Fallout 4 weapons Unlike previous installments , in " Fallout 4 " , weapons fall under three classifications : Normal , legendary , and unique . Normal weapons have no special statistics on them whatsoever . Legendary weapons come with random bonuses applied to them , and are only dropped by legendary enemies . Unique weapons are weapons that are already named and will always retain the same special bonus . Uniques are typically either bought from merchants or are quest rewards . Normal and legendary weapons will change their name when mods are applied , unique weapons will not . All stats are given with standard weapon modifications . Energy weapons . Other . All these weapons count as non automatic weapons and thus work with either Gunslinger , Rifleman or Sniper respectively , except the Cryolator which is counted as a heavy gun and thus works with Heavy Gunner . Radiation weapons . These weapons produce radiation damage , including both " direct damage " from explosions and " damage over time " from exposure and poisoning . There is some variance in how damage is dealt within this class of weapon ; please consult each weapon ' s page for specific details . Also , the radiation page explains the unique ways that this kind of damage is handled by the game . These are affected by the perk Nuclear Physicist in terms of radiation damage . Poison weapons . Poison weapons utilize the poison damage type to deal ongoing damage to targets . Explosives . Explosives have a maximum range of 93 . They seem to hit an invisible wall at their maximum range . Explosives benefit from the Demolition Expert perk . Melee weapons . Damage found in the table is base damage , every point of Strength adds 10 % to it . Several perks can further increase the damage displayed for a melee weapon . Bladed . Bladed weapons can dismember limbs of humanoid opponents , permanently damaging the limb and disarming the target . Like all melee weapons , bladed weapons benefit from Big Leagues and Strength . Blunt . Blunt weapons tend to stagger opponents more frequently than bladed weapons . Like all melee weapons , blunt weapons benefit from Big Leagues and Strength . Fist weapons . Fist weapons benefit from the Iron Fist perk as well as from Strength . Note that fist weapons cannot be used while wearing power armor . Renaming weapons . In " Fallout 4 " , the player character is able to rename any weapon , including unique weapons , at any weapons workbench . Renaming weapons does not affect any weapon stats . This primarily adds a level of personalizing to weapons and can help avoid accidentally disassembling a favored weapon . Mods . Weapons may be modified in " Fallout 4 " . Each weapon has modification ' slots ' ( e . g . barrel , grip , magazine , sights ) that may be modified with increasingly powerful or useful mods by the player character based on their perks . However , the player character may salvage useful mods that are not yet available via the player character ' s perk level by simply modifying any weapon that already has the mod of interest . By replacing the mod of interest with any available mod the original mod goes into inventory and may then be used to alter the player character ' s chosen weapon without regard for their perk level . Unique weapons do not offer this capability ; their special mods are ' reserved ' and since they are unique , no other examples are available to be salvaged . Notes . If a player character puts unique and legendary weapons in a container in a settlement , nearby NPCs , like settlers or even enemy attackers , can randomly take them and they may be irretrievable . Therefore , access to personal containers should be restricted , either by obstructing the expected path used by them to reach the container , or by the use of powered doors , holes , floating structures , etc .