Ultimate Steve

Exactly! I feel the same! That's one of the reasons Iove KSP so much - it is a very flexible platform for writing your own story. That being said, a playable story mode would be interesting to see (as long as it didn't replace normal sandbox/career/science/etc).

Chapter Nine - Any First Words? *This actually happened on my first ever Minmus mission. Also, I was re-reading some of the older chapters and I discovered that I am a really terrible proofreader. So, if you find a mistake, please PM me about it (both so I can fix it and not to clutter up the main thread). Thank you! EDIT (because posting would be doubleposting): I'm at the point, gameplay-wise, where I have to jettision a bunch of stuff in order to have enough Delta-V to get home. No spoilers, but it's REALLY HARD to determine what to keep and what to throw out The conversation inside my head: "Okay, if I throw this out, I might have enough fuel to get home, but it would limit the storyline a little bit. This one I can get rid of no problem. I really need this one... Why do I even still have this thing? Gah, I need to get rid of this but at the same time I know the next part will be really hard without it! AAAAH!"

They still have the "Stage One" marker in map view.

I'm not sure if this is what you're talking about, but there is a ring of stuff at the base of the nozzle (not sure of the purpose) that falls off that I've noticed before. Also, you're above 3000 rep!

Also, I was writing part nine of Voyage and got absorbed researching one small detail for the story (took me two hours (ish) to find it) and I look at my launch and I'm like "WAIT ITS ALREADY SIX THIRTY!!!1!1!! DID I MISS IT?!?!?!?!?!? T minus three minutes!

Take three!

I present to you, a common case of not-enough-strut-itus:

It's not exactly "huge" by some people's standards, but I made the ITV-020 "Philosopher of Time," AKA the "Flying Skyscraper." In theory, it is capable of taking 916 Kerbals to any planet or moon with gravity less than the Mun. This capability has yet to be proven, however, as I have only taken it to Minmus (I really should work on that mission report some more). It can refuel itself, and has IIRC 6km/s of Delta-V fully fueled, so it can operate indefinitely. EDIT: It is not modular, but it does have a few docking ports. There is no science section, but I think one can be added without too much hassle.

If only I could go back in time... Short story: No. Long story: (NOTE: After writing this, I realized that I sort of went off on a tangent that didn't really follow the thread that much. Read at your own risk.) I first started playing KSP in version 0.19, which was the update when rover wheels were first released. In my mind, anything after 0.18-ish is when you'd generally have extremely iterative craft, as before that there weren't many parts to play with... but I'm getting off track. So, why don't I have very old iterative craft? Well, back in 0.19, I played KSP on a potato that would fly a four part craft at 4FPS, and didn't have a graphics card strong enough to do anything - when re-entry or mach effects came into play, it would just go "NOOOOOOOPE!!!!!" and turn the entire craft hot pink. Eventually, the potato's memory filled up (it was the only computer in the house at the time) and I ended up deleting KSP except for the screenshots. I really wish I hadn't done that. I would love to go through some of my old crafts (Baby Steps, DA ROVAH, Toddler steps 1-4, a Minmus base I don't remember the names of, the Gemini series, etc.). So, I have no surviving craft from 2013. In late 2014, my grandpa gave our family his old computer. Now, today, I can't stand playing KSP on it, as it runs abysmally slowly. However, compared to the potato, it was an exponential improvement and I began getting somewhere. On the potato, I had only managed one probe Mun landing. On the NewPotatotm, I went from 0.22-ish to 1.0. I managed my first and second manned Duna landings (Ahh, back in the day of the Dunarian IVB. I still remember how I skipped Dunarian III) as well as a probe that landed on Laythe, almost a manned Gilly landing (I had two vehicles and one pilot. Both were torqueing, so one always tumbled out of control. Now I know it was from trim, but I didn't know how to alt+x back then), several space stations, several SSTO's, and a Jool Entry Probe. I did not iterate my crafts back then either. My SSTO's tended to be one-off designs, and I didn't do enough interplanetary trips to mandate using iterative crafts, I simply built a new one each time. Also, after each update, I would usually start a new save. For the first half of my time on the NewPotato, I did not know how to copy over my saves, because I was eleven(?) at the time. Maybe twelve. And I didn't actually have that much experience with computers. So, no saves transferred between versions = no craft between versions. Behold! The age of this wonderful WINDOWS 10 64 BIT DELL LAPTOP WITH 8 GIGABYTES OF RAM AND AN I5 PROCESSOR has BEGUN!!!!!! It may not be the greatest computer, but it gets the job done, and can actually run a multi-hundred part craft at a decent speed. This computer has run KSP since 1.0-ish and it is FANTASTIC! However, I still do not have iterative crafts! GRR! And why, you ask? Because I start a new career every five minutes (slight exaggeration). Most of them never go interplanetary. My attempt to change that was the glorious PROJECT INTREPID, a save in which I would explore every planet and moon with giant motherships. However, the reason that hasn't gone as far as I'd like it too is that I decided to make PI into a mission report (good idea, huge amount of time taken away). It is literally about 10% gameplay and 90% writing. This meant that I'd get super far in-game and then spend a month catching the mission report up, by which time I would have gotten out of "the zone" and not wanted to play for a bit. I played on and off, feeling an obligation to continue PI rather than start a new career. You would think that PI would allow for iterative mothership and lander designs. Sadly, that is not really the case. So far, in that save, I think only Dres has had more than one ship land on it. The landers are each so unique that I can't really have a common design. I could, theoretically, use iterative design on the motherships. My original intention was to keep the same rear strut and twin-arm configuration seen on the ITV-009 Intrepid. To be fair, one other identical ship did make orbit, then I launched two identical ships that only shared the profile in common with the first two. After that I made a four armed version. Then two long spindles with rings at the back. Then a flying skyscraper that could take 916 Kerbals to Minmus. So, the iterative design did not work out. I mean, it left me with a very cool flying skyscraper... ...But no craft designs evolving. I then burnt out on Project Intrepid again, and started a backstory Jool-Sarnus 10 mission. I finished that, and then made a few more chapters of PI, then burnt out again. I started my best story yet, VOYAGE. Then I went on vacation and burned out. I made one or to more chapters, then went to scout camp, where I vowed to attempt a SRB grand tour. So, the list of things I currently have to do is as follows: VOYAGE PI Finish my new KSP Music Video Finish a cover of a song I'm doing. Edit the dozen model rocket videos I have sitting on my older computer. Finish drawing that picture I started. Hand up the technical drawings for that spaceship I designed months ago... Practice Trombone and Piano. GET A JOB to pay for a trip to Europe. And who knows what else? I bet you a million dollars that that's not even half of the list. And what do I do all day? I sit around and browse the forums. *Reads title of thread again* *Reads my rant* Oh - sorry. Let's see if I can't turn this into something relevant. As far as iterative design goes, I change stuff up to often to have any old designs still active. As far as actual active craft that were designed in 0.22-ish and still work in 1.2.2, I recently loaded up my old saves from the NewPotato in 1.2 and found out that even the oldest ones are not old enough to break. They would still work. I mean, the nuclear powered ones are carrying around extra oxidizer, but aside from that (and the lack of heat shields), nothing is broken. But, if I could go back in time, I'd tell myself back in 2012 that I should get KSP (at around 0.18, when major iterative design becomes possible IMO) and get a new computer ASAP (or just give him this one). Then I would tell him to immediately install KAC and KER. I would tell him to start by watching as much Scott Manley as possible. Then I would say, "Hey, me. Start one sandbox savefile. NEVER, EVER DELETE IT OR LOSE IT! Keep backups. Go to all of the planets. Think of the most insanely crazy things to do. And, launch a bunch of stuff to orbit right away. Start a graveyard orbiting the Mun for old, unused ships. Leave every outdated ship in that orbit. Then, leave it alone until July 4, 2017. Then, go into that orbit and try to do a grand tour with only the stuff in that orbit. See what still works! And don't forget to enjoy yourself! (Sorry for slightly derailing the thread.)

If only it was Falcon Five, Then we could say "Falcon Five is Alive!" Nine almost works, but if the 1045 mission is expendable... Also, speaking of fireworks, it's legal to buy them in my town, but not legal to set them off. Also, I realized you can buy a HUGE bag (like, the size of a folded-up chair) for less than the cost of three "E" engines. Now, to go buy some, go out of town, find a huge open area (yeah, right) and fill my model rockets with fireworks!

Let's just hope it doesn't end in fireworks...

Breaking news: Elon has merged OpenAI with SpaceX. More to follow...

AAAAH AGAIN!!!!! I'm starting to hate the number nine.

Yesterday's abort was caused by a fault in something guidance-y on the ground, according to the webcast.

*Enters thread wanting to say something dramatic but doesn't know what to say* Here goes nothing! Again!

As far as actual life on other planets, none has been implemented. Unless you count those weird structures on Pol, which almost look like towers of fungus... But as far as easter eggs and hints?

Way back in 0.19, I had a launch failure and I, for some reason, chose to include an LES on the rocket. I do not remember what the rocket was supposed to do. Also, my "LES" was four thuds fed by a few Oscar B's, not the most effective thing ever... My next screenshot was my first ever Mun Landing: Ah, back in the day of the 1.25m SAS unit and the really old landing legs...

"I'm Tom Insprucker!"

Interesting fact: If today's launch is on time, then 1/3 of all of the SpaceX launches in 2017 will have happened in the past ten days.

I'm *trying* to record a cover of a song I like. I'm trying to make it so it sounds good. Problems: The microphone I'm using is very sensitive to background noise, but not the actual music. There is a LOT of background noise here I'm having synchronization issues and will have to redo the first 30 seconds when I have time I couldn't get it to export correctly I do not have a real glockenspiel, vibraphone, melodica, drum kit, bass guitar, etc. and have to use a synthesizer. And it doesn't have the best speakers. ... Also, I thought it sounded okay, but then the first person I showed it to said it was "terrible." I'm still going to continue anyway, though.

Hehe. Reminds me of the first watch I ever owned "Water Resistant down to XXXft!" *Goes down inflatable waterslide which lasts, like, two seconds* *Ruins watch*

You could try using rocket boosters to boost it away. In my experience, four Launch Escape Systems per heat shield works well. Just make sure to angle them so that the shield doesn't smash your ship when the rockets run out. But, if at all possible, decouple it after your chutes are out.

I'd say I'm at or near five. I am attempting a move to six with a project I am working on.

"Oh, yeah, some billionaire agreed to double our budget if we can go get Voyager 2 and convert it into a display. The mission should launch before 2045 if we're lucky."

Well, that's the plan at least. I may have to bend the definition of "Grand Tour" (E.G. bringing new boosters from Kerbin after every stop (refueling, sort of) and MAYBE not departing Kerbin with all of my landers on board, both to save my computer from melting) and also use RCS to dock in some cases, and I may not ever finish it. But, yes. That is the plan! *Opens Google Sheets* (Directly copied and pasted from said google sheet) HOW IN THE WORLD EACH LANDER WORKS Lander Notes Eve - Set PE slightly west of landing site if orbit is 100km. If not, then you're in trouble... Try and get the right ascent profile or else you die. Remember to mark the mountain. Tylo - Combine Separatron stages together. Use lots of quicksaves. Land SLOWLY or else. You need to jump to get into the lander. If you tip over, can't help you. Gilly - In the event of an emergency, don't die. I'm helping myself, SOOOO much, aren't I? Addtion to spreadsheet: If you are clueless, check around page 1400 in WDYDIKSPT?