Library /sys$common/syshlp/ncphelp.hlb SET, EXECUTOR, MAXIMUM HOPS number  *Conan The Librarian (sorry for the slow response - running on an old VAX)

 Specifies the maximum routing hops from the local node to any other
 reachable node. A hop is the logical distance over a line between two
 adjacent nodes.  Use as small a number as possible in the range of 1
 to 30, and be sure that this value is less than or equal to the
 MAXIMUM VISITS parameter.  The default value is 30.