Populating base with tourists

[FlyingPete]

I'm constructing a base on Minmus as part of a contract, with a facility capable of supporting eleven Kerbals. Now, I know you don't need to populate the base to fulfill the requirements, but I don't like having things lie empty.

Rather than send Kerbonauts to the base, I thought I'd exile some tourists instead. There's a tourist contract available which does basically what I want- cash rewards for orbiting around Kerbin and landing on Minmus, plus further rewards for completion of the itineraries. I'll load them into a habitat module when I launch it, so it won't even cost me anything to send them there. The only thing I won't be doing is bringing the gullible fools home anywhen soon. The contract has a 12-year expiry, and only a small reputation penalty for failure.

 

So, my funds should increase when each of the idiots colonists are stranded treated to an extended stay on Minmus, and by the time twelve years have passed I should have more than enough reputation to offset the penalty. Or I could just terminate the contract early- presumably they don't just disappear from existence at this point. Have I missed anything?

[Superfluous J]

I'm not 100% sure you can transfer the suckers colonists between pods.

[FlyingPete]

11 minutes ago, 5thHorseman said:

I'm not 100% sure you can transfer the suckers colonists between pods.

I'll just have to leave them in the hab module they arrived in then. You should be able to move them about by internal transfer- so allowing for tourists to move to e.g. a landing craft instead of having to haul the entire ship down. Can't remember when I last did a contract to try it.

[bewing]

Yes, you can definitely do internal transfers of tourists. I think they will disappear when the contract fails. If they don't, lemme know ... it would be an interesting case to test for bugs.

[FlyingPete]

Have just done a quick test (in v1.3.1) by taking some tourists into orbit of Kerbin. Cancelled the contract in the tracking station, and the luckless tourists remained aboard! Not even your agency can save you from the ore mines of Minmus!! 

[bewing]

2 hours ago, FlyingPete said:

Have just done a quick test (in v1.3.1) by taking some tourists into orbit of Kerbin. Cancelled the contract in the tracking station, and the luckless tourists remained aboard! Not even your agency can save you from the ore mines of Minmus!! 

LOL!

And thanks! This little gotcha of yours just helped us figure out a longstanding bug that's had us scratching our heads for quite a while.

Edited April 10, 2018 by bewing

[FlyingPete]

55 minutes ago, bewing said:

LOL!

And thanks! This little gotcha of yours just helped us figure out a longstanding bug that's had us scratching our heads for quite a while.

Happy to help. 

P.S please don't thwart my attempts to hold tourists captive for all time

 

 

I shall leave you marooned for all eternity on a dead planet- Khaaaaan Kerman

 

[bewing]

We won't. A detailed look at the code says that if they are on a vessel, they only vanish once you recover them at KSC. If you don't recover them, you keep them. Forever. Bwahahaha!

 

Edited April 10, 2018 by bewing

[FlyingPete]

Construction of the base has begun with the first two modules. The lab module was sent first uncrewed, followed by the first habitat module, towed there by a crewed lander. Three unsuspecting tourists were sealed within, along with a scientist hitching a ride. Once the hab was landed (and the 3-kerb lander parked alongside) the hab was rolled into contact with the science lab. One of the scientists from the lander gathered local data, then boarded the lab.

Thus completed the original base contract, and the tourist's agencies transferred funds for landing their clients on Minmus. Sorry, no refunds- take it up with Mort and the legal squad.

Now just need a solar array/battery bank to cope with the lab's power demands.

Edited April 21, 2018 by FlyingPete