This might seem like a funny request, but I need a scope with moderate power 3-15 prefer 5-25, but it needs to focus down to 20 feet (5 or so meters) I'm doing NIJ and DoS evaluations and the distance for rifle certs is 20 feet for State Department and 49.5 for NIJ. I have a red dot that's working so far, but for the material we're testing I'm trying to put a steel penetrator in a 0.020" gap. Many thanks in advance. (the test rounds are 7.62 x 39 MSC, 30-06 AP and 5.56 M855 and M193)

Leupold offers a couple of EFR scopes (down to 10m), but they are 3x-9x and 6.5x-20x.

George

Collins, whether or not you can find one that might focus down to 20 feet, I cannot get past your assertion that 5-25x (or even 3-15x) scopes are of moderate power.

Is it that bipods have changed our understanding of what we can hold still enough to shoot with confidence, whereby the sky's the limit in riflescope power ranges?

Collins, I immediately thought of airgun scopes.

The Sightron S-III Airgun Series 10-50X60mm will focus down to ~8 meters. If you need to get closer you could mount a Leupold 50 ft adapter on the front. The threads won't match but you could glue it in a sunshade or make a thread adapter. That should bring you closer than you need.