return to kerbin from the surface of eve

[antipro]

hi, I've built an apollo stlyle ship with 2 pods, a lander can and 2 RGU.
when I touched the surface of kerbin, the "return to kerbin from the surface of eve" contract didn't get completed.
I think it's because I didn't return with the "ROOT Pod", is this possible?
In case, I now have to repeat the entire mission or I can assign the return Pod as the root part before to land?
actually I'm on the return way and the root pod is orbiting eve empty.

Edited February 27, 2020 by antipro

[AHHans]

23 hours ago, antipro said:

I think it's because I didn't returned with the "ROOT Pod", is this possible?

Yes, in a way. Any command module (a probe core, a cockpit, a command capsule, etc.) has an internal "flight recorder" that records where it has been (in orbit around Kerbin, landed on the Mun, whatever). To fulfill the "land on Eve and return" contract you need to recover a command module that has "landed on Eve" in it's "flight recorder".

So, no, you don't need to return the root part of your rocket, but the command module that you used on your lander. (Or one of them if you e.g. had a crew capsule and a probe core.)

23 hours ago, antipro said:

In case, I now have to repeat the entire mission or I can assign the return Pod as the root part before to land?
actually I'm on the return way and the root pod is orbiting eve empty.

You don't need to redo the full mission if the lander still exists, you can also retrieve the lander from Eve orbit. (Or you can use the cheat menu, that's always a possibility.)

Edited February 28, 2020 by AHHans
fixed typo

[jost]

18 minutes ago, antipro said:

I think it's because I didn't returned with the "ROOT Pod", is this possible?

Yes. However you don't need to complete the mission. You could use Debug-menu to complete the contract. It might feel cheaty but since it's a single player game nobody will find out

i do this everytime when I think a contract should be counted as completed but KSP thinks otherwise

[antipro]

26 minutes ago, AHHans said:

To fulfill the "land on Eve and return" contract you need to recover a command module that has "landed on Eve" in it's "flight recorder".

ok thx!
are you sure? this means my ship doesn't work at all. I have to do several modifications, such as add docking ports, add fuel, etc.
this has no sense: imho when you do an apollo mission, you don't recover the Excursion Module.
imho, the "flight recorder" should be applied to the kerbals and not to the pod they use to return home.

Edited February 27, 2020 by antipro

[VoidSquid]

36 minutes ago, antipro said:

this has no sense

Agreed, and that's exactly why I think @jost's way is perfectly fine and valid  

[AHHans]

2 hours ago, antipro said:

are you sure? this means my ship doesn't work at all. I have to do several modifications, such as add docking ports, add fuel, etc.

Yes, I'm sure. And, yes, that's annoying.

You can still salvage that mission, even if you don't have a docking-port on the lander. You can send a tug with a Klaw and return the lander that way. IMHO that is a fun mission in its own right, but feel free to disagree.

[Zhetaan]

2 hours ago, antipro said:

ok thx!
are you sure? this means my ship doesn't work at all. I have to do several modifications, such as add docking ports, add fuel, etc.
this has no sense: imho when you do an apollo mission, you don't recover the Excursion Module.
imho, the "flight recorder" should be applied to the kerbals and not to the pod they use to return home.

You are absolutely correct, and this is a good thing to bring up in the Bug Tracker should you feel strongly enough about it to make the suggestion to the developers.  Another idea is to suggest that the developers make the contracts do a better job of communicating their requirements:  i.e., the contract needs to explicitly state that you must return the capsule rather than the kerbal.

You can also use a mod that lets you take more sensible contracts.

I tend to the idea that it ought to either track the kerbals or require direct evidence of a landing, such as a surface sample, but I prefer to mod the contract system to correct the issue.