Jeb's Life: A Kerbal Novel

[Disparia Books]

I just finished the first mission. I could have spent hours tweaking it, but at this point I want to move on to making the really exciting story bits and getting things going. I added a link in the first post and will put it here. Please leave feedback in general so I know how to proceed. Also, I did a Google Drive link...is there an easier way to share the files? Is that safe, fast, easy or do any of you have a preferred method? Thanks everyone, I'm off to start on chapter 2

Chapter 1 DXX

Edited April 16, 2018 by Disparia Books

[million_lights]

@Disparia Books

you could use Dropbox as well.

The first 2GB are for free and I like it because it automatically syncs with a local folder on your system .

I will play your mission tonight during my livestream and give you some feedback.

[Disparia Books]

25 minutes ago, million_lights said:

@Disparia Books

you could use Dropbox as well.

The first 2GB are for free and I like it because it automatically syncs with a local folder on your system .

I will play your mission tonight during my livestream and give you some feedback.

Great! I already use drive and don't really want to use dropbox since I don't have an account. Do you think it's good enough to justify switching or is this an okay way to go?

As for chapter 1...I totally understand that it's not the most exciting thing in the world, but it establishes background and was a way for me to see how everything logically fits. So don't expect a 10k m/s reentry with sirens mission, but something that establishes the future story. The rest, however, are going to be really cool.

For specific feedback let me know how the timing on text windows is, the location, and things like that. As mentioned before, I use locations as a way to explain what you're reading. Also, I keep the non mission text up for about 25 seconds each, that way you can read it when you can without rushing. Let me know if this is a good amount of time or if you think it needs to be adjusted. Also, there shouldn't be any grammar issues, but don't worry if there are. I'm going to be writing future missions in MS Word first, proof reading, the pasting the text. This will work as a way to storyboard and edit all at once. @SQUAD feel free to add a basic text editor system to the mission editor

Thanks mate! Feel free to share your thoughts here-hopefully we can all learn from each other and develop some great missions.

Edited March 18, 2018 by Disparia Books

[million_lights]

here's what I have noticed:

I've made an Imgur album for convience sake.

Pretty solid mission, looking forward to play the next chapter!!!!!

https://imgur.com/a/T3pF3

Here Is the link with the timestamp (15m10sec) if you want to re watch my play through and experience it "live"

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/240151277?t=15m10s

[Disparia Books]

On 3/18/2018 at 11:35 AM, million_lights said:

here's what I have noticed:

I've made an Imgur album for convience sake.

Pretty solid mission, looking forward to play the next chapter!!!!!

https://imgur.com/a/T3pF3

Here Is the link with the timestamp (15m10sec) if you want to re watch my play through and experience it "live"

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/240151277?t=15m10s

Hey mate,

Thanks so much for doing that! That ladder thing I was aware of but thought it was a game glitch. I'm going to delete it and replace it and see if I can't fix it.

As for the EVA...yeah, I know. I spent HOURS working on getting that functioning but no matter what I did the EVA/proximity/Go here would not work. I'm convinced (not really, but guessing) that it was something to do with reading too many kerbals and not properly thinking Jeb should do it...I don't know. I WANTED people to get out, but after deleting and recreating nodes for hours it never worked...so you get dialogue instead. I know it's a problem, but I'd rather move on to the meat of the stories than keep trying (hopefully you understand!).

As for the pudding...is there a pudding mod anywhere? I just *tweaked* it to have a pudding-like...thing inside. If you use your imagination it looks like a bowl and some stuff that could be considered pudding-like

As for the dialogue...that's very much a thing that will become familiar as missions progress. The ESL thing is something I will need to keep in mind, thanks for bringing that up. But Gene...Gene isn't making good first impressions, we'll say!

Here is the new link (and reflected in original post)

MISSION 1 UPDATE

 

Edited March 22, 2018 by Disparia Books
update link

[Disparia Books]

Working on the second mission now. Thanks to the tips and feedback it's going much better than the first. I expect everything to be streamlined, I'm adding more dynamic events, and working on a points system that will allow for a mild form of leaderboarding. Not sure when I will finish, but with any luck by next weekend.

[Ty Tan Tu]

After having played with the scenario maker for about a week now,  chapters are definitely the way to go . If you fail in a scenario the player is forced to start from the beginning, which really does impede the flow of a story. I am struggling with how long a 'chapter' should be. I want it to be challenging enough that the reader is jazzed when they complete the chapter and can't wait to continue the story. But I do not want to make it so hard  longthat the reader has to keep starting again at the beginning of the chapter multiple times.

Every chapter is of course gong to be different, and I suppose that is were the art of story tell lays. I am not sure how many missions a chapter should have. One mission seems to short to tell the story, but five might be too long to keep the reader engaged. 

I have an idea loosely based on H. P. Lovecraft stories. Gene Kerman, I am thinking, is my best narrator. He is the only Kerbin with different colored hair (there is a mystery there). He befriends his young protegee, i.e. you the player.  In the first chapter, Gene tells you that a very small object has been found in a low Kerbin orbit, but it is dead. He orders you to rendezvous with the object, dock with it and re-energize the alien craft. Once energy is restored, it tells a cryptic bit of the big story, along with coordinates to the next mission. Next Gene sends you to the newly discovered coordinates, which are located on a remote spot on Kerbin itself, with the stipulation that a scientist must be included in the mission . When completed, the mission discovers hieroglyphs of a clearly alien origin with unsettling hints at the bigger story and the path to the next mission. 

I am thinking of stopping the first chapter there. Is that too short?

Edited March 20, 2018 by Ty Tan Tu

[Disparia Books]

46 minutes ago, Ty Tan Tu said:

After having played with the scenario maker for about a week now,  chapters are definitely the way to go . If you fail in a scenario the player is forced to start from the beginning, which really does impede the flow of a story. I am struggling with how long a 'chapter' should be. I want it to be challenging enough that the reader is jazzed when they complete the chapter and can't wait to continue the story. But I do not want to make it so hard  longthat the reader has to keep starting again at the beginning of the chapter multiple times.

Every chapter is of course gong to be different, and I suppose that is were the art of story tell lays. I am not sure how many missions a chapter should have. One mission seems to short to tell the story, but five might be too long to keep the reader engaged. 

I have an idea loosely based on H. P. Lovecraft stories. Gene Kerman, I am thinking, is my best narrator. He is the only Kerbin with different colored hair (there is a mystery there). He befriends his young protegee, i.e. you the player.  In the first chapter, Gene tells you that a very small object has been found in a low Kerbin orbit, but it is dead. He orders you to rendezvous with the object, dock with it and re-energize the alien craft. Once energy is restored, it tells a cryptic bit of the big story, along with coordinates to the next mission. Next Gene sends you to the newly discovered coordinates, which are located on a remote spot on Kerbin itself, with the stipulation that a scientist must be included in the mission . When completed, the mission discovers hieroglyphs of a clearly alien origin with unsettling hints at the bigger story and the path to the next mission. 

I am thinking of stopping the first chapter there. Is that too short?

Length is definitely an issue, though I would always err on the side of too short. You said it-having to redo something very long would be annoying. As far as I'm aware (haven't explored it fully yet), you can quicksave during a mission and reload if you mess something up (break a wing/engine/wheel) but don't outright die. If you have lax fail requirements then you can get away with something longer. But ultimately length is determined by the experience you want to provide.

Personally, I'm keeping missions short for a couple of reasons. 1. So that they feel like actual missions within my story. Something too long wouldn't be realistic (heh), or would at least feel out of place for the fantasy I'm trying to create (basically it's like having a robot appear in a western-both are acceptable, but together they don't fit). So a more 'realistic' style of mission structure with something that takes years might not make sense...unless you can give a reason for it. And 2. Because it's too hard to keep track of and troubleshoot a MASSIVE mission in the editor. That's really an important one. Being able to manage all of the nodes and layout is critical, as issues can arise and take time to fix. if you have too large a mission it can be impossible to find everything.

As for your mission, it sounds really cool. Please post it here or on your own thread (and let us know) when you have something. It's hard to say too long or too short now, as you can drag out a single mission that requires you to fly from point A to point B, and you can make an orbital rendezvous mission take less than 10 minutes.

I'm not expert, but for timing I would say make it manageable to create and edit, make it fit within the lore and structure you are creating (continuity is key), and have a reason for either something long or short. Don't make any decisions without having a purpose behind them. If it's very short, have a reason for that length. Likewise for something long.

Hope that helps. As soon as you have something I can try I will be more than happy to give it a go! Cheers!

 

[Ty Tan Tu]

How do you board the jet? I get to the top of the ladder, but there is no "B" to board...

[Disparia Books]

44 minutes ago, Ty Tan Tu said:

How do you board the jet? I get to the top of the ladder, but there is no "B" to board...

I don't know why it does that, it's no different than any other plane I've made

Just keep climbing. Eventually you will stand on the cockpit. If you do that and move around you're sure to find the B to board indicator.  Annoying as crud, but no idea how to fix it.

[Cunjo Carl]

Perfect Landing. Every Time.  I think I've got this Jeb character down pat!

@Disparia Books, I should probably mention for your upcoming chapters that at the moment there's a bug with spawning orbital craft using nodes that aren't docked directly to the start node. So, it's best to get all your assets up in the air right at the start for now.

Thanks for the mission, it was fun to play!

[dvader]

5 hours ago, Ty Tan Tu said:

How do you board the jet? I get to the top of the ladder, but there is no "B" to board...

When I tried it, the entrance was on the other side with another ladder. The cockpit is one sided but there were two ladders. Probably a case of accidentally adding symmetric ladders instead of just one.

@Disparia BooksThanks for the mission!

[Disparia Books]

8 hours ago, Cunjo Carl said:

Perfect Landing. Every Time.  I think I've got this Jeb character down pat!

@Disparia Books, I should probably mention for your upcoming chapters that at the moment there's a bug with spawning orbital craft using nodes that aren't docked directly to the start node. So, it's best to get all your assets up in the air right at the start for now.

Thanks for the mission, it was fun to play!

Didn't know that, interesting, I appreciate you telling me! Glad you enjoyed it, lol. It's a bit rough for a first go but I'm glad to share something you like. The second one is coming along nicely and will expand on the ideas a lot. Hopefully I will be done by Saturday again (weekly or bi-monthly releases sound doable for now).

5 hours ago, dvader said:

When I tried it, the entrance was on the other side with another ladder. The cockpit is one sided but there were two ladders. Probably a case of accidentally adding symmetric ladders instead of just one.

@Disparia BooksThanks for the mission!

I actually added two on purpose...because Kerbal rage frustration, kerbal smash!

...In reality I added two because I couldn't figure out why it wouldn't let be board, so for the final release I doubled it in case people needed two options, figuring overkill is better than frustration. I don't know why it won't let you board properly. I tried a completely different craft and it too has a hard time letting me board that specific cockpit. Not sure if bug or incompetence. Anyway, thanks for sharing and I'm glad you liked it. I'm definitely working on expanding the story every day!

[Ty Tan Tu]

18 hours ago, Disparia Books said:

I don't know why it does that, it's no different than any other plane I've made

Just keep climbing. Eventually you will stand on the cockpit. If you do that and move around you're sure to find the B to board indicator.  Annoying as crud, but no idea how to fix it.

I figured it out. I was actually walking down the line greeting my well wishers when I decide to just get on the dang rover and get to the jet. But somehow I did not put Jeb on the rover or into the jet, it was someone else. If the wrong Kerbalnaut gets into the jet, there is no way to get him out. Even though I did hit the Esc key to restart the mission, that dang interloper was still in the cockpit.

Perhaps it is a bit of a bug with Making History, but I doubt it is one that will come up often. I am not an ordinary idiot -  I am a special kind of an idiot. 

[Disparia Books]

4 minutes ago, Ty Tan Tu said:

I figured it out. I was actually walking down the line greeting my well wishers when I decide to just get on the dang rover and get to the jet. But somehow I did not put Jeb on the rover or into the jet, it was someone else. If the wrong Kerbalnaut gets into the jet, there is no way to get him out. Even though I did hit the Esc key to restart the mission, that dang interloper was still in the cockpit.

Perhaps it is a bit of a bug with Making History, but I doubt it is one that will come up often. I am not an ordinary idiot -  I am a special kind of an idiot. 

Well sir, you win the Internet today, that's the best

Yeah, as far as I'm aware there is no way to lock craft to certain Kerbals or to lock Kerbals from being controlled or switched to at all. I try my best by making them stranded tourists that can't be rescued, but even then you can still switch. I wish there was a way to lock that, like a, you know...lock button on the 'spawn kerbal' *hint hint @SQUAD*

Anyway, I'm just finishing up bug-testing the second mission and should have it done by Friday/Saturday at the latest!

[Disparia Books]

I'm basically done with the second mission, but like the first, I'm having issues with a specific node. Is there anyone here that feels they could take a look at the mission and see why one of the 'fly through' objective nodes does not activate? It's the second to last one, right before finishing, and no matter what I do I can't get it to activate (including rearranging it, deleting what was before it, and altering how it is achieved). Let me know and I will send you the zip. Thanks!

[Squelch7]

I really enjoyed this, but has anyone else had a problem with the end node not activating? I'm sitting right on top of the final "Landed Vessel" location, but it's not giving me the end screen.

 

Was quite a challenge for my mediocre plane skills!

[million_lights]

4 hours ago, Disparia Books said:

I'm basically done with the second mission, but like the first, I'm having issues with a specific node. Is there anyone here that feels they could take a look at the mission and see why one of the 'fly through' objective nodes does not activate? It's the second to last one, right before finishing, and no matter what I do I can't get it to activate (including rearranging it, deleting what was before it, and altering how it is achieved). Let me know and I will send you the zip. Thanks!

chuck it my way and I will take a look tomorrow

 

@Squelch7

yes thats normal.

the last node isnt marked as the end node, so you will never see a "mission finished" screen

Just a warm feeling on the inside that you made it xD

Edited March 22, 2018 by million_lights

[Disparia Books]

@million_lights

I will take one more look at it tonight and send it your way tomorrow. Thanks for doing that...it's so frustrating to spend so much time and have one little problem

Also, @Squelch7 I am updating the link to have Chapter 1 with a finish node. I honestly thought it was marked, and the one I'm linking to now has it marked, so if it doesn't for some reason that's on the game, not me, lol (that being said, if that IS the case, if anyone knows why it doesn't end feel free to let me know).

I should mention-I think when I tried updating the Mission 1 link I didn't actually save posting the new URL for the zip...so it SHOULD work properly now

The second one will be ready this weekend!

Chapter 1 with finish

Edited March 22, 2018 by Disparia Books

[Disparia Books]

@million_lights

I think I got it working. I just did a test and everything worked (including the ending awards). So I'm going to say...here is the finished chapter 2!

Chapter 2 Download

Important: You CAN quicksave and reload after failing a mission; click the 'close' button on the fail screen and it will take you back to the game where you can F9 to your previous quicksave. Not sure if everyone knew that or not, and it dramatically changes the nature of missions (no absolute perfection required).

If you (or anyone) can, please stream it and let me know. Nothing like watching Kerbal things live!

Happy Kerbaling!

Edited March 23, 2018 by Disparia Books

[million_lights]

@Disparia Books

I'll go live and play it in about 30-60 minutes. Just finishing up some stuff around the house

[million_lights]

we already had a chat in my livestream so I wont give any more feedback here.

The only workaround I can think of to make crafts drop from the sky is a cratf with an x meter long clamp (requires craft file editing) and then you delete the clamp with a "destroy part" node.

 

If you need help or help or advice with the editor drop me a message 

 

oh, and if you change already released chapters, give them a new version number.

version X.Y

increase X for major/crucial changes/bugfixes

increase Y for minor bugfixes and alternations

Edited March 24, 2018 by million_lights

[Disparia Books]

Hey all,

Just a quick update on chapter 3. I'm working away on it and it's coming nicely. However, there is one little issue with the editor that won't let me create it as planned. For now I'm going to hold off on releasing it until the update comes out and fixes the issue. If that takes too long (more than a couple of weeks) I'm just going with plan B. But hopefully it's fixed sooner than later. Worst case scenario I will move onto 4 before releasing 3, that way it won't actually delay any future releases. It's not a huge issue, but I'd rather wait and go with my idea than have to compromise. Cheers!

Edit: Err, ask and you shall receive...looks like the update just went live. All systems nominal!

Edited March 28, 2018 by Disparia Books

[Kaa253]

Very enjoyable missions thank you!
I have played through 1 & 2 and everything went well except a bit of bother with detecting the end screen conditions. Mission 1 I eventually got it but I don't think I actually ended mission 2.

Looking forwards to the continuing story

 

[Disparia Books]

23 minutes ago, Kaa253 said:

Very enjoyable missions thank you!
I have played through 1 & 2 and everything went well except a bit of bother with detecting the end screen conditions. Mission 1 I eventually got it but I don't think I actually ended mission 2.

Looking forwards to the continuing story

 

Ah! VERY glad to hear it, I appreciate the kind words.

For mission 2 you need to land on the lower half of the runway (before the barriers) for it to trigger the end screen. @million_lights streamed it last Friday or Saturday and you can watch his twitch replay to see. Bit just try to park near Explodey (assuming you haven't moved him). Chapter 3 will be out tomorrow or Saturday depending on how long it takes to fix a dock/undock issue.Cheers!