Shell Casings?

[phazonjunkie]

I've noticed that in much of the artwork depicting marines and reapers, (both official blizzard artwork and in several 'frontline' stories) whenever terran infantry fire their weapons, ejected shell casings are shown. Now I don't exactly claim to be a physics professor but seeing as the marines use gauss rifles, and reapers use dual gauss pistols, that would imply that bullets are accelerated through magnetic induction rather than conventional explosive ballistics. As such that would completely negate the need for a primer and an explosive charge. therefore, the rounds in either instance would be caseless right?

So what gives? I mean come on, the 'rule of cool' only goes so far....

[Gradius]

You have to understand that the StarCraft universe is full of plot holes, inconsistencies and all-around paradoxes.




Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating, but still, this is one of those things. Just like how in-game Mutalisks fire glave wurm creatures, but everywhere else they fire energy/acid blasts.

[phazonjunkie]

You have to understand that the StarCraft universe is full of plot holes, inconsistencies and all-around paradoxes.




Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating, but still, this is one of those things. Just like how in-game Mutalisks fire glave wurm creatures, but everywhere else they fire energy/acid blasts.

Sigh....I suppose that's to be expected...to an extent. The more complex/fleshed out a universe/mythos gets, the more likely you are to run across contradictions and inconsistencies, hell, just look at the giant clusterf[bleep] the Marvel and DC universes have become.

Even so.....

[Pandonetho]

Yeah, this is something that is easily overlooked. I mean, I never would of thought about that to be honest, I don't think many artists (they're artists after all right?) would really know about this kind of stuff. A shame really.

[newcomplex]

Its not an inconsistency. Its not a paradox. Those require contradictions, while in this scenario, we have simply not been given an explanation. Metzen could totally pull something out of his ass. I mean, gauss rifles in general defy all logic. Current technology needs like a 15 meter acceleration chamber to get a bullet to go supersonic through gause tech. (And due to the nature of gauss, eventually the force would become so massive so that the bullet simply just shatters, so their is a upper echolon on its speed).

We don't know the purpose of the shell. But in the absence of both an explanation nor a contradiction, it is simply just an unknown (like how protoss reproduce)

Like here is my explanation I pulled out of my ass. Since gauss relies by transferring magnetic force between two magnet placed next to each other (simple explanation would be I set up three magnets in a row, the space between them is just enough so that a marble will not be attracted to the next magnet. I then push a marble, so it collides with the magnet in front of it. This transfers its kinetic energy to the next marble, causing it to move towards the next magnet, transferring its kinetic energy+the potential energy of the magnet). Eventually, the kinetic energy becomes so rediculous that it just shatters the next barriers. The shell acts as a buffer so the bullet is not damaged.

[Norfindel]

Yeah, there would be no cases being ejected from the weapons, nor any kind of flash when they shoot. The cases could be removed, they aren't that important, but no flashes would look strange, and it would be difficult to tell who's shooting.

[phazonjunkie]

Yeah, there would be no cases being ejected from the weapons, nor any kind of flash when they shoot. The cases could be removed, they aren't that important, but no flashes would look strange, and it would be difficult to tell who's shooting.

Actually, the intense friction caused by the round(s) moving at hypersonic velocities would create such intense heat as to ionize the local atmosphere, forming a superheated plasma trail, as seen here

Kinda like the glow a space shuttle gives off during atmospheric re-entry.

[Norfindel]

Actually, the intense friction caused by the round(s) moving at hypersonic velocities would create such intense heat as to ionize the local atmosphere, forming a superheated plasma trail, as seen here

Kinda like the glow a space shuttle gives off during atmospheric re-entry.

That's a railgun. The Marine's weapon is a gauss rifle, a coil gun, which isn't so extreme. But who knows what velocities could coilguns develop in the future?

[Kacaier]

That's a railgun. The Marine's weapon is a gauss rifle, a coil gun, which isn't so extreme. But who knows what velocities could coilguns develop in the future?

Well, it is specifically stated that the Gauss rifle propels rounds at hypersonics speeds. Though, it doesn't specify its exact speed, so it could be anywhere from mach 5 and beyond.

[Quirel]

Ahem...
I am rather disappointed in y'all.
So, really, is it more practical to have coils on a one-meter barrel accelerate a projectile to mach 5? Or is it easier to accelerate A CONVENTIONAL BULLET through a combination of Gauss and chemical reaction, with the propellant in the casing providing the initial kick?