quex

The lander carries a rover that can be detached and used for reconnaissance. Just decouple the rover, leave the command module and enter the pod on the rover. The lander is later used for return and the rover is left behind. Tested on both Mun and Minimus. Three-person version is on hold till 0.17 because of constant interference from the Kraken. Used mods: [thread=7854]Carts[/thread] [thread=15016]Crew-able empty pods[/thread] [thread=12384]Anatid Robotics / MuMech - MechJeb - Autopilot[/thread] (at the moment only the thin decoupler is used, MechJeb can be used to make the cart antonomous) I can't attach files (apparently because of insufficient number of posts..) The craft file is here The launch vehicle has fuel to spare.

Hi Awaras, the lander looks great. Yes I do. You can create all kinds of possible designs this way. And also impossible ones (using symmetry) where some the attached parts are not actually in physical contact with the rest of the craft. It would be helpful if we could influence thrust of motors using pitch and yaw commands. (At the cost of possible imbalance caused by unequal consumption of fuel in symmetrical tanks.)

An accident during a routine landing left Bill Jeb and Bob stranded on the Mun. They lost both propulsion and parachute. Your task is clear - bring them and their saviors back to Kerbin alive. You may use any parts you want, excepting cheat parts, try respecting laws of physics. Rolling of the command module is allowed. The task may be accomplished in stages: e.g. Mun to Kerbin orbit using one craft, de-orbiting and return by another one. Or everything in one run. I encourage saving the game regularly in order to protect your sanity. Just be creative and consider that Kerbal language doesn\'t have a word for impossible. Nor any other words as far as I know... Post screens and a description. This challenge is very similar to the one proposed by trbinsc some time ago. Unfortunately it has not attracted much attention. My solution is in the spoiler. I designed a light HTVL rescue vehicle using stock parts and the cart plugin by Tosh. the trick is in placement of landing struts/legs. The mission ready for liftoff. Uneventful liftoff, Kerbin orbit injection, trans Munar injection in progress. The survivors are in a crater on the near (0.14.0) or far (0.14.1) side of the Mun. Deploy the landing saving struts. Get as low as possible on the 3rd stage, get rid of it and the counter-weight decoupler close to the surface. Save as much fuel as you can for the return trip. On the surface. The cart with the radial decoupler is facing down. Drive to the crash site. Position the rover. Close the landing struts while pushing the nose of the rover down. This needs to be done carefully and particularly accurately. Inaccuracy results in the struts breaking off. Gotcha! Roll the craft using RCS to get the captured command module up. The command module should be as close as possible to the longitudinal axis of the rover. This reduces the tendency of the craft to rotate because of moment of force while applying thrust. (I like the way this is simulated) Decouple the now-on-top cart and find a ramp to take off. There is a convenient mountain range north east from the crash site. Go easy on the thrust. When you reach a stable trajectory it\'s probably the last chance to save the game. 1) Loading of saves made later in the flight always resulted in an incorrect relative position of the rover and the retrieved command module. They often collided and sometimes exploded. 2) Sometimes the status of one or both of the crafts does not update after take-off in close contact. They stay 'landed'. Opening the landing struts and increasing the distance between the rover and command module helped to solve this. Say good bye to the Mun and prepare for a long trip. It is not possible to accelerate the time more than 2x. If you do, you\'ll loose the contact between the rover and the CM. When you get to Kerbin SOI, adjust your periapsis to ~30km. Aerobrake over Kerbin. Keep the craft retrograde when the chute deploys, otherwise it rips the rover apart. If you have some fuel left, use it to slow the descent down. If not, ...don\'t ask. If everything went well, both crews will have survived. Looking forward to other solutions.