Range

See also: Range (Swords)

Range is a ranged weapon stat that increases the effective range of the weapon. It determines the distance that your shots hit for 100% damage before they begin falling-off to 50% damage. Range also affects the minimum and maximum size of your "bloom" circle when hip-firing. Fusion Rifles doesn't suffer damage fall-off, but instead Range determines the speed of the projectile fired. The longer the bar is the greater range the weapon has.

• Note that each sights has a range multiplier.

Details:

When you use a perk that directly affects range (like Rifled Barrel or Hammer Forged) there are three things that change:

1. Damage fall off distance - the distance and rate at which the gun longer does its maximum damage. Increasing range pushes this out farther.
2. Aim assist fall off distance - the distance and rate at which the aim assist loses effectiveness. Increasing range pushes this out farther.
3. Accuracy cone (error angle) - the physical size of the crosshairs when ADS (invisible in normal Destiny, but can be seen in the Last Rites mission). Determines the maximum angle a shot could deflect from center when leaving the barrel of the weapon. Increasing range narrows the crosshairs, thus decreasing the diameter of the accuracy cone and providing a lower possible error angle.

This is an indication of how far away a target can be hit from before damage penalties start being applied. You'll notice very quickly that the range penalty on Shotgun is severe, making them completely useless outside melee / close-quarter combat distance.

• Fusion Rifles do not suffer damage falloff, so sights are not as vital for improving long-range damage. However, range affects fusion rifle projectile speed. The blasts travel more quickly when you have a mod like Hammer Forged equipped, making it easier to hit a target at medium range with more of the shot.

• Range also plays a role in accuracy when you are firing your weapon, so weapons with a good Range stat tend to be easier to handle when you’re firing at distant enemies.

• Weapon Sights multiply range when you're aiming down sights! - When you equip your weapon with a sight and go into ADS, the zoom factor provides a direct multiplier to the base range of the weapon. Equipping a 2x zoom sight doubles the distance from which you can deal maximum damage. Unsurprisingly, sniper rifles tend to have the highest zoom factor sights. Combined with a high base damage to begin with, this gives them the best-long range performance of any weapon.

• Range is also essentially the same stat for Rocket Launcher’s Velocity stat.