Category:Projectile weapons (Earth-8573)

A projectile weapon, better known as a ranged weapon, is any weapon that can engage targets beyond hand-to-hand distance, i.e. at distances greater than the physical reach of the weapon itself. It is sometimes also called missile weapon because it typically works by launching missiles, though technically a directed-energy weapon (which doesn't involve projectiles) is also a ranged weapon. In contrast, a weapon intended to be used in hand-to-hand combat is called a melee weapon.

Trivia

 * Ranged weapon on Wikipedia.