Bolt weapon
The bolt weapon is the characteristic Imperial weapon type used most famously by the Space Marines and Adepta Sororitas. They are also used in more limited numbers throughout the Imperium's armed forces and are popular with its enemies, particularly Orks. Bolt weapons are purposefully unsubtle weapons, with very obvious and bloody effects.
Bolt weapons fire self-propelled mass-reactive shells known as bolts, which are timed to explode just after penetration for maximum lethality. The standard bolt is Essentially a 50mm grenade shell upscale to fit in an Astartes hand with a super-dense metallic core and diamantine tip. Overall bolt ammunition is expensive and difficult to manufacture and the weapons themselves regularly require maintenance, but they are no doubt terrifying and destructive weapons.
Each bolt is contained within a cartridge which includes a small conventional powder charge. When fired, this charge launches the bolt while simultaneously igniting its solid fuel propellant, which is timed to do so once it is clear of the barrel. The cartridge is then ejected, clearing the breech for the next round, while the bolt accelerates towards the target under its own power. This system helps alleviate the problem of using rocket-propelled munitions, as the gases are not trapped within the barrel and cannot cause problems due to overpressure. The two-stage process also keeps the weapon's recoil to manageable levels, compared to conventional weapons of similar caliber.
Using this method, personal bolt weapons can easily fire in bursts of three to four rounds in rapid succession. However, in order to keep the ammunition capacity high, bolt shells lack a subsequent booster stage or fin stabilization. This limits their effective range, though this is seen as less of a problem given their role as a shock and assault weapon. Heavy Bolters fire a larger round with extra propellant, giving them superior range and hitting power to hand-held bolters and bolt pistols.
The explosive warhead within the bolt is triggered by a mass-reactive detonator; any sudden increase in local mass triggers the explosive, causing the weapon to explode inside the target. This can have a gruesome effect on the target, often killing them in a single shot as their chest cavity or head is blown apart, while simultaneous hits can render the corpse unidentifiable. However, the detonator has a minimum arming distance, during which it will not arm the warhead. At point-blank ranges, the bolt will instead pass through the target and explode behind it, though its sheer size and velocity still make it capable of causing damage.
Bolt weapons fire self-propelled mass-reactive shells known as bolts, which are timed to explode just after penetration for maximum lethality. The standard bolt is Essentially a 50mm grenade shell upscale to fit in an Astartes hand with a super-dense metallic core and diamantine tip. Overall bolt ammunition is expensive and difficult to manufacture and the weapons themselves regularly require maintenance, but they are no doubt terrifying and destructive weapons.
Each bolt is contained within a cartridge which includes a small conventional powder charge. When fired, this charge launches the bolt while simultaneously igniting its solid fuel propellant, which is timed to do so once it is clear of the barrel. The cartridge is then ejected, clearing the breech for the next round, while the bolt accelerates towards the target under its own power. This system helps alleviate the problem of using rocket-propelled munitions, as the gases are not trapped within the barrel and cannot cause problems due to overpressure. The two-stage process also keeps the weapon's recoil to manageable levels, compared to conventional weapons of similar caliber.
Using this method, personal bolt weapons can easily fire in bursts of three to four rounds in rapid succession. However, in order to keep the ammunition capacity high, bolt shells lack a subsequent booster stage or fin stabilization. This limits their effective range, though this is seen as less of a problem given their role as a shock and assault weapon. Heavy Bolters fire a larger round with extra propellant, giving them superior range and hitting power to hand-held bolters and bolt pistols.
The explosive warhead within the bolt is triggered by a mass-reactive detonator; any sudden increase in local mass triggers the explosive, causing the weapon to explode inside the target. This can have a gruesome effect on the target, often killing them in a single shot as their chest cavity or head is blown apart, while simultaneous hits can render the corpse unidentifiable. However, the detonator has a minimum arming distance, during which it will not arm the warhead. At point-blank ranges, the bolt will instead pass through the target and explode behind it, though its sheer size and velocity still make it capable of causing damage.
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