sheepdog

...does a 4x scope make things 100 yds away only appear 25 yards...does a 9X scope make things 99 yards away appear 11 yards away???

Machinist

Yes, with a loss of brightness but the linear dimension changes directly. Under 2X something looks twice as large or half as far.

Under 2X the image brightness will be 1/4. This can be compensated for with a bigger objective lens to gather more light.

sheepdog

...so if I have no problem spotting holes in a 25 yard target...a 4x will give me that capability at 100 yards with minimal light loss...

Machinist

A 4X will make it look like 25 yards but brightness will be 1/16 as much. A big enough objective lens should work fine in decent light. The magnification is all in the eye piece. The objective effects light gathering and field of view. This is why you don't see high powered scopes with small objectives. A ten power scope reduces brightness by a factor of 100.