MinimumRange

How close a target may come before the weapon refuses to fire at it, in cells.

Specification

Applies to: WeaponType
File: rules.ini
Section: [<ObjectType ID>]
Value: distance (cells)
When omitted: 0

The value is written in cells and a fraction is accepted; it is held as 256 units to the cell. A target whose three-dimensional separation from the firing coordinate falls under it is refused, and the refusal is the same one an out-of-range target gets, so an object holding such a target treats it as something to reposition for rather than as an illegal target.

[MyArtillery] ; example WeaponType
Range=12
MinimumRange=4 ; nothing closer than four cells may be shot

Repositioning works outward. An object looking for somewhere to fire from starts at its full Range= and works inward, taking the first standing spot that satisfies both limits, so a vehicle crowded by a target inside its minimum range backs away rather than closing.

The test runs before the shape of the shot is considered, so it holds for an Arcing=yes projectile as well, which otherwise skips the range comparison entirely. Unlike Range=, the figure is compared as written, with nothing taken off it.

A figure of 0 switches the test off. A figure of exactly -1 is read as though the key were absent, leaving whatever an earlier rules file set, and any other negative figure switches the test off as surely as zero does.

See also — Range, ProjectileRange