Soviet Space Program, career-mode total conversion[1.3] 6/4/17

[tjsnh]

Convert a NEW stock career-mode into the Soviet Space Program!

Total Revamp to V1.3 - SAVE BREAKING UPDATE

DOWNLOAD HERE

Original Content is released under Creative Commons: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

This mod uses several parts packs along with custom content to transform your stock career mode into the Soviet space program. Give the underdogs of the space-race a second chance! Some stock parts which don't "fit" well with the Soviet-theme are removed (the Mk1 Pod, mercury look-alike, for example) and almost all of the Tantares parts are renamed, re-arranged on the tech tree, or modified in some other way. Rockets tanks are grouped logically by their SL codename# for easy reference, and subassembly parts are included for the major launchers. VAB ships are also included for the major crew pods. Adds custom flags (including lettering of Soviet shuttle names) and agencies. Also, a placeholder IVA is added to crewed parts which currently lack one (the "hitchhiker storage" IVA is used as the placeholder)

Requires: Tantares & Tantares LV , AB Launchers, Contract Configurator, Module Manager, Additional Progression Contracts , MonkeyBusiness Retro (you don't need it's dependencies) , FireSpitter DLL only

Optional but suggested: Near Future Electrical (currently busted, but will start working as soon as it's update lands), EVA Parachutes (Vostok can be a bit tricky to land...),  Kosmodrome and Kerbal Konstructs (dont use the KK bundled with Kosmodrome, use the main mod linked here), Kerbal Planetary Base Systems 
NOTE : If you are missing KPBS, and/or NFE, some of the nodes at the top of the tech tree will be empty. Not a problem, just realize that it isn't a bug if you see it.

Optional and compatible: Anomaly Surveyor Contract Pack

Depricated: Q Orbital Systems - patches still included, but parts are now duplicates.

Incompatible: The vast majority of other parts packs. Sorry. The from-scratch tech tree will cause other parts packs to throw their parts in really weird places.

Credits : This mod contains, with permission, parts developed by Beale, LinuxGuruGamer & Lack, Hraban, and SnowWhite, all under Creative Commons. A few were unfinished beta parts which I completed myself, others were forked. Also includes some icons from CommunityTechTree for the tech tree.

This mod uses modulemanager patches to handle parts - it doesn't automatically delete or modify any of your existing files.

What you get:
A bunch of new parts.
A brand new tech tree.
Some boosters that use Hypergolic fuels instead of liquidfuel+oxidizer (some, not all)
A generous amount of new contracts with semi-linear progression of goals and individual mission programs.
Pruning parts out of the dependent mods that don't "fit" with the overall theme of the soviet space program.
Heavy editing of parts in the dependent mods to fit in the modified progression tree, and for balance purposes.
A bunch of craft files to use as templates - including a WORKING Buran/Energia stack which is VERY easy to fly.

Installation Instructions:
Unzip the contents of "gamedata" into your "gamedata" like most other mods.
If you wish, copy the craft files from the ships and subassemblies folders into your save.

Included example .craft files and subassemblies:
 

• MiG-9 Fargo
• MiG-21 Fishbed
• La-7
• Tu-2
• Tu-95
• Sputnik
• Vostok
• Soyuz
• Soyuz+LK+N1 stack
• TKS
• Zarya
• Zenit
• PPTS/Federation
• Buran

Gameplay Tips:
The progression curve is intended to be SLOW. To be very clear - it is significantly more difficult to max the tech tree compared to stock KSP. You have to mine every last science point if you want to get ahead, especially leading up to the first Mun/Minmus landings.
Use autostrut for the Buran shuttle and the larger laundhers. Just do it.
Jet engines have had their fuel efficiency SERIOUSLY NERFED to compensate for the addition of more efficient prop engines.
Start a new save with some extra funds, and upgrade your Launchpad and VAB (in that order) to level 2 right off the start. Sorry - the R-7/Sputnik launcher is heavy, and has a lot of parts due to the vernier engines and will exceed the part/weight limtis of the level-1 pad and VAB.

The included Mig-9 aircraft (Fargo) .craft is very useful in the early game for completing contracts and rounding up science from nearby biomes.

Try not to "get ahead" of the objectives you get contracts for. (Wait to do an orbital EVA until you get the contract for it in the Voskot program) Not required, but it makes the game more interesting.

The tech tree is balanced so you should be able to do Soyuz , Proton , etc all in Tier-1. Tier-2 is for manned Mun landings and interplanetary probes, and Tier-3 should get your manned missions to the other planets. It's possible to "skip ahead" of course, but this is the logic behind placement of parts on the tech tree.

Known Issues:
A few of the included booster .craft are slightly overpowered, which is almost unavoidable in a KSP mod of this sort.
The included Buran craft is very high in the tech tree. Sorry about that. Consider trying it out in a sandbox save just for starters.
The 3 meter fairing base appears more than once on the tech tree - for the life of me, I can't figure out why.

 

Edited June 5, 2017 by tjsnh
Overhaul Release

[rabidninjawombat]

Cool idea! I like it! Have you thought about making your own Soviet contract pack to go along with it?

Oh and don't forget a license in the OP as well to satisfy mod posting rules.

[tjsnh]

Thanks for the reminder, Re: License.

My Advanced Progression Contracts mod is complementary, and goes well with this "makeover" for career mode. The link is in my sig.

Originally, APC included the Soviet OKBs as "agencies" and the contracts were given out by them, but I decided to release ACP to be more stock friendly, and included the agencies here.

Eventually THIS mod pack will be expanded to include new and replacement artwork, I may do a patch against ACP to change the mission text and contracting agents, etc etc. It'll be expanded over time, and updated as new things are added to the Tantares parts packs.

Edited June 13, 2015 by tjsnh

[Ratzap]

Nice idea, I'll have to give this a go sometime. Especially if there's a soviet historical contracts set kicking about.

[ModZero]

Like pretty much every second Kerbal Stuff project I've seen, your website link there points back at the same page, instead of the forum (if it's like in any other site I've seen this problem, you have to remember about putting the "http://" at the beginning of the link. But I don't have kerbalstuff account, so I'm just guessing).

[MK3424]

Like pretty much every second Kerbal Stuff project I've seen, your website link there points back at the same page, instead of the forum (if it's like in any other site I've seen this problem, you have to remember about putting the "http://" at the beginning of the link. But I don't have kerbalstuff account, so I'm just guessing).

Actually he put the kerbalstuff and the forum link together...

[clivman]

You should put batteries earlier in the tech tree.

[ModZero]

Actually he put the kerbalstuff and the forum link together...

(terrible OT) probably not. It's fixed now, but a protocol-less URL looks just the same as a relative URL, and all KerbalStuff links end with a "/", so when you have a protocol-less link in that field, the browsers mash the two together. No good way of fixing that, except maybe reminding modders to put that in (as I've seen the issue multiple times).

Anyhow, it's a terrible OT, so I'll shut up about it now.

[tg626]

Back to the topic!!

This is a great idea and just what the now expansive tantares mods needed IMHO.

[curtquarquesso]

Way cool. Do you think you could screenshot things like the tech tree, the parts list, and some of the part renames?

[clivman]

You also are missing the almach chute in your tech tree

[tjsnh]

You should put batteries earlier in the tech tree.

I've been thinking along those lines actually, might move the small battery further down. I already moved the first fuel cell down, might push it down further.

- - - Updated - - -

You also are missing the almach chute in your tech tree

I noticed this just now, will be fixed in the first patch.

- - - Updated - - -

Way cool. Do you think you could screenshot things like the tech tree, the parts list, and some of the part renames?

The tech tree is the stock KSP tree - but I've moved a few (just a few) of the stock parts around on it, and moved most of the Tantares/TantaresLV parts around to make a more clear/consistent progression. For example, on the rocketry side one of the techs gives you most of the Proton rocket parts - another gives you most of the N1 parts, etc etc, rather than having one tech give you 30 tanks and engines. On the science/pods side of the tree, I swapped around quite a bit. For example, getting the basic folding solar panels for the Soyuz (named Koyuz in the pack) is no longer 8 techs away from getting the Soyuz crew capsule.

For renames most of the tanks are in SL-X-Y format. For example, the top stage of the soyuz booster is SL-4-C , the bottom stage of the N1 is SL-15-A , and so on with a few minor exceptions for booster systems that have more than one upper stage etc. The crewed systems are all renamed to be more kerbaly, Voskot , Koyuz, TKS is now Aurora, etc. The engines are mostly renamed to match their RD-XXX series counterparts. KD-108 , KD-33x8 Cluster, etc etc. Parts are also "manufactured by" the corresponding OKB where possible. I've studied the soviet space program quite a bit, long before KSP even, and when I've renamed something I've tried to give it a name that had some reference to the "real" system, even if a few are a little obscure.

Keep any suggestions coming, this is a live project.

Edited June 13, 2015 by tjsnh

[clivman]

Can someone please do this for a US oriented tech tree with probes first, this is a really cool project.

[tjsnh]

Can someone please do this for a US oriented tech tree with probes first, this is a really cool project.

Soon ... :-)

[tjsnh]

Minor update posted, fixed a couple of typos (one of which was causing the vostok chute to be unavailable).

[MK3424]

If you guys like realism, then i would suggest to use the Kosmodrome addon for Kerbal Konstructs: it adds the Cosmodrome Baikonur to the game.

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http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/95198-0-24-2-Kosmodrome-Space-Centre-V0-9-%281-10-2014%29

[SpaceMonkeyExile]

I really like what you have done here! I start new careers all the time and they always end up the same but this really changed things up! Very good work! Recommended? DA!!

[clivman]

Proton first stage costs way too much, 55,000, seriously. The rest of the rocket only costs about 10,000.

[MK3424]

Have you moved the Koyuz LES to another techtree node?

Because i now i'm only able to unlock NASA's LES before the Koyuz one..

[tjsnh]

Proton first stage costs way too much, 55,000, seriously. The rest of the rocket only costs about 10,000.

Noted, I'll have a look and see if I can get it balanced out.

Most of the part costs are unchanged from the "stock" Tantares costs, and it's absolutely worth a balance sweep.

[clivman]

Does this work with the newest Tantares version?

[tjsnh]

Update posted for the latest Tantares version, also made a few minor tweaks (such as the Proton engine cost) based on user feedback.

Future updates will probably be within a day or so of Tantares or TantaresLV updates, or as-needed for balance tweaks/etc.

[MK3424]

Maybe a small request, but can you make a version of this, that's using YongTech Tech Trees Plugin selector? (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/125338-YongeTech-Tech-Trees-Plugin)

It makes it possible to use more than 1 tech tree on your install.

[clivman]

I saw on the tantares thread you were close to releasing a US form of the mod, perhaps you could do this by adding two "start" tech nodes for each nation and then a initial node with a nosecone, guidance unit, and trashcan. This would allow you to put both tech trees on the same mod.

[tjsnh]

I saw on the tantares thread you were close to releasing a US form of the mod, perhaps you could do this by adding two "start" tech nodes for each nation and then a initial node with a nosecone, guidance unit, and trashcan. This would allow you to put both tech trees on the same mod.

I had something similar planned as the original inspiration for this, but with so many parts in common it proved too cumbersome.

- - - Updated - - -

The NASA version is up :

forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/127398-NASA-Career-mode-total-conversion