RocketBlam

Balancing compared to what? There are no competitors in the game. There's no such thing as "OP". Besides that, the game isn't even finished yet. Don't get married to the game as it was in .23, when the final version may be nothing like that.

A couple of clarifications: 1. I originally intended for the 8700 D/V to be the atmospheric value. However, since I didn't specify it, and there have been several submissions meeting only 8700 D/V in vacuum, I have edited the challenge to clarify that it can be 8700 D/V vacuum. 2. I chose to include a D/V requirement to make confirmation possible. It may be possible to fly some craft from some point on Eve into orbit with less D/V, but I frankly don't have time to test all of them in flight, and I may not be able to get it to orbit, while someone else (a better pilot, that is) might. It just makes it too difficult to confirm. So that is why the 8700 D/V requirement is there.

I can't load many of these files. When I put some in my /VAB or /SPH folder, the game won't load any saves. If I remove them, it will load saves normally. Anyone seen this or had this problem? They may be from .23, that may be the problem.

I'm around, I've been waiting for some of the entries so I could check them out. The space plane entry particularly is causing me some consternation. It uses control surfaces, and some unusual usage of SAS modules, which concerns me as far as the rules go. I didn't specify that control surfaces were prohibited, but they can be exploited. Of more concern is the novel placement of the SAS modules. The craft files that I cannot load to check out are from: GeorgeG (all three) Metaphor Nedal sdj64 bhauth: Your craft appears to exploit the infiniglide bug - 30 control surfaces in one axis alone. I'm not going to forbid all control surfaces, but this one seems to exploit a bug. I've edited the original posting to clarify. Tavert: Great design, but when I view it (with the detachable chutes removed) your D/V is a tad too low. You can fix this if you like, even if you add a little more fuel you're still really light. Please resubmit these using only MechJeb or Kerbal Engineer add-ons, from version .23.5. Sorry for my tardiness in this update!

I've always thought they need more video of rockets being assembled and launched. When I bought this game I had no idea it was a rocket design/flight simulator. They need to reveal that, they'll get a lot more interest.

This was based on the style of NASA mission flags.

It couldn't land because I foolishly put the RCS monopropellant tanks between the rockets and the rocket fuel. At least I assume that is the reason. You can see it clearly in screen #1.

One of the worst missions I have flown yet... and also one of the best. I Redesigned my lander upon researching RCS rockets. I added some RCS fuel and thrusters, and jetted off to Minmus. Upon landing, a horrifying reality: My final stage rockets did not work. At all. I was falling toward Minmus at about 10 m/s with no ability to slow down and no ability to return to orbit. I sometimes cheat, I admit this, but in this save, I had decided I would never cheat, not even a little. So I first started to think about ways to recover my Kerbonaut -- the famous Jebediah Kerman - because there was no way to land like this. Once I discarded my transfer stage, I would have no rocket power. There was no option to land - or was there? "So don't discard your transfer stage," some idiotic voice in my head said. "Land on it." Land on it! Land a top-heavy vehicle on uneven terrain, with nothing to support it but the thrust chamber from your transfer stage? I gave it a try. And it worked. So from the sheer stupidity of designing a lander that could not possibly return to orbit, to landing on a little rocket thruster, with my landing gear 30 feet off the ground, here is how it went down. I somehow managed to land on my transfer engine. Upon returning to orbit, I transferred the fuel out of the lander into the transfer stage. Finally, I landed back at Kerbin, chastised, yes. Embarrassed, yes. But so glad that Jebediah was alive. And having earned some science too, which was nice.

So is this good to go for 23.5? The first post says both 23.5 and just .23.

This apparently has non-stock parts, I can't load it in VAB. ETA: NVM, I got it.

Nnnnnngaaaa!!!! I am *squeezing* the *juice*! On the basis of doing science, either of the Kerbal moons are the best place to build a base, due to there being many biomes. I've built several bases... well, landed in several places with a task in mind, and getting back to orbit is usually a primary concern. So I guess it really depends on what the base is for. My bases have mostly been for Kethane rigs, so getting back to orbit with a minimal expenditure of fuel is always a high priority. These bases have been on Minmus, Mun, Vall and Pol. Vall is a fairly good place for a Kethane base, but it has higher gravity than Pol or Bop. If you're never planning to leave, I guess any body with an atmosphere is a good candidate, so you can use parachutes. ETA: I just added this avatar, I was inspired by yours.

Good point, and I love your avatar. Embrace the Juffo-Wup.

Pol is a great place to build a base. Its gravity is so low that getting back to orbit is easy. The worst place in the game to build a base is easily Eve, followed by Tylo. Eve: High gravity, dense atmosphere, very hard to get back to orbit. Tylo: High gravity and no atmosphere, so no aerobraking. Takes a ton of fuel just to land, not to mention getting back to orbit.

Please post the craft file.

Yes! They end up being dislodged a little from their seat, and after that, they are zombies.

OK, this just happened again. I was driving a rover with Jack Kerbin and it crashed, and he became unresponsive. I quit and reloaded, and now he is gone, listed as "missing in action" in the astronaut complex. Jeb is listed as "Vessel: Jebediah Kerman. Seat: Passenger Seat. Part: kerbalEVA." Some serious bugging going on here.

He shows up as Jebediah... I mean, I can "fly" him, he just won't do anything. Pressing "R" does not turn on his rocket pack, he won't walk, right-clicking on him does nothing but show me how much RCS fuel he has. Can't do EVA report, etc. But he is standing up straight. The more I think about it, the more I think he's a zombie.

Jeb is on the moon. I was trying to get him on board his rover and something went south... now I can switch to Jeb, but he won't move or activate his rocket pack. I can't control him at all. Is he dead? Or... undead? Possessed by a Mun spirit maybe? Not sure what I can do with him.

By the way, I love the vehicles you're all coming up with. Great creativity, just what I hoped to see. I was surprised to see a 60 ton lander, let alone what came after.

Yes, that's basically it. Rather than get into arguments over the precise amount of DV needed to get from the highest point on Eve to orbit, I established a benchmark DV that would allow you to get to orbit from a reasonably accessible place.

I have a thread about that too. See "Challenges".

The reason I think they're planning to land on the moon is purely commercial. Branson is selling rides to space (not even orbit, just a sub-orbital flight) for a quarter of a million dollars. Musk is going to sell you a ride to the moon. Think there are 10 people in the world willing to pay $10 million dollars to land on the moon? I'm sure there are. Probably more. I think maybe he just wants to go to the moon himself. My bet is that he'll be on the first flight. But he's going to be selling tickets to the moon, I am sure of it. I understand that the capsule was designed to potentially land on Mars, but Mars is orders of magnitude more expensive than the moon, and more of a hypothetical goal. Long-term it may do that, but short-term... I mean within the next 5-10 years, I bet Spacex lands a person on the moon. It will also be the first private corporation to land a human on another planetary body.

This just happened to me. See that thing that looks like a Goo container? Guess what it isn't? That's right. A Goo Container. It's a Monopropellant tank. Did I mean to bring a monopropellant tank all the way to Tylo, my most difficult mission yet, instead of a Goo Container? No, I didn't. Science may never know what Goo acts like on the surface of Tylo.

I sometimes hack infinite fuel if I'm only a few hundred DV from finishing my mission. *hangs head in shame*

I really think Spacex is planning to send people to the moon. Here's what set me off: CGI video of the Dragon lander in a powered landing. Now, as we Kerbal enthusiasts all know, parachutes are much cheaper than rocket fuel and rockets for landing. Why would Spacex be developing a lander that landed under thrust and not chutes? The answer seems pretty evident to me: they're planning on landing on a body with no atmosphere. Here's the video: Maybe even more interesting is this Spacex lifter which is also designed to land under thrust. Why would he want to land a lifter under thrust? Hmmm...