What mods/plugins do you suggest that "flesh out" the game, not make it harder?

[ping111]

Hi!

I've been playing for over two years now, but I am a completely sucky player. So, I've decided to get into mods to make my game more interesting, because I am not creative enough to make do with stock parts. I turn to you, O mighty Forums - what mods and plugins do you suggest to make my game more interesting, but not more difficult? For example, I don't want one of those planet rescale mods, because I have enough trouble making it out of a tiny orbit alone. However, I would be fine with re-entry and all that.

What do you suggest?

[KhaosCorp]

Either KW rocketry or NovaPunch (or select parts from both) are great for making more elaborate rockets.

Kethane and Extraplnetary launchpads are a couple of my favorites, gives you lots of stuff to do on other planets, via mining, processing fuels and parts, and eventually being able to launch craft from any planet/moon.

I also really like KSPIntersteller...lots of high-end tech in that pack.

Also, as far as parts go you really cant go wrong with anything made by BobCat...I use the HOME and Soviet packs.

Aside from parts there are some other helpful mods, ones that dont really add gameplay features, but help with piloting or building.

Actions on the Fly-lets you change/assign action groups at anypoint.

Editor Extensions- extends VAB/SPH functionality in several ways.

KerbalJointReinforcement- this one sures up the joints between parts, cutting down the need for struts on big rockets

[sharpspoonful]

I'd Honestly suggest MechJeb. It can teach you how to maneuver around into different types of orbits, interplanetary transfers, and how to land. It can be a useful tool.

[KhaosCorp]

I'd Honestly suggest MechJeb. It can teach you how to maneuver around into different types of orbits, interplanetary transfers, and how to land. It can be a useful tool.

As much as I love MechJeb I would NOT suggest using it for interplanetary transfers...its grossly inaccurate. Often times MechJeb can be a bit less effective than a good human pilot, most times its not a big deal, as the difference is so small it wont matter. But this is not the case with interplanetary transfers....when as little at 50m/s deltaV can make or break a mission.

There is a mod called 'Protractor' that is MUCH better at planning the initial transfer burn to other planets...MUCH MUCH better. Keep in mind though this is only good for the INITIAL transfer burn...MechJeb is great for filling in the rest (as in midway point correction and capture).

[Mitchz95]

Kerbal Attachment System is pretty awesome. It allows you to perform repairs and construction during EVA (building struts on unstable vessels, replacing broken solar panels, etc).

[cmoody]

Run Mechjeb. If you're an audio-visual learner like myself, learning by observing what is done can help immensely.

As much as I love MechJeb I would NOT suggest using it for interplanetary transfers...its grossly inaccurate. Often times MechJeb can be a bit less effective than a good human pilot, most times its not a big deal, as the difference is so small it wont matter. But this is not the case with interplanetary transfers....when as little at 50m/s deltaV can make or break a mission.

There is a mod called 'Protractor' that is MUCH better at planning the initial transfer burn to other planets...MUCH MUCH better. Keep in mind though this is only good for the INITIAL transfer burn...MechJeb is great for filling in the rest (as in midway point correction and capture).

I used to have these issues with Mechjeb (v. 2.1) upon initial startup, but after returning to default settings and reloading the game (tl;dr: turned it off, turned it on) the problem disappeared. Protractor is wonderful.

[Hodo]

honestly, FAR and DRE are two that I feel should be added to the base game and fleshed out, along with KSPX and Kerbal Engineering Redux.

[Jim DiGriz]

I already had all the physics background to understand all the maneuvers in Kerbal. Once I got to the point where I was just totally frustrated with the maneuver node system in kerbal and its interaction with me being both too perfectionist and not quite dexterous enough, I went down a slippery slope from starting with PreciseNode and Kerbal Alarm Clock into MechJeb. Yes I know how to circularize an orbit, now its just "click, burn, done" rather than 5 minutes of me trying to position the burn exactly over the peri/apoapsis and trying to nail the delta-v down to 0.01. I still like doing SSTO takeoffs, final docking and landings myself.

I just added all my plugins into my sig line (a bunch of these I just started playing with in the past day or so):

[regex]

For me, a life support mod really helps flesh out the game. I use TAC Life Support, it being the easiest to customize and the one that generally works well. Kethane is a lot of busy work but it makes fantastic single-ship grand tours possible; I'm currently working through one right now. Add on some parts mods; I like AIES, KW, Spherical Tanks, and some other minor stuff. Flight aids are awesome; I stopped using MechJeb once the 0.21 SAS was fixed, now I use Improved Navball, Engineer, and PreciseNode. I might try out VOID instead of Engineer because Engineer uses the terrible stock GUI L&F. And, of course, Deadly Reentry really helps give atmosphere some meaning.

[Dante80]

what mods and plugins do you suggest to make my game more interesting, but not more difficult?

Some tools that make designing and flying rockets and ships a little easier/better.

1. Kerbal joint reinforcement: Will give you the ability to build stronger/more realistic looking rockets and have less wobbling/mechanical failures in ascent.

2. Kerbal Engineer Redux: A lot of information about your craft attributes and surface/orbit/rendezvous stats, and a handy tool when designing rockets in the VAB since it will give you good TWR and dV stats for your stages.

3. RCS build aid: Will help you design ships that are very stable when translating with RCS, thus making docking and station building much easier/more fun. Also helps with designing in the SPH.

4. Docking port alignment indicator: A very helpful tool when docking.

5. Select Root. Very useful for multi pod/probe parts and building sub-assemblies for your space program.

6. Editor Extensions: Handy for designing in the VAB, among other functions it allows better symmetry and vertical snap of parts.

[Nuke]

I'd Honestly suggest MechJeb. It can teach you how to maneuver around into different types of orbits, interplanetary transfers, and how to land. It can be a useful tool.

mechjeb is good, but not for the reasons you think. once you get to the point where the game needs fleshing out, youve probibly played stock to death. so you know how to fly in space. so the 'im watching mechjeb fly' doesn't cut it. no you end up using mechjeb for the mundane stuff like hauling your cargo around. like tankers, i usually need a few of them a day. manually flying a tried and true design is somewhat redundant. its something i let mj do for me when im afk. or in situations where precision is an issue, like landing a bunch of buildings for a surface base in a tight formation. this is tricky and labor intensive to do manually. mechjeb is just a time saver.