Distance

Distances within Vana'diel are measured in terms of units of distance called "Yalms" (roughly analogous to yards), commonly indicated with a prime (') symbol. Precise distances are only accessible through third-party programs, but the game provides various clues for judging distance without them.

The large-scale unit of measure used in Vana'diel is known as "Malms", which are roughly analogous to miles.

Smaller scale units of measure found in Vana'diel are "Ilms" (analogous to inches) and "Fulms" (analogous to feet).

The distances listed as the "maximum" are actually just past the maximum range; for instance, a player can use a Ranged Attack at 24.9', but not 25'. It is important to note that many actions' maximum distance are affected by the size of the enemy model; you can melee a Tavnazian Ram from a greater distance than a Tunnel Worm.

Distance	Effect
180'	Maximum distance for a /shout command to be heard.
100'	Maximum distance for recieving experience points.
50'	Maximum distance for a character (PC or NPC) to be drawn or targeted.
30'	Maximum distance for a character to be able to draw their melee weapon(s). Maximum range for log messages about other characters' actions.
28.5'	Maximum spellcasting range for a monster.
26.8'	Maximum distance for a monster to start casting.
25'	The outer ring of the radar for Ninja (main or sub job). Maximum Ranged Attack range. Also the furthest that a monster will notice your actions (and generate hate).
22.5'	Maximum range for casting Blue Magic spell Cannonball
21.8'	Maximum distance for most targeted spells cast by a player. This varies with the size of the target.
20'	The outer ring of the normal radar. At 20', a character's radar dot is almost entirely outside the ring. Default magic, ability, and blood aggro range. Maximum distance for a song sung under the effect of Pianissimo. Maximum distance for a song sung with strings.
17.7'	Maximum range for Detonator and Empyreal Arrow.
17.5'	Provoke, Charm, Quick Draw, Shadowbind, pet commands, Requiem, Chi Blast, Animated Flourish.
17.2'	Maximum range for Jishnu's Radiance.
16'	Radius of Corsair's Phantom Roll and Double-Up with Luzaf's Ring equipped.
15.8'	Maximum range for most ranged Weapon Skills (excluding Blast Arrow, Blast Shot).
15'	The faint inner ring of the normal radar. Default sight aggro range. Maximum range for Mistral Axe. Maximum range for the Blue Mage spell Heat Breath. True Sight range, exceptions are hippographs (approx. 5.6') and Vrtra 30'.
13.5'	The max range for the Blue Mage spell Blastbomb. Depending on target, can be extended to ~14.3'.
10'	The very faint inside ring of the radar. This is easiest to see by looking at the spokes of the compass; they are most visible within this ring. Radius of -ra spells, Blood Pact: Ward effects (centered on avatar), and Bard songs sung with voice and wind; string radius varies with your string skill, from 10' when you first learn the song to a maximum of 20'. Radius of White and Black Magic spells cast on a target with the Scholar Stratagems Accession and Manifestation.
8'	Default sound aggro range. Default radius of Corsair's Phantom Roll and Double-Up. True sound range.
6'	Trade, checking an NPC. Environment NPCs, such as doors and ladders, may require you to stand as close as 2.2'. Camera visibility is also required, regardless of distance. For example: the goldsmithing guild door in Bastok Markets will give the "out of range" message if the camera position causes the overhang to obscure the door.

If you are fighting an enemy that uses AoE special attacks, it is very useful to know the range of its attacks so you can stay outside of it. Here are some examples:

Distance	Special Attacks
3.4'	Throat Stab Max Melee distance applies, you should be when fighting any tonberry without drawing it closer. When you see "*Tonberry* readies Throat Stab", you can easily step back and dodge the attack.
8'	Bomb Toss (centered on primary target), all Zdei attacks
10'	Whirl of Rage, Aqua Ball, Mysterious Light, Fluid Spread, Fanatic Dance, Auroral Drape
15'	Dream Flower, Roc special attacks, Level 5 Petrify, Crystal Rain, Antiphase, Battle Dance
20'	Self-Destruct, Mijin Gakure, Empty Seed, Death Trap
30'	Astral Flow
40'	Voluptuous Vivian abilities

Maximum Melee and Melee Weapon Skill ranges are dependent on the monsters they're targeting. Weapon Skill range is always 1' longer than melee range.

Positioning

Attack Regions

Because of the specific ranges of each ability, many of the more difficult battles in the game require very delicate positioning of players. In addition to the various AoE attacks, there are also Cone Attack which are directional in nature.

To the right is a scale diagram of a tank and a monster. Around the monster are three circles. The inner circle is the 10' radius, the middle is 15', outer is 20'. These are the three most common ranges for AoE attacks. Around the tank is one circle with radius of 20.8' which is the maximum range for Cure. As you can see, if the monster has both Cone Attack as well as 20' AoE attacks, there is only a very small area in which healers can stand (the green area) which allows them to avoid splash damage and still heal the tank.

Distance and Ranged Attack

The accuracy and damage of Ranged Attacks varies with the distance from the enemy. For damage, each weapon type has a distinct "sweet spot" for maximum damage.

• The sweet spot also varies with the size of the enemy; it will be farther away if the enemy is larger.
• Longbows and shortbows may have different sweet spots, though the table does not currently reflect that.
• These values were calculated before the Ranged Attack "un-nerf" patch.

The current ranged attack system doesn't impose distance penalty to the final damage. Instead, it imposes the distance penalty to ranged attack value.

• New Crossbow and Bow distances come from the in game Pummel Message.

Distance	Bow	Crossbow	Gun	Throwing
1'	65%	65%	75%	100%
3'	70%	75%	85%	97%
4.5'			100%	95.5%
5'	78%	87%	100%	95%
5.5'			100%	94.5%
6'		100%
7'		100%		93%
7.5'	100%	100%	95%	92.5%
8.5'	100%	100%		91.5%
9.5'	100%	100%		90.5%
10'	100%	100%	90%	90%
10.5'	100%
15'	92%	90%	88%	85%
20'	89%	86%	86%	80%
25'	87%	86%	85%	75%