to fire together. It was a bulky and somewhat crude, but very effective, weapon prototype that was gaining widespread use at the time of the Horus Heresy. The Combi-Bolter was a much more common weapon during the Horus Heresy era than at present in the Imperium. Chaos Space Marine Attack Bikes are still often equipped with the Combi-Bolter, though the Storm Bolter has replaced it as standard in the Imperial armoury.

Storm Bolter

The Storm Bolter is a double-barreled version of the Bolter. As it is designed for brutal assault, and consumes more ammunition than a normal Bolter, it is not normally utilized by Space Marines attired in standard Power Armour. However, they are standard issue for Space Marine Terminators, and often serve as an Imperial tank's pintle-mounted weapon. They are also used by the Grey Knights as a gauntlet-mounted weapon with its feed sourced from the back of their armour or from a magazine on the side of the gauntlet (as seen in Dawn of War - Dark Crusade). Like Bolters, Imperial Guard veterans and officers rarely carry a Storm Bolter. The Sisters of Battle will sometimes designate a member of a squad to carry a Storm Bolter as a special weapon. Due to the weapons' high munitions consumption, and the lack of manual dexterity in Terminator Armour, most Storm Bolters are fed from a large box magazine, carrying approximately 60-150 rounds depending on the size and style of the magazine. When the weapon is used without Terminator Armour, it usually has a more conventional magazine containing 60 rounds, which, given the double barrels and firing mechanism, gives the wielder approximately 30 shots before the magazine has to be replaced. These rounds are identical to those fired from Bolt Pistols and Bolters.

Before the Storm Bolter was created by the Tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Terminators were often equipped with special Combi-weapons which were essentially two Bolters fused together. These "Combi-bolters" were capable of a higher rate of fire than the Storm Bolter when at short range, but without a synchronized firing mount were less effective at longer range. As the Storm Bolter was one of the few perfections of preexisting technology the Imperium achieved after the Horus Heresy, Storm Bolters have replaced Combi-bolters in Imperial armies, while Chaos Space Marines use Twin-linked Bolters instead.

Heavy Bolter

The Heavy Bolter is a powerful fire support weapon. Unlike other Bolt weapons, it uses a much larger calibre round and is in common use by all but the Imperium's least well-equipped martial forces, such as backwater Imperial worlds' Planetary Defence Force units. It has a high rate of fire, long range, is inexpensive to manufacture, and tolerant of mistreatment by inexperienced users. It is equipped on Imperial tanks and a variety of vehicles as an anti-infantry weapon as well as on fixed defences.

Heavy Bolters operate differently than other Bolt weapons. Instead of a firing pin physically striking the bolt shell to activate the projectile, a specific electronic pulse is applied in the firing chamber. Bolts are fed into the chamber by an electric motor, rather than exhaust gases cycling the action as in other Bolt weapons. Exhaust gases are used to generate the power needs of the weapon; the initial power and the impulse for the first round are provided by working a slide on the weapons side. These features enable the Heavy Bolter to maintain rates of fire that are physically impossible for a standard Bolter or Bolt Pistol.

Due to its bulk and weight, Imperial Guard infantry operate Heavy Bolters using a two-man team, mounting the weapon on a tripod. A single Space Marine, being physically much larger and stronger than a normal human, can carry both the Heavy Bolter and its ammunition alone, and fire it from a braced standing position (even with very little aid from the servos of their Power Armour). Space Marine Scouts without Power Armour can fire Heavy Bolters in this manner. The Sisters of Battle, with the assistance of their own Power Armour-augmented strength, are also capable of carrying the Heavy Bolter and ammunition alone. When used in this way by heavy infantry, the weapon itself is carried with both hands and fired from the hip, with the ammunition belt-fed from a backpack, optical aiming provided by a Heads-up Display (HUD) and an integrated laser pointer mounted just above the Heavy Bolter's barrel. It is also referred to as the "Back Breaker" or the "Bruiser" particularly amongst the inhabitants of various hive cities' underhives who have felt its kiss in the myriad battles between Underhive gangs.

Sources

Codex: Blood Angels (5th Edition), pp. 50, 59
Codex: Dark Angels (4th Edition)
Codex: Daemonhunters (3rd Edition), pg. 18
Codex: Grey Knights (5th Edition), pg. 55
Codex: Imperial Guard (5th Edition), pg. 88
Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition), pp. 63, 88, 100, 118
Codex: Space Marines (4th Edition), pp. 1, 11
Codex: Witch Hunters (3rd Edition), pp. 19, 22
Dark Heresy: Blood of Martyrs (RPG), pg. 114
Dark Heresy Core Rulebook (RPG), pg. 133
Dark Heresy: The Inquisitor's Handbook (RPG), pp. 109, 148, 171, 173
Deathwatch: First Founding (RPG), pp. 97-98
Deathwatch: Rites of Battle (RPG), pp. 134, 140
Imperial Armour Volume Two - Space Marines and Forces of the Inquisition, pg. 101
Imperial Armour Volume Three - The Taros Campaign, pp. 49-50
Imperial Armour Volume Four - The Anphelion Project, pp. 126-128
Imperial Armour Volume Nine - The Badab War - Part One, pp. 60, 86, 91, 94, 102, 120, 128
Imperial Armour Volume Ten - The Badab War - Part Two, pp. 65, 71, 76, 86, 115, 128, 133
Imperial Armour - The Horus Heresy Betrayal - Book One, pp. 230, 232
Index Astartes III, pg. 58
Rogue Trader Rulebook (RPG), pg. 122
Rogue Trader: Into the Storm (RPG), pg. 112
Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook (6th Edition), pp. 54, 56
Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook (5th Edition)
Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook (4th Edition)
Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook (3rd Edition), pg. 60
Warhammer 40,000: Wargear (4th Edition)
Warhammer 40,000: Wargear (2nd Edition)
The Purging of Kadillus (Novel) by Gav Thorpe
Warriors of Ultramar (Novel) by Graham McNeill
The Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer (Background Book), pp.18-25
Phobos Pattern Bolter
Tigrus Pattern Bolter
Umbra Pattern Bolter
Umbra Ferrox Pattern Bolter