Special Weapon Effects

Red Text
Found in the stats boxes of guns are sometimes cryptic or humorous messages. These lines indicate a certain effect inherent to the gun. The text itself often gives a hint of what that special ability does, and is almost always a pop-culture reference.

Sometimes the description relates to the boss or enemy who dropped the weapon. Such is the case with the description for The Clipper which reads "Don't Drop It... Might Lose A Toe." The Clipper belongs to the boss Nine-Toes and is speculated to be the reason for his namesake.

The messages can be found in the borderlands game files, and are listed below by type of weapon, and then alphabetically. Some of these interpretations may not be 100% accurate.

All weapons vary in quality, except Eridian Weapons, which are always green (though newer Eridian guns from the The Secret Armory of General Knoxx may be blue or orange). Boss and mission reward weapons can be from green to purple quality, with blue being the most common. Weapons will also vary in accuracy, fire rate, ammo count, etc. depending on the model of the weapon. For instance, a two-shot revolver will do more damage than a six-shot revolver of the same level with the same barrel. Essentially, orange weapons modify the base gun with their specific parts and their title (which adds rarity and red text).

Many of these descriptions may never be found on weapons in-game because another file has marked them as inactive. Some inactive weapons can be created by modding.

Alien Rifles
Note that flavor text for Eridian weapons is marked differently and applies to the entire class of alien weapon.

Active Weapons

 * 010011110100110101000111, Eridian Cannon (In binary, it is the ASCII encoding for "OMG".)
 * I feel like I'm gonna break this thing., Eridian Lightning
 * Lightning never strikes the same place twice, but it can strike freaking everywhere!, Eridian Thunder Storm Fires multiple electrical projectiles like a shotgun.
 * Pew Pew Pew!, Eridian Blaster, Eridian Wave Blaster, Eridian Ball Blaster, Eridian Mercurial Blaster

Inactive Weapons

 * Anybody need a light? , Eridian Fire Storm 
 * Getting near this thing makes your hair stand on end., Eridian Shock Rifle
 * Hold on...it does what?, Eridian Elemental Rifle
 * No face shall go unmelted., Eridian Acid Storm

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Bad is good. BABY! Eridian Firebomb Fires incendiary blob with large explosive radius.
 * For when you want to splat something. Eridian Splat Gun Fires a ball of acid that bursts into three smaller balls on impact.
 * Full of electric death. Eridian Rifle Fires small, lightning balls that bounce off surfaces and deals additional electric damage.
 * I think you have something on your shoe. Eridian Glob Gun Fires a ball of acid in an arching trajectory.
 * Smoke on the water... Eridian Flaregun Fires invisible bullets that go in an arching trajectory and cause fire damage on impact.
 * Splat! Sploch! Spluch! Eridian Rolling Spatter Gun Fires balls of acid like the Glob Gun that bounce.
 * You'll need some bat guano... Eridian Fireball
 * 010011110100110101000111 Eridian Mega Cannon Similar to the original cannon, but more powerful.
 * For when you want to splat the living shit out of something Eridian Stampeding Spatter Gun Fires a corrosive projectile that bounces around.

Active Weapons

 * 2 more bullets make all the difference, Dahl Raven: Five round bursts instead of three.
 * A watchful eye, The Sentinel: Increased zoom.
 * Guns of the Revolution will never fall silent!, Vladof Revolution: Extended magazine.
 * Hold your ground... Forever., Tediore Guardian: Ammo regeneration.
 * Ogre SMASH!, Atlas Ogre: Heavy Explosion damage, usually x3 or x4.
 * The destructor has come, Hyperion Destroyer: Entire magazine is fired in one burst while scoped.
 * TORGUE! Bastard Guns for Bastard People!, Torgue Bastard: Increased damage but lower accuracy.
 * War is in your blood, The Meat Grinder: Speeds up fire rate after killing someone.
 * Dragon Fire!, S&S Draco: Chance to set enemies on fire, 3x-4x Incendiary. Very high magazine capacity. A glitch in the game prevents the gun from being spawned with the proper title and red text ability in its card; otherwise, it does drop in the game.

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Poison in your veins, S&S Serpens: Highly extended magazine capacity, high corrosive chance and damage, bullets fly in sideways snake-like wave pattern.
 * RAR! BRAR BRAR!, The Chopper: Immense magazine capacity, Fires entire magazine in one trigger pull.
 * Uncommon Power, Tediore Avenger: High zoom, +50% Critical Hit Damage, single-shot, ammo regeneration
 * Useful for kicking Hector's bitch ass., Ajax's Spear: Near-sniper accuracy.

Active Weapons

 * 12 bullets invade your skull, Hyperion Invader: Entire magazine is fired in one burst while zoomed.
 * A gift from Papa Krom, Krom's Sidearm: Fires three-round bursts while zoomed.
 * Ammo is no longer an issue., Tediore Protector: Ammo regeneration.
 * Big Tony Says "Hi", S&S Thanatos: Extended magazine
 * Bring the HEAT!, Maliwan Firehawk: High fire damage and a chance to cause splash fire damage.
 * Don't drop it... might lose a toe., The Clipper: +100% melee damage (Reference to the gun being Nine-Toes's gun beforehand. He presumably dropped it and lost a toe.) Also the only gun with both +melee damage and an element.
 * Double Whammy., S&S Gemini: Fires a two round burst each with a two bullet spread. That is, it shoots 4 rounds that cost 2 ammo. May have decreased or inaccurate accuracy rating from modifier.
 * Feel the Sting, Dahl Hornet: Gun will be 200% burst fire count and corrosive.
 * Sometimes, I Forget To Reload, The Dove: Gun doesn't use ammo. Note: It becomes a Hornet if spawned with the Hornet accessory, with the effects of both the Dove and Hornet. These can be acquired through the mission "Godless Monsters" or by killing Slither on Playthrough 2.5.
 * Never stop shooting!, Vladof Rebel: Extended magazine & boosted rate of fire.
 * Omnia vincit amor, Lady Finger: +100% critical damage. (Means "Love conquers all.")
 * Pain Heals., Atlas Troll: Regen health for 1HP/sec when holding in hand.
 * Slice Slice, Hyperion Reaper: +300% Melee Damage(note; the melee damage boost is broken), killing an enemy with a melee attack while this weapon is equipped will restore some HP.
 * Vengeance is yours, Vladof Vengeance: Chance to bypass shields.
 * Your move, Creep., Torgue Violator Fires three-round bursts of 3 bullets per shot.

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Bling!, Knoxx's Gold: Gold plated weapon, extremely high value.
 * Say "Hello", Chiquito Amigo: (mandatory Scarface reference) Extended mags, higher fire rate.
 * There is no escape, Hyperion Nemesis: Chance for shock and corrosive damage.
 * War is the final option, Athena's Wisdom: Increased accuracy and critical hit damage.
 * You can run, but you can't hide., Vladof Stalker: Bullets ricochet several times.

Active Weapons

 * 'A beast of many forms - Fire, Lightning, and Poison', Atlas Chimera: Has a chance to either ignite, corrode, or electrocute its target. Bullets themselves deal Explosive damage.
 * Fools! They called me maaaad!, Madjack: Bullets move in horizontal zig-zag pattern and ricochet. Deals Explosive damage and has very high rate of fire. Bullets are visible, somewhat slower-moving. Zig-zag path means they can and will swerve around targets at some distances/ranges.
 * Give Sick, Pestilent Defiler: High corrosive damage, can spread to other nearby targets.
 * It's a helluva thing..., Jakobs Unforgiven: +100% Critical Hit Damage (displays as +200% since all Revolvers have a hidden baseline boost of +100% critical hit damage).
 * Long and Strong, Dahl Anaconda: Increased accuracy and power.
 * May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't., Atlas Patton: Higher damage. (Quote from Gen. George S. Patton.)
 * Unending Firepower, Tediore Equalizer: Ammo regeneration

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Your life is mine, Atlas Aries: Electric elemental damage and shots that hit heal you similar to Transfusion Grenades.

Active Weapons

 * Beware the Horde!, Vladof Mongol: Fires a large rocket which in turn fires off smaller rockets as it travels. (refers to the barbarian "hordes" of the mongols)
 * Death rains from above, Hyperion Nidhogg: Rockets have an MIRV effect and split into multiple rockets that hit the ground after a certain distance. The weapon will also have a white text label of "Airburst Rockets" (possibly hidden by the four-line item text limit).
 * Gonna cook someone today, The Roaster: High fire damage and creates a small mushroom cloud.
 * It rises!, Leviathan: Rockets are affected by gravity . Harder to aim, but very useful for hitting enemies behind cover because missiles will arc downwards in their path.
 * Monster Kill!, Torgue Redemption: Fires a slow moving rocket with a larger blast radius than typical rocket launchers and uses multiple rounds per shot.
 * The Unstoppable Force, Maliwan Rhino: Rocket will explode in flight, potentially multiple times, before reaching the target and detonating.

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Take 'em UNDER, Torgue Undertaker: Increased damage and magazine size.

Grenade Launchers (Inactive)
The Borderlands localization files contain information on grenade launchers and some flavor text that may accompany them. No true grenade launchers can be obtained within the game currently, but the resources and weapon parts do exist for them, and their unique weapon parts are functional.
 * Artillery Strike!, Dahl Onslaught: Burst fire six grenades.
 * I feel a storm coming, S&S Rainmaker: MIRV-style shot
 * It Rises!, Atlas Leviathan: Fires a grenade with an extremely large blast radius that uses multiple rounds per shot.
 * Mister Jakobs sends his regards, Jakobs Terror: Projectile is very powerful, has a larger explosion, and is very slow.
 * Stubbed, The Big Toe: Projectiles fire faster, have less recoil, and produce smaller explosions (hence the term "stubbed") referring to Jakob's Terror. Initially meant to be dropped from Nine Toes. Dahl is the intended manufacturer.

Active Weapons

 * Ahhh... Fresh meat!, Hyperion Butcher: Five-shot burst. Fast.
 * Beyond Groovy, Boom Stick: Fires entire magazine in one click as a burst, and each round is a rocket. Fires the number of rounds in the gun's default clip. If the clip is expanded by abilities/class mods you will have the left over rounds to fire in another burst.
 * Bring out your Dead, Maliwan Crux: High corrosive damage. (A reference from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail")
 * Cross their heart, hope they die., S&S Crux: Explosive, usually x2. Spread pattern is that of a large cross, Crux being Latin for cross. The red text is a reference to the common phrase "cross my heart, hope to die".
 * Drop the Hammer!, Vladof Hammer: Explosive, usually x3. Spread pattern is in the shape of a hammer. May take unloading an entire magazine to see the effect.
 * Five heads of Death, Atlas Hydra: Spread pattern is five distinct horizontal groupings.
 * Have a nice day!, Torgue Friendly Fire: Incendiary, usually x2. Spread appears to make smiley face patterns.
 * Holy crap! It shoots rockets!, Shoots a rocket instead of shotgun pellets. Colored white instead of red and may appear in addition to red text on combat shotguns (shotguns with revolver magazine). If so, it will negate the red text ability.
 * I can do this all day..., Tediore Defender: Ammo regeneration.
 * It's a painful thing, The Blister: Corrosive damage and scope.
 * One Bad Dog!, Dahl Bulldog: Extended (20-round) magazine. Fast reload.
 * Ride the Wave, Dude!, T.K's Wave: Pellet pattern is a wide rectangle. Pellets are blue and visible. Pellets themselves oscillate up and down in a wave-like fashion. Pellets are slower than normal shotgun blast. Pellets will also ricochet one time off of any surface or object.
 * Sniper Rifles are for Chumps., Jakobs Striker: High accuracy and pellets cluster closer together, +30% critical hit damage.
 * The Legend Lives, Sledge's Shotgun: Knocks back target several feet and 10000% burst fire count.

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * This dog bites, Dahl Jackal: Fires like a grenade launcher.

Active Weapons

 * A hunter lives among the stars..., S&S Orion: Each shot ricochets into three slower projectiles, causing shock damage on each hit.
 * BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!, Hyperion Invader: Five round burst when scoped.
 * Careful... you might put someone's eye out., Rider: Scopeless sniper with high clip/fire rate.
 * For the Motherland., Vladof Surkov: Greatly increased reload speed.
 * I have you in my eye, sir., Atlas Cyclops: 5.2x weapon zoom, double bullet velocity.
 * I LIKE IT!, Torgue Cobra: High explosive damage.
 * Makes their brain hurt, Jakobs Skullmasher: Fires multiple projectiles (like a shotgun) and deals massive critical damage.
 * Pele demands a sacrifice!, Maliwan Volcano: High chance that rounds fired will be high-yield explosive incendiary rounds, able to ignite enemies near the target.
 * Sniper Killer... Qu'est que c'est, Dahl Penetrator: Fully Automatic.
 * The cutting edge, Reaver's Edge: 2nd to highest scope zoom in the game (after the Cyclops).
 * Thwack!, Nailer: Slighty increased crit damage.
 * Why don't you go shoot yourself an elephant?, Whitting's Elephant Gun: Increased damage with no scope. Bugs Bunny reference.

Inactive Weapons

 * Trick Shot, S&S Orion: Unknown. The localization files say it is an S&S "Delete" so this may have been removed and replaced by A hunter lives among the stars....

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Good Touch, Kyros' Power: Portion of damage done is used to heal the shooter, damage increase, bullets deal explosive damage.
 * That's my girl..., Jakobs Bessie: +500% critical hit damage, accuracy is unaffected by Mad Moxxi's "Close combat" modifier.

Active Weapons

 * Hallelujah, Tediore Savior: Ammo regeneration.
 * I spy with my little eye..., Hyperion The Spy: Sports much higher (sniper like) accuracy when zoomed than comparable scoped SMG.
 * Smack 'em, Hyperion Bitch: It should add critical hit damage, but its effect is broken.
 * Tear it up, Torgue Gasher: Fires 3 round bursts.
 * The lead wind blows, Bone Shredder: Fires 2 round spreads at the cost of 2 ammo.
 * The ultimate close quarters feline., Dahl Wildcat: Extended magazine with reduced accuracy.
 * We don't need no water..., Maliwan Hellfire: High fire damage that stacks and triggers on every shot.

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

 * Flee the wave!, Maliwan Tsunami: Rounds shoot with a sideways motion, ricochets, alternating between Shock and Corrosive damage.
 * Phooon!, Typhoon: Increased fire rate, bullets ricochet and split into 3 swirling bullets after a time, forming a trident shape.