The technology of the 41st millennium has spawned innumerable weapons of destruction, ranging from the simple but efficient laspistol to the barely controllable energies of the plasma cannon. In this section we'll describe how special rules and characteristics reflect the differences between different weapons.
Different weapons have unique characteristics when fired. Some guns rattle off a burst of shots enabling them to hit multiple targets, others may fire a blast of energy or shell that explodes on impact and can kill several things at once. These qualities are represented by a weapon's type. The different weapon types are blast, flame, rapid fire, pistol, heavy, barrage and linked.
In Warhammer 40,000 weapons that affect an area are represented by a template. There are three templates: a long tear drop shaped template (flame template), a circular 3" template (Blast marker) and a circular 5" template (Ordnance marker). When the weapon is fired place the relevant template on the tabletop and any models fully or partially covered by it are potential casualties. Some weapons that use a template have the word 'Template' instead of a number for their range.