Range

Sometimes, Combat Strength does not mean anything. This simplistic measure is only accurate when being used to compare two ships with the same range and weaponry. At other times, Range may be much more important.

Here are two examples of Voyager Corvette builds:

Which build will win in a duel? If you only look at Combat Strength, the answer may seem obvious: the Pulse Ray Voyager has over four times the power of the Rail Driver Voyager, so the former will win. But in reality, the latter claims victory most of the time.

Why? Because Rail Driver Voyagers have significantly more range than Pulse Ray Voyagers. This allows them to keep flying away and never allow Pulse Ray Voyagers to get in range to fire, while slowly chipping off the enemy's health as it tries to close the distance, a common tactic called "Kiting". This is a prime example why Range can potentially trump Combat Strength. In general, the larger the Range difference, the less relevant Combat Strength becomes.