If you were, say, across a solar system from a ship that fired a torpedo at you, you’d have that much more time to maneuver (or fire phasers) to destroy it. So for those maybe it’s really about effective range - you have to be pretty close to the target simply because they’d just step out of the way.
Also, I think it’s a reasonable possibility phasers would lose energy over distance. Otherwise, those missed shots would travel across the galaxy and blow up someone in the Gamma quadrant or something.
I can travel the galactic plane with my spaceship oriented any of 360°. Straight is straight.
What I don’t understand is why they were even close enough for the image. If subspace comms are a thing, a solar system length may be just fine.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen combat in Star Trek that takes place over a distance of more than a couple of hundred kilometres.
What’s the range on a phaser or a torpedo, can it even go that far.
Long range weapons are so rare in Star Trek that when they do turn up they’re basically what the whole episode is about.
If you were, say, across a solar system from a ship that fired a torpedo at you, you’d have that much more time to maneuver (or fire phasers) to destroy it. So for those maybe it’s really about effective range - you have to be pretty close to the target simply because they’d just step out of the way.
Also, I think it’s a reasonable possibility phasers would lose energy over distance. Otherwise, those missed shots would travel across the galaxy and blow up someone in the Gamma quadrant or something.