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This "Lexicanum" is primarily meant to serve as a guide to those new to 40k, whether they be veterans of the "nu-Doom genre" of retro shooters or not. It is, first and foremost, a lore guide - however this is not meant to serve as an overarching lore dump about 40k itself... it is merely meant to help one understand what is happening, what they are doing, and what they are seeing. That is to say, an almanac that is focused only on the necessary bits and what you actually see and encounter within the game. Weapons, enemies, et cetera.

Though it's primarily intended to be used by those new to 40k, I am sure those familiar with the lore might enjoy reading through it as well. The sources I use for this guide are either lore books I personally own or - in the case of something that is not in a book that I have, one of the various Warhammer 40k wikis... of which I am more biased towards the "Lexicanum" wiki than the others.

On that note, if you ever want to know more about a particular subject, please do visit the http://Lexicanum wiki! It is a great resource that I honestly can not give enough credit to those who maintain and update it.


You've likely heard a lot about Warhammer 40,000, in passing. However like any other fandom the information was sporadic, disjointed, and didn't really make any sense without dedicating time to learning how to connect the dots... and I think that's what most people fear about joining any new fandom that has a ton of fluff and lore, is the time dedication it's going to take to know what you're talking about to the point that you can at least engage in a conversation on the topic.

The great thing about 40K however is that while it has decades worth of lore, it's really not any more difficult to get into than any other fandom, even despite what other people might say. Usually when you run into a 40k fan they are devout, and they are really into it. What this results in is, just as 40k is all about scale, so too are it's fans, and from what I have seen a lot of them tend to scale the lore up so high that getting into it seems more like a learning wall than a learning curve. But just like any other franchise you don't need to know every intricacy of the setting to have fun. You don't need to know what fighting style that Jedi is using in the Clone Wars to enjoy it. You don't need to know what pattern of bolter made on what forgeworld is being used to enjoy watching Death Of Hope.

That is exactly why I made this lexicanum, it is just sort of a primer, something to be used to give you an idea of what you're seeing and what is going on without being subject to an information overload. I want everyone else to be able to enjoy and appreciate my hobby just as much as I do, so you can consider this something to open up and check when you want to know more about something that happening within the game.

I hope you enjoy! -

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I am more used to writing guides the traditional way, otherwise known as "write it in notepad and then upload it to GameFAQs", and that usually leads to people having to be creative with out the structure the guide, usually using various ASCII symbols (such as the Fleur-De-Lis I'm sure you've noticed) when denoting specific sections, sub-sections, et cetera.

So, this guide is going to incorporate a little bit of both. The primary thing you need to know about using the Appendix (which you can find below) is that sections will often have "tags" denoted by the brackets, for example: [X.X] which you can use Ctrl+F to find that section quicker.

⚜ - Primary Section
♠ - Secondary Section
♣ - Tertiary Section
♦ - Quaternary Section
♥ - Quinary Section

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0.0: Preface
+ 0.1: Introduction
+ 0.2: How To Use This Guide
+ 0.3: Appendix
1.0: General Lore
+ 1.1: The Setting
+ 1.2: Imperium of Man
---- 1.A: Inquisition
---- 1.B: Adeptus Astartes
+ 1.3: Chaos
---- 1.C: Black Legion
---- 1.D: Tzeentch
---- 1.E: Nurgle
+ 1.4: Lore Of The
---- 1.F: The World of Graia
---- 1.G: Characters
2.0: Technology
+ 2.1: Armory
---- 2.A: Bolter
---- 2.B: Chainsword
---- 2.C: Shotgun
---- 2.D: Plasma Gun
---- 2.E: Heavy Bolter
---- 2.F: Melta Gun
---- 2.G: Vengeance Launcher
---- 2.H: Volkite Caliver
---- 2.I: Grav Cannon
---- 2.J: Frag Grenade
---- 2.K: Krak Grenade
---- 2.L: Vortex Grenade
+ 2.2: Relics (Power-Ups)
---- 2.M: Kraken Rounds
---- 2.N: Dragonfire Rounds
---- 2.O: Inferno Rounds
---- 2.P: Vengeance Rounds
+ 2.3: Miscellaneous
---- 2.Q: Servo Skull
---- 2.R: Power Armor
3.0: Bestiary
-- 3.1: Cultists
-- 3.2: Chaos Marines
-- 3.4: Daemons of Tzeentch
-- 3.5: Daemons of Nurgle
4.0: Glossary Of Terms

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"Forget the promise of progress and understanding, for in the grim darkness of the far future there is only war. There is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and slaughter, and the laughter of thirsting gods." - Warhammer: 40,000 Slogan

Warhammer 40K has a lore history that stretches from the dawn of human sentience to the 42nd Millennium. A vast portion of it's lore, and as the name would suggest most of the focus on the setting happens within the 41st Millennium. Please keep in mind that this is only a simplistic summary of the setting meant to act as a primer.

Humanity once had a golden age of technology and, arguably, were at one point the most powerful (still living) species in the galaxy. We had stretched our borders to and planted our flags and homes on planets at every distant corner of the Milky Way galaxy, and that includes settling an unfathomable amount of worlds in between. It is said by some that even fearsome species of xenos that terrorize humanity today, at that time knew better than to incur our ire, some even going as far as seeking treaties of peace and alliance.

Human technology had reached un-hitherto fathomable levels of advancement, being able to accomplish things beyond science fiction's wildest dreams. For a long time, human progress was rampant and could not be stopped. The word human was equally proud and feared throughout the entire Milky Way galaxy.

You have never seen these times. You were born in a dark, distant future built over the ashes of human glory. Ignorance has trumped knowledge, technological stagnation has replaced progress, and the culture at large has changed to where these things are considered positive traits worthy of praise, not signs of a fallen species. A shadow has fallen over the galaxy.

On desolate Earth, now known as Holy Terra, a planet of which it's crystal oceans and verdant emerald green forests are long gone and replaced with leviathan of a labyrinth of Gothic architecture buildings and cathedrals that reach up and pierce the rust-cloud ribboned sky, the God-Emperor of Mankind is jailed upon his golden throne. Though his body is broken and wracked by injuries sustained around 10,000 years ago, his mind and spirit remains alive, powered by the daily sacrifice of ten thousand human souls cursed (or gifted, depending on who you ask) with the ability to touch the warp with their minds. From his throne he watches over all of us, each and every human being both within his Imperium and still yet to be found that has not forsaken his name or turned their back on his blessed Empire.

The galaxy is a massive place, of incomprehensible size. There are untold legions of xenos, of many different species, many of whom would like nothing more than to see humanity dying, enslaved, as food, or all of the above.

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Throughout your time in Warhammer: 40,000 Boltgun you will be given an armory of weaponry to dispatch the heretics you encounter. All of the weapons herein are weapons that are manufactured (or maintained) by the Adeptus Mechanicus and thus, it is an entirely human arsenal. These weapons are all rare, and only occasionally will a standard individual or Guardsman be granted use of them for specialized purposes.

You will find the arsenal of the Imperium of Man to range in a vast variety, from weapons that work commonly to our own firearms to those on the extreme end of the science fiction genre. It is generally a good rule to regard more powerful weapons as also being of an increasing rarity.




The boltgun is the standard issue weapon for the Adeptus Astartes, and though it is primarily they who use it the weapon is occasionally given to other non Astartes who are deemed to have important duties. The boltgun comes in a multitude of patterns and forms, including that of the more 'smg' styled variant and a pistol type, though you will only encounter the latter in this game.

The boltgun is a fully automatic weapon that is hailed for it's destructive power, however it is the type of ammunition that it fires which makes this weapon so special.

The boltgun fires .75 rounds, launched via an initial ballistic spark similar to an autogun, however the round is self propelled via a miniature rocket built into the round itself. At the tip of a round is a small shaped explosive charge set to detonate a few milliseconds after impact to give the round enough time to cut through armor. It's tip is usually (though not always) coated with an adamantium outer shell with a diamantine tip and depleted deuterium core in order to give it a high degree of armor piercing capabilities.

The boltgun is far too heavy and large to be accurately wielded by someone that is not an Astartes, which has led to the development of smaller caliber boltguns for specialists outside of the Adeptus Astartes that use them.



The Astartes Assault Shotgun operates more or less like a normal shotgun, however it is simple upscaled to be larger and powerful. The Astartes Assault Shotgun comes in many patterns, however the one the player uses in the game is an individual shell fed weapon without a semi-automatic function. Much like the boltgun, it has several variants of ammunition which can be used, however the type of ammunition used by the player in the game is a standard pellet shot, though the pellets are made of depleted deuterium and fitted with a very small shaped charge which is set up explode immediately on impact. Without specialized ammunition (which is not in the game) however it does not carry similar armor piercing qualities that the boltgun has, and can often taken multiple shots to finally chew through your standard Astartes power armor.



Unlike the majority of other weapons found in this arsenal, the plasma gun is - while still rare - perhaps the only weapon you will find that is also in fairly regular use by the Imperial Guard (though make no mistake they are still uncommon).

Keep in mind this is not your classic retro shooter plasma gun, it was not meant to fire automatically and it is a bad idea to attempt to do so. Most Plasma Guns seen today are not newly manufactured and have rather been maintained for the last several hundred or possibly even thousands of years, something that stands as a testament to the quality of their design.

Fueled by "flasks" (canisters), the Plasma Gun fires a super heated charge of hydrogen plasmatic gas capable of melting through even the toughest armor. The weapon works by drawing liquid hydrogen from it's flasks, super heating the gas to several tens of thousands of degrees Fahrenheit, spinning it into a bolt (or ball) of plasma and attaching a electromagnetic pulse to the center of the gas to keep it from dissipating the moment it leaves the barrel.

The downside to the Plasma Gun is that it accumulates an extreme amount of heat in a very short amount of time. Cooling rods (the blue thing you see at the top of the gun) and heat resistant metals are incorporated into it's design in order to mitigate this, but even still the weapon is dangerous to attempt rapid firing or "charging up" the plasma bolt to which can easily result in extreme injury, death, or importantly, the destruction of the weapon and loss of a rare piece of armament to the Imperium that only few Forge Worlds can construct in the modern era.




The Heavy Bolter is, for all intents and purposes, a larger variant of the standard Boltgun which is meant to fire larger or heavier rounds, usually when a regular Boltgun cannot dispatch an enemy quickly.

The rounds fired by the Heavy Bolter have all the same parts as a standard bolter round, however it is instead .998 caliber, has a more powerful rocket integrated into the round, and a larger shaped explosive charge. More emphasis is also placed on the metal of the round, using stronger or purer variants to ensure better armor piercing qualities. It's high rate of fire makes it preferable for enemy suppression and use against light vehicles.

Primarily a rocket salvo mounted on top of vehicles, the forge world of Graia has developed a smaller and more personalized infantry pattern.

Capable of firing a semi-automatic salvo of ammunition, it fires anti-personnel fragmentation ammunition that embeds itself deep into it's target before exploding, with a time charged within the ammunition set to wait a few seconds after impact before detonation in order to pierce through armor. Not much is known about this variant.



The Melta Gun is the infantry based variant of the "Melta Weapon", a heat based energy weapon used by the Imperium of Man, usually deployed as anti-vehicle weapons as it's extreme temperatures of heat can easily and quickly reduce even the most dense metals and synthetic materials to slag.

Not to be confused with a flamethrower (or "Flamer" in the 40k universe), a Melta Gun is an energy based weapon that works by firing several lances of energy, each lance essentially being a super-hot ray with the capability to easily melt through even extremely touch armor, it's only downside being that it often has a short "kill range" and is less effective the further the target.

The Melta Gun uses pressurized canisters of Promethium fuel, in which the weapon creates a small fusion reaction within the canister. This results in super heated lances of energy firing from the weapon's "barrel", each lance being able to reach up to 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Among the rarest weapons in the Imperium, the knowledge to manufacture Volkite arms have been thought of in most areas of the Imperium as long lost, as so the current ever dwindling stock is merely maintained as Volkite weapons have not been manufactured en mass since the days of the Horus Heresy. Aside from being rare, the Volkite Caliver is also one of the oldest weapons of the Imperium, dating all the way back to the Dark Age of Technology.

Volkite weapons are incredibly complex, and incredibly powerful, with singular blasts being able to easily penetrate the ceramite armor of a Space Marine. Due to the fact that the knowledge of how to manufacture these weapons has been lost, we do not know exactly how they work... however we do know what effects they have on both inorganic and organic materials.

Besides it's powerful armor piercing capabilities, the Volkite is perhaps best known for it's incredible destructive capabilities on organic materials/living beings.

The Volkite fires a lance (also known as a beam) from it's barrel, and upon contact with organic material the lance is known to produce deflagrating effects (that is to say, the part of the body that was hit immediately bursts in a wide radius around the center of the beam, combusting due to the amount of pressurized heat being channeled through the body).

It is believed that the deflagration occurs due to thermodynamic heat transfer, in which the fired beam of thermal energy transfers large amounts of thermobaric heat to each successive cold layer of tissue in such rapid succession that the immediate onset of large amounts of pressurized heat interacting with an object much colder than it causes the material (especially organic) to ignite, the sudden ignition of flesh, blood, and tissue and it's pressure within the body causing an immediate subsonic combustion due to compressed heat.

To put it simply, a incredible lance of heat somewhere in the hundreds of thousands Fahrenheit wise makes contact with skin. Before the heat can even burn through the skin, the blood and tissue behind the skin is brought to an extreme temperature far past the boiling point. The super heated pressurized boiling blood and tissue cause that region of the body to explode long in a matter of nanoseconds before the thermal lance of heat could begin to burn away the layers of flesh.

To put it even more simply, the Volkite Caliver is a heat ray gun.



The Graviton Gun, labelled in the game as a "Grav Cannon" (which is usually reserved for Grav weaponry mounted on vehicles) is a weapon built by the Adeptus Mechanicus based primarily off older Dark Age of Technology weapons and blueprints, essentially being a more simplified and reverse engineered variant of ancient lost technology. Even still with the ability to manufacture them, Forge Worlds producing Grav Weapons are exceedingly rare and so the stockpile is extremely limited.

The Graviton Gun works by manipulating the field of gravity around the target, either making a target much heavier (and thus giving it increased mass) or much lighter depending on it's settings. When used for war, it is primarily used against armored targets and for siege purposes.

The weapon works by firing a field of graviton particles, usually to increase the mass, and thus weight, of a target. This allows for targets inside heavy suits of armor or vehicles to be crushed under it's own weight. For example, a target in Astartes power armor could be crushed inside of their suit, causing bones to shatter and organs to rupture, due to a sudden massive increase of weight upon the target. Likewise, heavily fortified buildings or vehicles can be effected similarly, causing the building to collapse in upon itself or the vehicle to be crushed like aluminum.



A motorized chain weapon, the Chainsword is exactly what you would think it is, a chainsaw reconfigured to be used as a sword. Using sets of chained metal teeth made from adamantium and honed to a mono-molecular edge, upon being "revved" the chains holding the "teeth" of the sword will begin to run in directions opposite to that of the chain next to it. Due to the materials used in it's construction, as well as the practice of honing the edges of the teeth down with molecular crafting the chainsword can cut through most forms of armor fairly easily, and will even dig through the toughest armor given enough time. It is powered using a canister of promethium gas.

There is not much to tell here, it is a simple frag grenade (albeit it's destructive capability increased several degrees much like anything else in Warhammer 40K). It's a grenade with a shaped charge and metallic coating, allowing the coating to turn into deadly fragments sent spinning in a multitude of directions upon detonation.

While the frag grenade is primarily meant to be used as an anti-personnel device, the Krak Grenade was designed for destroying armored opponents and fortifications, holding a much larger charge to blast through armor and detonating on impact rather via a timed fuse.

Grav Grenades aren't really a thing mentioned in Imperium lore, however one can assume they work similarly to the Graviton Gun.