- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Think of it this way. The only thing we are able to control right now in weaponized from is a laser (extremely bulky and requires alot of energy/chemicals to operate), Fire (only plasma weaponry we have), projectiles (be it with gunpowder or a high power magnet like in rail guns). You can say "Still" using it beuacuse there are alot fo factors to consider. 500 years may seem like alot of time, but how long were they still using swords and shields? Alot longer than that i know for a fact. So we cant expect to advance too much faster than that. I would say by the time we had halo 2, balistic weapons are brobably efficient at killing our own species, that is why there was never an improvement. "If it aint broke dont fix it." So they probably pooled thier resources into other things like the Spartan project, mass colonies off-world etc. We have to condsider all the possibilities. Maybe a pact was made to never further advance weaponry past ballisitics for fear of creating a weapon beyond comprehension.
Further more, we are developing new weaponry that is non-lethal. We are researching mocrowave weaponry to heat the general area around mobs to make them so uncomfortable they disperse, or then we have laser weaponry for anti-missle systems. We also have smart ammunition which explodes mid-air to enhance the area covered by the prjectile. Say a guy was behind a wall and ther was a window above him, just shot a round into the window and it explodes just inside, taking out the guy below. Pretty cool stuff huh?
[Edited on 5/16/2006]