Reach

Reach is a weapon stat quantifying the reach of that type of weapon. For instance: A spear has much greater reach than a dagger. This stat determines whether a defender can fend off an attacker in combat situations. The greater the difference between the defender's weapon reach over the attacker's, the better chance the defender has of fending off the attacker and effectively avoiding the attack altogether. The defender's roundtime has a large effect on the chances of success - the greater the defender's roundtime, the less chance they have of fending off an attack. Therefore, an attacker going up against a defender with a significant reach advantage should wait until just after the defender makes a roundtime-inducing move to strike.

A weapon's reach can be determined by using the examine command on it.

Note: Being in the "Avoid" position essentially counts as having maximum defensive reach, even if not holding any weapon at all. Ranged weapons and spells can generally be used from the Avoid position to enjoy maximum defensive reach benefits while bypassing the target's reach defense entirely.