In the last Tournament, there was a rules question that came up. whether range was closest point to closest point of the bases or closest to closest in the attacker's firing arc. The official rules state:
"To measure range, place the Range 1 end of the
range ruler so that it touches the closest part
of the attacker’s base. Then point the ruler toward
the closest part of the target ship’s base that is
inside the attacker’s firing arc."
So you guys were definitely right! it is closest to closest INSIDE the firing arc! I know that sounds obvious, but I was absolutely convinced otherwise.