Jump to content

[1.12.x] Alcubierre Warp Drive (Stand-alone)


RoverDude

Recommended Posts

Dull boring geek mode on:

As with the AD in KSPI(L) the major issue is the fact that the exit point should be set (known) BEFORE you start to form the bubble. Actually, you should initially know where you would want to appear after the 'jump'. There's no translation or acceleration. At one point of time you are 'here' and in the other - you are 'there'. In this regard, hyperedit's way of relocating your craft is more 'technically accurate'. You could just use the same mechanism + add some cool visuals. Plus, a little bit of navigation error should be in order (i.e. you should appear slightly off to the location you intended and the more the distance of the jump is - the more should be the error - to the point that you could actually end up inside a planet which would obviously ruin your mission catastrophically).

Dull boring geek mode off

Disregarding the tiresome old bore above - great job!

Hyperedit is like playing Russian Roulette, sooner or later your craft/game gets the bullet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dull boring geek mode on:

As with the AD in KSPI(L) the major issue is the fact that the exit point should be set (known) BEFORE you start to form the bubble. Actually, you should initially know where you would want to appear after the 'jump'. There's no translation or acceleration. At one point of time you are 'here' and in the other - you are 'there'. In this regard, hyperedit's way of relocating your craft is more 'technically accurate'. You could just use the same mechanism + add some cool visuals. Plus, a little bit of navigation error should be in order (i.e. you should appear slightly off to the location you intended and the more the distance of the jump is - the more should be the error - to the point that you could actually end up inside a planet which would obviously ruin your mission catastrophically).

Dull boring geek mode off

Disregarding the tiresome old bore above - great job!

Those would be jump beacons - already have them ;)

The logic for this one by the way is increasingly large micro-jumps for precision reasons.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My understanding of the Alcubierre drive is that it distorts spacetime to move your ship, and thus there is translation through space and a well-defined in-between position. The destination may still need setting in advance because of issues with controlling the warp bubble from inside, but I think it's acceptable to ignore that in the name of gameplay. After all, we're into speculative physics territory anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am so glad that RoverDude went with a really nice Bubble effect for the Alcubierre Drive...

...KSPInterstellar now kinda reminds me of this:

*Taken from the NyanCat Mod - (@godarklight why oh why... lmao... get back to your DMP) :D

Edited by Deadpan110
no edit - just 'yey' my 90th post \o/
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dull boring geek mode on:

As with the AD in KSPI(L) the major issue is the fact that the exit point should be set (known) BEFORE you start to form the bubble. Actually, you should initially know where you would want to appear after the 'jump'. There's no translation or acceleration. At one point of time you are 'here' and in the other - you are 'there'. In this regard, hyperedit's way of relocating your craft is more 'technically accurate'. You could just use the same mechanism + add some cool visuals. Plus, a little bit of navigation error should be in order (i.e. you should appear slightly off to the location you intended and the more the distance of the jump is - the more should be the error - to the point that you could actually end up inside a planet which would obviously ruin your mission catastrophically).

Dull boring geek mode off

Disregarding the tiresome old bore above - great job!

That would be a jump drive or wormhole you are describing. The Alcubierre Drive works by generating what basically amounts to a wave, in the form of a 4-dimensional sphere, that accelerates to, theoretically, 10c. Since the bubble is moving through space time it isn't instantaneous and there is a travel time.

Tell me what you need the power beaming for ;)

I've been asked a couple of times to also do something like that as well, I just don't have a use case for it yet.

Other than the already mentioned niceties behind not needing to carry reactors to generate lots of power for your craft, even in kspi it was only really necessary for the MPDs and the AD, it also helps with weight so in career mode you spend less money on your accent stage as well as the cost savings, and frame rate savings, in part count. Outside of career there isn't really a use, just started an NFT play instead of KSPI to see which one I like better so I can't comment on if it helps with those parts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hear ya, problem I have been having (no offense) is people posting stuff without actually using the part. At this juncture, I can span the entire Kerbol system in four minutes. there's just zero reason to make this faster as it's only going to aggravate Unity's floating point issues. So it makes no sense to prematurely optimize something for a condition that doesn't even exist.

See above. I have heard no plans for new star systems from Squad, but if something does in fact materialize, I'll adjust accordingly. We also already have jump beacons ;) And that would be a different mechanic anyway.

Version? This was a bug in an early release but should be corrected by 0.0.4

What do you mean we have beacons?. or are you planning on adding them

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What do you mean we have beacons?. or are you planning on adding them

There's an existing jump drive beacon that plays very well with the USI constellation.

Wasn't the warp drive theoretically capable of passing through solid matter? Not sure i'd want to test that, but I thought that was possible since its bending space itself.

Easy answer. In KSP, you die if you try that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hang on a sec - I see no thrusters - does this mean you've worked out how to make this work without an engine built into the part?

Works the same way, the thrusters are aesthetic (and it still uses an engine module)

The smaller one has less warp velocity, right?

Smaller one has a lower max velocity, superior ISP, and folds. But a small bubble, limited storage space, worse altitude requirements, and average accelleration (which is to say, it's a hair better than the 2.5m model).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

http://i.imgur.com/g25Oera.png

Animated warp effect:

Inroducing a new, stand-alone Alcubierre drive for KSP!

What does it do?

The Alcubierre drive works by moving space around your ship, not through accelleration. In KSP we do this by changing your vessels position based on the engine throttle controls for the warp engine. Speeds of up to 1.6 times the speed of light are possible.

How does it work?

Use massive amounts of electric charge to create Exotic Matter. Point at your target. Use Exotic Matter and Xenon Gas (the latter is for the maneuver thrusters) to go straight to the target. Note that since your velocity does not change, only your location, you will have to compensate for any orbital speed differences. This can be excessive (15K+ DV) or, with proper planning, next to zero.

To be clear. This is NOT just a fast, efficient engine. There is no acceleration (other than a tiny amount from the maneuver thrusters). It works through translating the ship's position (simulating how a real Alcubierre drive might work).

What's the catch? How is this not OP?

You will still need either very careful navigation or excessive DV changes to achieve orbit. Also, because of the destructive nature of the warp bubble, parts outside of it (both on your own ship and others) will be destroyed. Warp bubble collapses are also destructive, and maneuvering at excessive warp speeds can be very dangerous (everything from losing control through parts of your ship slipping outside of the bubble and exploding).

What other mods do I need?

None. Really. The only dependency is Regolith which is needed for it's converter (used to make Exotic Matter from EC).

What other parts do I need to support this?

Stock only. Really. Near Future Technologies reactors, or reactors from the USI mods will make some things easier, but you can get away with a completely stock warp ship with just the addition of this part.

Can this support [mod X]?

If you want integration with other mods, tell your favorite modders to ping me. I am very open to collaboration :)

LICENSE:

CC 4.0 BY SA NC

DOWNLOAD HERE

Source can be found here

Any reason why after filling up on electric charge and exotic matter the drive won't fully engage? The warp bubble just collapses and the drive status shows as "inactive".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Any reason why after filling up on electric charge and exotic matter the drive won't fully engage? The warp bubble just collapses and the drive status shows as "inactive".

Altitude? Hop up to at least 500KM (this varies a bit in the next release)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I appreciate the value of limitations, but I have to say that a forever fixed size of warp bubble does seem a bit, well, limiting. I'd feel much better about, say, a configurable one that uses exponentially more fuel past a certain size, so there would be more ways of creatively addressing the limitations...

...But otherwise, great! Maybe now I can be free of the pre-cooler overheating thing that KSPI bolts in... :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I appreciate the value of limitations, but I have to say that a forever fixed size of warp bubble does seem a bit, well, limiting. I'd feel much better about, say, a configurable one that uses exponentially more fuel past a certain size, so there would be more ways of creatively addressing the limitations...

...But otherwise, great! Maybe now I can be free of the pre-cooler overheating thing that KSPI bolts in... :)

Limiting is precisely the point - the ring is a fixed size, too. That's why there will be different drives with different characteristics, to include bubble size. Sorry, not changing that one ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Limiting is precisely the point - the ring is a fixed size, too. That's why there will be different drives with different characteristics, to include bubble size. Sorry, not changing that one ;)

Since your going to obviously get alot of questions on this, just look at the last few pages, how hard would it be to make a control menu & code in a dynamic option? So maybe have a toolbar menu on the Space Center Screen (like TAC does) and let the player choose between Fixed (Intended) and a Variable (Experimental). Then based on that setting add a few more tweakable parameters to the part? Then just tell everyone that you don't support any graphical or explosive glitches from the variable version... but its still there for ppl who want to try it.

Makes me wonder if you could use something similar to Procedural Fairings to "build" your warp bubble on the fly as well :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

RoverDude, I noticed the drive does not use Exotic Matter when enabled but the throttle is zero. Shouldn't there be some fuel usage?

Also is it possible to use the xenon thrusters separately? Would reduce the need for extra engines on lighter low part craft....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This thread is quite old. Please consider starting a new thread rather than reviving this one.

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...