Special Weapon Effects

Found in the stats boxes of guns are sometimes cryptic or humorous messages. These lines indicate a certain effect on the gun. The text itself often gives a hint of what that special ability does, and is also often a reference to a video game, movie, famous quote or any number of things.

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 effects may not be 100% accurate.

Please note that ALL weapons vary in quality, except Eridian weapons, which are always green (though newer Eridian guns from the 3rd DLC may be blue or orange). Boss and quest weapons can be from green up to purple, with blue being the most common. Weapons will also vary in accuracy, fire rate, ammo count, etc., based upon what weapon is the basic model. For instance, some revolvers have two rounds. These revolvers generally do more damage than three or six round revolvers. Essentially, orange weapons modify the base gun with their special modifiers.

Many of these descriptions may never be found on weapons in-game because another file has marked them as inactive. 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 (Reference to "The Noisy Cricket" from "Men in Black".)
• 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 Gun, Eridian Ball Blaster, Eridian Mercurial Blaster (Reference to the sound people make when imitating laser guns.)

Inactive Weapons

• Anybody need a light?, Eridian Fire Storm (Reference to a line said by the Firebat unit in Starcraft.)
• Getting near this thing makes your hair stand on end., Eridian Shock Rifle
• Hold on...it does what?, Eridian Elemental Rifle (Reference to Daft Punks' Electroma while their faces are melting by the sun heat.)
• No face shall go unmelted., Eridian Acid Storm (Reference to Warcraft's 'Facemelting' Mind Flay skill, itself an Indiana Jones reference)

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC

• Bad is good. BABY! Eridian Firebomb Fires incendiary blob with large explosive radius. (Reference to dialogue by The Evil Midnight Bomber What Bombs At Midnight, a villian in the animated series "The Tick")
• 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, thus causing "fire in the sky" as per the lyrics of the Deep Purple song "Smoke on the Water".
• 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 (Reference to the "Fireball" spell from the D&D RPG system, which required bat guano as a material component in order to be cast)
• 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.

Combat Rifles

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. Seem to have a chance to Daze also.
• Hold your ground... Forever., Tediore Guardian: Ammo regeneration.
• Ogre SMASH!, Atlas Ogre: Heavy Explosion damage, usually x3 or x4. (Reference to line commonly spoken by Marvel Comics' Character The Hulk: "Hulk--SMASH!".)
• The destructor has come, Hyperion Destroyer: Entire magazine is fired in one burst while scoped. (Reference to the character Gozer the Gozerien in Ghost Busters.)
• TORGUE! Bastard Guns for Bastard People!, Torgue Bastard: Increased damage but lower accuracy. (Reference to a speech made by the character Corky in the movie Waiting For Guffman.)
• War is in your blood, The Meat Grinder: Speeds up fire rate after killing someone. (Reference to Rambo)
• Dragon Fire!, S&S Draco: Chance to set enemies on fire, 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 DLC

• 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
• Useful for kicking Hector's bitch ass., Ajax's Spear: Near-sniper accuracy. (Reference to Greek mythology.)

Repeaters

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.)
• 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.(Reference to a quote in the film Judge Dredd by the protagonist.)
• 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. (Reference to John Woo's films, where characters never seem to reload.) 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.
• Omnia vincit amor, Lady Finger: +100% critical damage. (A Latin phrase from Eclogue X by Virgil meaning "Love conquers all.")
• Pain Heals., Atlas Troll: Regen health for 1HP/sec when holding in hand. (Reference to a quote from The Replacements. "Pain heals...chicks dig scars...glory is forever.")
• Slice Slice, Hyperion Reaper: +300% Melee Damage, 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 (Reference to the film Robocop and a quote by the eponymous character.)

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC

• 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: Gets a power boost when your health is low.
• You can run, but you can't hide., Vladof Stalker: Bullets ricochet several times.

Revolvers

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. Explosive damage. Bullets are visible, somewhat slower-moving. Zig-zagpath means they can/will swerve around targets at some distances/ranges. (Reference to the stock character of someone humiliated, shamed, etc. taking vengeance)
• Give Sick, Pestilent Defiler: High corrosive damage, can spread to other nearby targets. (Reference to the film "Monty Python and the Holy Grail".)
• It's a helluva thing..., Jakobs Unforgiven: +200% Critical Hit Damage. Either no, or a VERY miniscule chance to fire 2+ bullets (Testing in progress). Also seems to knockback the enemy, with more knockback with more bullets (Masher accessory). The flavor text is part of a line from the film "Unforgiven": "It's a helluva thing, killin' a man. You take away everything he's got, and everything he's ever gonna have."
• Long and Strong, Dahl Anaconda: Increased accuracy and power. (Reference to the Sir Mix-A-Lot song, "Baby Got Back". The lines "I'm long and I'm strong, and I'm down to get the friction on... My anaconda don't want none unless you've got buns, hun.")
• 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 DLC

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

Rocket Launchers

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 (Reference to Captain Ahab's line in the movie Moby Dick (1956) "He rises".). Harder to aim, but very useful for hitting enemies behind cover because missles 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 gun is a mock recreation of the Unreal Tournament weapon "The Redeemer" which fires remote controlled nuclear warheads. "Monster Kill" was coined by the Unreal Tournament announcer to refer to several kills in quick succession)
• The Unstoppable Force, Maliwan Rhino: Rocket will explode in flight, potentially multiple times, before reaching the target and detonating.(Reference to the Unstoppable Force Paradox.)

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC

• 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.

Shotguns

Active Weapons

• Ahhh... Fresh meat!, Hyperion Butcher: 5-shot burst. Fast. (Reference to a quote by the recurring character The Butcher in Blizzard Entertainment's games, found in Diablo and Warcraft III.)
• 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.(Reference to a quote in Army of Darkness(Evil Dead 3), the main character Ash's catchphrase "Groovy" and his favorite shotgun, which he calls his "Boomstick".)
• Bring out your Dead, Maliwan Crux: High corrosive damage.(Reference to the film "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 plus sign, Crux being Latin for cross. The plus shape is predefined and unaffected by the weapon's accuracy.
• 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. (Reference to the mythical five-headed beast.)
• 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.
• 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 DLC

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

Sniper Rifles

Active Weapons

• A hunter lives among the stars..., S&S Orion: Each shot ricochets into three slower projectiles, causing shock damage on each hit. (Reference to the constellation Orion, "The Hunter".)
• BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!, Hyperion Invader: Five round burst when scoped. (Reference to a line from Mr. Blonde in Reservoir Dogs)
• Careful... you might put someone's eye out., Rider: Scopeless sniper with high clip/fire rate (Reference to A Christmas Story and the Red Ryder BB Gun. Also a reference to the Rakk Hive, since you can only get the gun during the quest to kill the Rakk Hive and the Rakk Hive's weak points are its eyes.
• For the Motherland., Vladof Surkov: Greatly increased reload speed and +%200 CRIT hit. (Reference to Mikhail Surkov, a World War II Russian sniper said to have made over 700 kills.)
• I have you in my eye, sir., Atlas Cyclops: Massive zoom and double bullet velocity according to http://blmodding.wikidot.com. (Reference to "The Madness of King George".)
• I LIKE IT!, Torgue Cobra: High explosive damage. (Reference to the "Cobra Assault Cannon" from Robocop, and comment of one of its users, Emil Antonowsky.)
• Makes their brain hurt, Jakobs Skullmasher: Fires multiple projectiles (like a shotgun) and deals massive critical damage. (Reference to Monty Python's Flying Circus.)
• 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. (Reference to the Hawaiian goddess of fire and lava, Pele.)
• Sniper Killer... Qu'est que c'est, Dahl Penetrator: Fully Automatic. (Reference to The Talking Heads' song Psycho Killer, with the line, "Psycho killer, qu'est que c'est?".)
• The cutting edge, Reaver's Edge: 2nd to highest scope zoom in the game (after the Cyclops).
• Thwack!, Nailer: Higher critical 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 DLC

• Good Touch, Kyros' Power: Portion of damage done is used to heal the shooter, damage increase, bullets deal explosive damage but cannot explode.
• That's my girl..., Jakobs Bessie: +500% critical hit damage, accuracy is unaffected by Mad Moxxi's "Close combat" modifier. (Probably a reference to Colonial era muskets called "Brown Bess" or "Bown Bessie".)

Submachine Guns

Active Weapons

• Hallelujah, Tediore Savior: Ammo regeneration. (Possibly a reference to the song, Sin Wagon, that goes: "Praise the lord and pass the ammunition")
• 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: Improved crosshair accuracy. Doesn't seem to do additional critical damage as widely believed. (Name is likely a reference to the song "Smack My Bitch Up" by The Prodigy. )
• 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. (Reference to the film "The Fifth Element".)
• The ultimate close quarters feline., Dahl Wildcat: Extended magazine with reduced accuracy, rounds ricochet.
• We don't need no water..., Maliwan HellFire: High fire damage that stacks and triggers on every shot (it does not trigger on every shot in the 360 version of the game but rather is dependent on your elemental effect chance). (Reference to "The Roof is on Fire" by Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three, covered and sampled by many artists including Coal Chamber's "Sway" and Bloodhound Gang's "Fire Water Burn".)

From The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC

• Flee the wave!, Maliwan Tsunami: Rounds shoot with a sideways motion, ricochets, alternates between Shock and Corrosive damage. (Reference to the advice given to people facing the real world disaster phenomenon.)
• Phooon!, Typhoon: Increased fire rate, bullets ricochet and split into 3 swirling bullets after a time, forming a trident shape.