[1.12.5] Grannus Expansion Pack [v1.2.8] [10 May 2022]

[Norcalplanner]

1 hour ago, JadeOfMaar said:

@Norcalplanner aww. losing gimbal on the beastly engine can be a hard blow.  The crewed mothership, right?

Yep, it's the mothership. None of the torch drives gimbal, presumaby to make them more difficult to use. The problem is that the center column of the ship isn't quite straight anymore. I fear that we're going to end up doing loops once I have time to fire up KSP again.

Edited May 22, 2018 by Norcalplanner

[JadeOfMaar]

@Norcalplanner Perhaps cheat a new instance of the ship into proximity of the current one? Adjust its fuel wit HyperEdit? (I hope it's not filled to the brim with kerbals. That'll be hell to transfer  )

Edited May 22, 2018 by JadeOfMaar

[cyberKerb]

For reference in case it's useful when you are using GEP with GPP/OPM.  It shows you the antenna range depending on your Tracking Station DSN level.
(Chart from this thread for other planet packs charts)

Edited May 23, 2018 by wile1411

[Norcalplanner]

On 5/22/2018 at 2:50 PM, JadeOfMaar said:

@Norcalplanner Perhaps cheat a new instance of the ship into proximity of the current one? Adjust its fuel wit HyperEdit? (I hope it's not filled to the brim with kerbals. That'll be hell to transfer  )

The kraken was kind to me, and thoughtfully put all the ship parts back where they belonged.  As a result, we got this:

 

Followed by this:

 

Culminating in this:

 

Not sure if I'll keep going with this career at this point, since I'm a bit burned out.  44K science in the bank, 60M funds in the bank, several billion worth of Karborundum in Gael orbit, and we've validated the ESLD jump beacon and Karborundum torch drive hardware and architecture so that it can take us anyplace we want to go... which doesn't seem all that challenging or interesting at this point.  Probably take a break for a while, then come back with a new career featuring Angel-125's mods just to shake things up a bit.

[Kaa253]

I am thinking about adding this interesting mod to my current save. I have stock+OPM already (i.e. no GPP). I understand this should work and it will add a new star Grannus in a very distant orbit of Kerbol. Given that I already have DSN 4 from OPM, what should I do during the install to get sufficient antenna range?

Edit: I took a look under the hood...
@CUSTOMBARNKIT:NEEDS[GEP,!GPP,!OPM]
... so it looks like it should play nicely straight out of the box 

Edited June 4, 2018 by Kaa253

[OhioBob]

3 hours ago, Kaa253 said:

I am thinking about adding this interesting mod to my current save. I have stock+OPM already (i.e. no GPP). I understand this should work and it will add a new star Grannus in a very distant orbit of Kerbol. Given that I already have DSN 4 from OPM, what should I do during the install to get sufficient antenna range?

Edit: I took a look under the hood...
@CUSTOMBARNKIT:NEEDS[GEP,!GPP,!OPM]
... so it looks like it should play nicely straight out of the box 

GEP is designed to play nicely with OPM.  With GEP, OPM and CustomBarnKit all installed, you'll get the same Level 4 Tracking Station that OPM uses.  That by itself won't be enough to reach Grannus, however.  If you want communications to reach all the way to Grannus, you'll also need an larger antenna.  GEP comes with its own antenna, which you get when installing the optional mod GEP_CommNet.  The antenna is an upscaled version of the Communotron 88-88 with a new texture, but you don't get it until very late in the tech tree.  GEP_CommNet comes in the GEP download, but you have to install it separately.  You can also use the JX2 antenna if your prefer it.  GEP_CommNet also installs the Level 4 Tracking Station if GEP is used without OPM.

[Kaa253]

Thanks @OhioBobfor the detailed reply

I have installed GEP and I am very happy with the result so far (I haven't got out to the Grannus system yet).
The best bit for me is it doesn't seem to have caused much of a memory hit. I have a lot of part mods installed and only 12 Gb RAM but it is running with no problems.

[GrubbyZebra]

After much playing around with different mod combos, I finally have isolated my "black sky" issue to something in GEP not playing nice with scatterer for my particular configuration. I am running KSP 1.4.3 & MH 1.2 with GPP secondary, GEP, and OPM.



Logs at the link below:
Output.log

Edited June 23, 2018 by fwdixon

[OhioBob]

@fwdixon, I'd like to see a screenshot of your GameData folder.

[GrubbyZebra]

2 minutes ago, OhioBob said:

@fwdixon, I'd like to see a screenshot of your GameData folder.

[OhioBob]

@fwdixon, I'm seeing the same problem that you're seeing, but I can't figure out what's wrong.  I've looked at the configs and the logs and I don't see any reason why it's not working.  I'm currently stumped, but I haven't given up hope yet.  I'm going to continue working on it.  Unfortunately we've made it a convoluted mess with all these installation options, so debugging can be difficult.  And just because the problem appears when GEP is installed, that doesn't necessarily mean the bug is in GEP.  GEP and GPP are both configured to do different stuff depending on what's installed with it.  So the presence of GEP may be triggering something in GPP that's causing the problem.

I did find a typo in one of the GEP configs, but it apparently has nothing to do with the current problem.  Nonetheless, I'll eventually have to release an update to fix it.

[GrubbyZebra]

3 minutes ago, OhioBob said:

@fwdixon, I'm seeing the same problem that you're seeing, but I can't figure out what's wrong.  I've looked at the configs and the logs and I don't see any reason why it's not working.  I'm currently stumped, but I haven't given up hope yet.  I'm going to continue working on it.  Unfortunately we've made it a convoluted mess with all these installation options, so debugging can be difficult.  And just because the problem appears when GEP is installed, that doesn't necessarily mean the bug is in GEP.  GEP and GPP are both configured to do different stuff depending on what's installed with it.  So the presence of GEP may be triggering something in GPP that's causing the problem.

I did find a typo in one of the GEP configs, but it apparently has nothing to do with the current problem.  Nonetheless, I'll eventually have to release an update to fix it.

Thanks OhioBob. I would offer to help but I'm still struggling to learn all the way strategies are implemented...

[OhioBob]

@GrubbyZebra, I think I've found the cause of the black sky problem.  It ended up being something in GPP.  I don't know when our next update is coming, but it's an easy fix that you can make yourself.

Find the file,

GameData/GPP/GPP_Scatterer/Configs/Scatterer_PlanetList.cfg

Open the file and scroll all the way down to the bottom until you see this:

		Item:NEEDS[OPM,GEP] = Robau

Change the above line to the following and save:

		Item:NEEDS[OPM,GEP,!GPP_Secondary] = Robau

The problem was that scatterer was looking for the sunflare of a star that didn't exist.
 

[GrubbyZebra]

On 6/30/2018 at 5:13 AM, OhioBob said:

@GrubbyZebra, I think I've found the cause of the black sky problem.  It ended up being something in GPP.  I don't know when our next update is coming, but it's an easy fix that you can make yourself.

Find the file,

GameData/GPP/GPP_Scatterer/Configs/Scatterer_PlanetList.cfg

Open the file and scroll all the way down to the bottom until you see this:

		Item:NEEDS[OPM,GEP] = Robau

Change the above line to the following and save:

		Item:NEEDS[OPM,GEP,!GPP_Secondary] = Robau

The problem was that scatterer was looking for the sunflare of a star that didn't exist.
 

Ok, so tried this fix, flew to the Mun and back, and on the return trip Kerbin had the black sky again. FWIW the it is like the Tracking station/Map view Sky texture is getting switched with the World sky (tracking station is black sky, real world is blue, then they reverse.

[OhioBob]

37 minutes ago, GrubbyZebra said:

Ok, so tried this fix, flew to the Mun and back, and on the return trip Kerbin had the black sky again. FWIW the it is like the Tracking station/Map view Sky texture is getting switched with the World sky (tracking station is black sky, real world is blue, then they reverse.

When you are getting the black sky, open the debug menu (ALT+F12) and see if you are getting NullReferenceException errors.  The fix that I suggested was to get rid of the NRE errors.  And when I fixed that, the black sky went away too.  So I assumed both problems were caused by the same thing, but maybe not.  I'm interested to know if the NREs come back along with the black sky.

While trying to debug this problem, I also found a better way to write some of the scatterer configs.  So we'll be soon releasing an update that changes quite a few scatterer configs.  Maybe that'll fix the problem.

[GrubbyZebra]

54 minutes ago, OhioBob said:

When you are getting the black sky, open the debug menu (ALT+F12) and see if you are getting NullReferenceException errors.  The fix that I suggested was to get rid of the NRE errors.  And when I fixed that, the black sky went away too.  So I assumed both problems were caused by the same thing, but maybe not.  I'm interested to know if the NREs come back along with the black sky.

While trying to debug this problem, I also found a better way to write some of the scatterer configs.  So we'll be soon releasing an update that changes quite a few scatterer configs.  Maybe that'll fix the problem.

Was still getting the NRE debug spam. I will do somemore tinkering and get back to you.

[OhioBob]

@GrubbyZebra, I just did a flight to Mun and back and it's still working fine for me.  Not sure what to say.
 

Edited July 2, 2018 by OhioBob

[GrubbyZebra]

1 hour ago, OhioBob said:

@GrubbyZebra, I just did a flight to Mun and back and it's still working fine for me.  Not sure what to say.
 

Running just GPP Secondary, OPM, GEP, and scatterer, the fix does work. Hunting for what other mod is causing a conflict.

[Norcalplanner]

2.5x GEP Primary install currently being finalized... 

[OhioBob]

52 minutes ago, Norcalplanner said:

2.5x GEP Primary install currently being finalized... 

I've haven't tried rescaling GEP.  Let me know how it works.

One thing I didn't think about when I made GEP_Primary is that it's quite difficult.  It wasn't until I made the delta-v tables that I realized just how challenging it can be.  Because Grannus is a red dwarf, the habitable zone is very deep in its gravity well.  This places the home world in a small, fast orbit.  Interplanetary transfers take way more delta-v than we're accustom to.  At 2.5x it will probably be a real challenge.  Getting around the Nodens-Belisama system, however, shouldn't be too bad.
 

[Norcalplanner]

15 minutes ago, OhioBob said:

I've haven't tried rescaling GEP.  Let me know how it works.

One thing I didn't think about when I made GEP_Primary is that it's quite difficult.  It wasn't until I made the delta-v tables that I realized just how challenging it can be.  Because Grannus is a red dwarf, the habitable zone is very deep in its gravity well.  This places the home world in a small, fast orbit.  Interplanetary transfers take way more delta-v than we're accustom to.  At 2.5x it will probably be a real challenge.  Getting around the Nodens-Belisama system, however, shouldn't be too bad.
 

Fully understood and acknowledged.  I anticipate spending a lot of time on and around Belisima cranking away on the science to unlock some of the higher tier modded parts which will make interplanetary travel feasible. [cough - DSEV - cough]

FWIW, the idea is that the crew of the colony ship from Gael (pictures posted earlier in the thread) successfully colonized Nodens.  This was followed by some unnamed cataclysm during which they lost contact with Gael, along with much of their accumulated knowledge.  No knowledge of Karborundum remains, but the enterprising Nodensians (?) did discover some old computer files transmitted from Gael millennia ago labeled "WBI".  It's time to rebuild the space program from scratch, and explore the Grannus system.  And if things go well, they just might eventually try to travel back to Gael. 

[OhioBob]

43 minutes ago, Norcalplanner said:

FWIW, the idea is that the crew of the colony ship from Gael (pictures posted earlier in the thread) successfully colonized Nodens.  This was followed by some unnamed cataclysm during which they lost contact with Gael, along with much of their accumulated knowledge.  No knowledge of Karborundum remains, but the enterprising Nodensians (?) did discover some old computer files transmitted from Gael millennia ago labeled "WBI".  It's time to rebuild the space program from scratch, and explore the Grannus system.  And if things go well, they just might eventually try to travel back to Gael. 

Interesting that you came up with this because I had a very similar storyline in mind.  I also envision Gael as the original Kerbal home world.  But several generations ago there was a global catastrophe that force evacuation of the planet.  Part of the population managed to reach and colonize Nodens, which became the new Kerbal home world.  In the years since their arrival, Kerbals have poured all their effort into building a new home on Nodens.  Thus the space technology that brought them there was lost, along with the first generation of colonists.  Now, many years later, Gael has healed from whatever disaster befell it.  Kerbals are now trying to build a new space program so they can eventually return to the planet of their origin.
 

Edited July 8, 2018 by OhioBob

[Norcalplanner]

4 minutes ago, OhioBob said:

Interesting that you came up with this because I had a very similar storyline in mind.  I also envision Gael as the original Kerbal home world.  But several generations ago there was a global catastrophe that force evacuation of the planet.  Part of the population managed to reach and colonize Nodens, which became the new Kerbal home world.  In the years since their arrival, Kerbals have poured all their effort into building a new home on Nodens.  Thus the space technology that brought them there was lost, along with the first generation of colonists.  Now, many years later, Gael has healed from whatever disaster befell it.  Kerbals are now trying to build a new space program so they can return to the planet of their origin.

Great minds think alike!  Although I'd be lying if I said that Battlestar Galactica and Dragonriders of Pern had no influence on my thinking... 

[Norcalplanner]

An annoying small kraken appears to reside on the 2.5x Nodens launch pad, misaligning parts on nearly every launch with resultant CoM and CoL difficulties.  This new career may have to wait for updated mods and version 1.4.5. 

Other than bugs with the install, the only changes I've made are to reduce terrain height in the rescale to 0.58 (the same as 2.5x Gael) and increase the cloud height config from 9000 to 10000.  With these changes, the KSC is at 5km altitude or so, and the clouds no longer resemble ground level fog.

[Galileo]

1 hour ago, Norcalplanner said:

An annoying small kraken appears to reside on the 2.5x Nodens launch pad, misaligning parts on nearly every launch with resultant CoM and CoL difficulties.  This new career may have to wait for updated mods and version 1.4.5. 

Other than bugs with the install, the only changes I've made are to reduce terrain height in the rescale to 0.58 (the same as 2.5x Gael) and increase the cloud height config from 9000 to 10000.  With these changes, the KSC is at 5km altitude or so, and the clouds no longer resemble ground level fog.

Thats a bug with the stock game. I reported it a while ago, and Squad confirmed it and fixed it for the upcoming update. They actually mentioned it in the dev notes this last friday

https://bugs.kerbalspaceprogram.com/issues/18862

Edited July 8, 2018 by Galileo