CSX_Ind

Oh yes, about the unit conversion. If you look at the settings part, we've made an agreement that for this challenge, all masses will be measured in kilograms, and all lengths will be measured in meters, unless otherwise specified. Which means if I decided to use volume as a part of measurement, I'd specify it by saying "This part will be measured in liters, gallons, etc.." and give you the specific prices(or other information needed) for that part.

So, about MLLV mission being low-funded, Here's my result up to A2 model. (Remember, I'm using KW Rocketry mod) MLLV(M2) A1 Incomes Total : 216,219.92KCU Profit from last mission : 97,219.92KCU Initial Fund : 35,000KCU 2nd Attempt Fund : 7,000KCU (1st attempt succeeded, 2nd attempt for the GTO Achievement) 1st Attempt Reward : 35,000KCU 2nd Attempt Reward : 7,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU GTO Achievement : 5,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 184,564KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 37,895KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 54,387KCU 2nd Attempt Construction Fee : 37,895KCU 2nd Attempt Launch Fee : 54,387KCU [*]Profit Total : 31,655.92KCU MLLV(M2) A2 Incomes Total : 151,655.92KCU Profit from last mission : 31,655.92KCU Initial Fund : 45,000KCU 1st Attempt Reward : 45,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 107,645KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 43,355KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 64,290KCU [*]Profits Total : 44,010.92KCU My conclusion is that it depends on your strategy. I didn't go for the 2nd attempt because I knew even if I go for the GTO Achievement, since I'll only get 9000KCU as 2nd Attempt Fund, and 9000 + 5000 = 14000KCU cannot cover both 1st and 2nd launch fees. However, I've decided to merge HLLV Mission with MLLV Mission and adjust fund for A3 and A4 model on MLLV, lowering both difficulties and mission length. (Obviously we don't want to stick to a one mission whole day)

I'll look into it, I'm currently working on A2 model of MLLV so if I get no profit at all, I will have to change funds for MLLV & HLLV. However, you don't have to use only stock parts. Reason why I allowed mods is because some mods do give you cheaper parts with extra advantages or minor downsides. Currently there is no achievement for using only stock parts so try build your launch vehicles & ships by mixing various parts. And about payload, resource tap does give you total fuel on board, but if you used fuel tanks as dummy weights, since resource tap gives you total amount, when you calculate your launch cost, it will be automatically included. So try not to use fuel tanks as weights but try to use structural parts such as multi-point connector. And about fuel calculation - I could use liters as unit, but it won't make any difference, so it will stay as kilogram. And tips on building rockets : Try not to overachieve. It is good to have Tier-4 and get 40,000KCU, but to do so, your LKO model must be used. Which means if you fail Tier-4 but achieves GTO Achievement, that means you only receives fund given + 5,000KCU, and that cannot cover all your costs. So what I did was to achieve Tier-3 and do 2nd attempt to get GTO Achievement. By doing so, not only I'm getting all my funds back(both 1st and 2nd), I get 35,000KCU as an extra. For GTO Achievement, since you are using GTO model, you know your launch vehicle will get GTO Achievement if your launch vehicle got Tier-3. If you try to achieve Tier-4 at a single attempt, not only you have to have powerful rockets, but you also have to load more fuel, causing you to pay more. Remember, management skill does not mean how cheap can you build your vehicle, but also means how efficiently will you attempt to challenges to get maximum incomes.

Pretty simple. It means your MLLV must be able to send small payloads such as 1.25m in diameter. I do recommend to use adapter for 1.25m payloads though, because it could wobble a bit with 2.5m decoupler

Well, since I've finished part 1 of Mission Package 1, I'll go ahead and post this as an example + progress report. SLLV(M1) A1 Incomes Total : 117,000KCU Profit from last mission : 10,000KCU Initial Fund : 30,000KCU 2nd Attempt Fund : 6,000KCU (1st attempt succeeded, 2nd attempt was for the GTO Achievement) 1st Attempt Reward : 30,000KCU 2nd Attempt Reward : 6,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU GTO Achievement : 5,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 91,787.52KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 36,445KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 9,448.76KCU 2nd Attempt Construction Fee : 36,445KCU 2nd Attempt Launch Fee : 9,448.76KCU [*]Profit Total : 25,212.48KCU SLLV(M1) A2 Incomes Total : 144,212.48KCU Profit from last mission : 25,212.48KCU Initial Fund : 35,000KCU 2nd Attempt Fund : 7,000KCU (1st attempt succeeded, 2nd attempt was for the GTO Achievement) 1st Attempt Reward : 35,000KCU 2nd Attempt Reward : 7,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU GTO Achievement : 5,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 105,107.52KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 36,355KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 16,198.76KCU 2nd Attempt Construction Fee : 36,355KCU 2nd Attempt Launch Fee : 16,198.76KCU [*]Profit Total : 39,104.96KCU SLLV(M1) A3 Incomes Total : 170,104.96KCU Profit from last mission : 39,104.96KCU Initial Fund : 40,000KCU 2nd Attempt Fund : 8,000KCU (1st attempt succeeded, 2nd attempt was for the GTO Achievement) 1st Attempt Reward : 40,000KCU 2nd Attempt Reward : 8,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU GTO Achievement : 5,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 111,257.52KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 37,405KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 18,223.76KCU 2nd Attempt Construction Fee : 37,405KCU 2nd Attempt Launch Fee : 18,223.76KCU [*]Profit Total : 58,847.44KCU SLLV(M1) A4 Incomes Total : 201,847.44KCU Profit from last mission : 58,847.44KCU Initial Fund : 45,000KCU 2nd Attempt Fund : 9,000KCU (1st attempt succeeded, 2nd attempt was for the GTO Achievement) 1st Attempt Reward : 45,000KCU 2nd Attempt Reward : 9,000KCU Tier-3 Achievement : 30,000KCU GTO Achievement : 5,000KCU [*]Expenses Total : 104,627.52KCU 1st Attempt Construction Fee : 32,065KCU 1st Attempt Launch Fee : 20,248.76KCU 2nd Attempt Construction Fee : 32,065KCU 2nd Attempt Launch Fee : 20,248.76KCU [*]Profit Total : 97,219.92KCU

Nice job! And now you carry on to the MLLV parts with 142118KCU.

Oh yes, 10,000KCU is just what you start with at the very beginning of this challenge, not like every single mission. And yes, I should edit my post

2.5t is for LKO launch. 1.0t is for GTO launch. These two count as separate. So if you'd like to test for GTO, put 1.0t payload instead of 2.5t. GTO payload is to achieve GTO Achievement. Nothing more.

Dummy payload can be anything pretty much. As long as it does not supply any fuel, yes, you can use it. Construction cost is what you used for your rocket/spacecraft. If you removed a part from the rocket, it doesn't count. As for Engineer redux, if it is easy for you, you can use it A1 stands for "Alternate 1". Which means if you used A1 base for A2 and worked, you don't need to make two seperate rockets. However, you need to pay for construction cost for A2 and launch cost also. As for mission income, each type counts as seperate mission. Which means you will have minimum of 1 launch for each type. If you spent 38450 to finish SLLV A1 mission and succeeded - 1. 100% of total fund received : which means 30,000KCU (that is, if you made it on the first attempt) 2. All 4 tiers : 40,000KCU That gives you total 70,000KCU as an income, and since you've spent 38,450KCU, your total fund before SLLV A2 mission is now 31,550KCU. As mentioned on mission profile, mission is considered to be finished when you finish ALL part of the mission package. Which means SLLV A1 is part 1 out of 12 parts. Remaining fuel on your launch vehicles will be needed for upcoming mission packages, so be sure to save them

I should have specify this. What you see is the maximum payload limit. If it says 2.8t, then it should not exceed 2.8t There is no privilege for sending more than what profile specifies.

Yup. But do remember that if you are going for the GTO Achievement, you must put your payload up to KSO.

GTO = Geo-transfer Orbit

I have thought about it and it will be added to upcoming mission packages. At this point, KASA does not know SRBs are reusable Dummy weights are test payloads that serves no particular purpose but only serve as weight. Think of a used fuel tank. It is empty, there is no need to keep it, therefore, a dead(dummy) weight. +Do remember though that since they are dummy weight, you cannot use fuel tanks or mono-propellant tanks as dummy weights since they can be used during ascent.

Let's take Rockomax X200-32 Fuel Tank as our example. It can hold 1440 units of Liquid Fuel and 1760 units of Oxidizer. Since units for fuels never mentioned in anywhere, it is kg. If it was tonnes, I'd specify as per ton. Also on Settings- "2. Fuels and weights are measured in kg, lengths are measured in meters, unless otherwise specified."

Main Objectives This challenge will not only test your creativity, but also your sportsmanship and management skill. Background Story & Settings You, as an administrator of the Kerbal Aeronautics and Space Administration(KASA), must lead several space programs with budget-friendly, high-efficiency rockets and spaceships. For each mission you will receive fund, and each time you succeed on a mission, you will be rewarded. Of course, if you fail a mission, no rewards. That being said, here are things you need to know - 0. Be honest! There is no way I(or we) can check your progress. It is you who is responsible for posting results! 1. Since there is no specific unit for currency, we'll assume Kerbal Currency Unit(KCU) as their currency. 2. Fuels and weights are measured in kg, lengths are measured in meters, unless otherwise specified. 3. At the beginning of very first mission, you will start with 10,000KCU. 4. On each mission, you will be funded with certain amount of money. However, if you fail a mission and wish to re-attempt, you will only receive 80% of what you received from previous attempt. (ie. 15,000KCU for first attempt, 12,000KCU for second attempt, 9600KCU for next, and so on...) 5. If you succeeded on the mission but do want to re-attempt for some secondary objective(s), you will receive 20% of what you received from previous attempt, since you will have plenty amount of fund by that time. Rules and Restrictions 1. At VAB -Read all about it : Each mission has specific design restrictions and requirements. Read them before you start building. -Every part counts : Make sure you include every single parts in your manifest. These parts count as construction fee. As mentioned above, this challenge also tests your sportsmanship. I(or we) will not ask you to upload your craft file(s). So be honest. -You are what you use : mods are allowed; pilot assistant, small parts or big parts, it doesn't matter. Just make sure you include these parts in your expense manifest. -Don't worry about stabilizer. We got it : Stabilizer consider to be part of launch pad installment, so there is no need to include price for stabilizer. -No negotiation on prices : I do understand that certain parts are very, very expensive. However, that is not a good reason to change price of a part. So far the most expensive part I've seen is MechJeb pod, which costs 15,000~17,000. -Debugging : The only debug tool you are allowed to use is part clipping tool, and reason why is because sometimes it is necessary to make certain parts as small as possible to avoid any "wobbling". 2. At Launch Pad -Wait a second, launch fee please : Not only you need to pay for your spaceship construction, you also have to pay for all your fuel expenses. Price for each fuel types will be down below, so be sure to check. -Main engine ignition... and lift off! : Once the spaceship is off the ground, all you can do is stage control, in-flight reprogramming, and ship control. Do not press ESC key and go back to VAB unless your spaceship crashes or lost in the space. Every single launch counts. Double check before you launch! 3. Aftermath -So... mission success or fail? : Each mission will have specific objective(s). If you achieved these objective(s), mission is consider to be succeeded. If any part of the objective(s) is not accomplished, mission is consider to be failed. -Handsome rewards, please : There is a general criteria for mission reward - *If mission success, 100% of received fund will be rewarded. (ie. If you have received 15,000KCU, 15,000KCU returns.) *For each secondary objective(s), extra money will be awarded based on secondary objective's criteria. -Here is your check sir/ma'am : Don't forget. You have bills to pay! Subtract any amount of expenses from total incomes. 4. General Rules -No skipping please : Each mission is based on previous mission(s). Do not skip to other mission(s) just because it looks easy for you. Scoring At the end of each mission, total profits you made is your score. It is your responsibility(or option) to post your result on the thread. Remember, even if I added scoring system, this does not mean you HAVE to report your score. It is your decision whether to post your score to compete or not. However, if you do post your score, I'll be happy to put your name as top 5. So how do we track all these processes? It is all up to you! If you want to post your result, keep track on your results on paper or computer, whichever way you want to record your score. The whole purpose of this challenge was to simulate possible career mode and to let players design their rockets, spaceships, or probes with specific purpose(s) while having some restriction(s). Other things before getting into missions... Price for fuels are as follows - *Liquid fuel is 2.5KCU per 1 kg *Liquid Oxygen is 1.5KCU per 1kg *Solid Rocket Booster is 1.5KCU per 1kg *Mono-propellant is 1KCU per 1kg -----(Mission profiles from here)----- *Each mission contains several parts. Mission is consider to be finished when you finished all the parts of the mission! Mission Package 1 : Launch Vehicle Project KASA is eager to send their satellites and spaceships, but they first need to design launch vehicles that can be used over time. At the end of this mission, you will have total 12 different launch vehicles. Small Lift Launch Vehicle - Construct SLLV with following requirement(s) & restriction(s) General restrictions & Rules Payload cannot exceed diameter of 1.25m To test, dummy weights must be used. Dummy weights does not count as part of construction fee. [*]Requirements A1 Model must be able to send 2.5t payload up to LKO and 1.0t payload up to GTO(Optional) A2 Model must be able to send 2.8t payload up to LKO and 1.1t payload up to GTO(Optional) A3 Model must be able to send 4.5t payload up to LKO and 1.75t payload up to GTO(Optional) A4 Model must be able to send 5.5t payload up to LKO and 2.1t payload up to GTO(Optional) [*]Funds For A1, 30,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A2, 35,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A3, 40,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A4, 45,000KCU will be provided for the first time. [*]Medium Lift Launch Vehicle - Construct MLLV with following requirement(s) & restriction(s) General Restrictions & Rules Payload cannot exceed diameter of 3.75m. (If able) Payload stage must be able to hold 1.25m diameter payload. To test, dummy weights must be used. Dummy weights does not count as part of construction fee. [*]Requirements A1 Model must be able to send 9.1t of payload up to LKO and 4.5 up to GTO(Optional) A2 Model must be able to send 12.2t of payload up to LKO and 6.0 up to GTO(Optional) A3 Model must be able to send 13.4t of payload up to LKO and 7.0 up to GTO(Optional) A4 Model must be able to send 22.5t of payload up to LKO and 12.0 up to GTO(Optional) [*]Funds For A1, 35,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A2, 45,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A3, 60,000KCU will be provided for the first time. For A4, 65,000KCU will be provided for the first time. Extra awards for Mission Package 1 : Tier system & GTO achievement Obviously, KASA do want their launch vehicles to go higher than LKO. So they decided to adopt the Tier System. Each and every model can challenge for tier(s). Tier System will measure launch vehicle's capability of sending a payload to certain orbit, beyond LKO(LKO is considered to be 80km). If higher tier was challenged before lower tier, then the launch vehicle receives both higher tier and lower tier (ie. If Tier-3 was challenged and succeeded, Tier-2 and Tier-1 is automatically achieved. For each tier achieved, 10,000KCU will be awarded. There are 4 types of tiers Tier-1 will be given for launch vehicle(s) that can send specified amount of payload up to 100km orbit. Tier-2 will be given for launch vehicle(s) that can send specified amount of payload up to 200km orbit. Tier-3 will be given for launch vehicle(s) that can send specified amount of payload up to 300km orbit. Tier-4 will be given for launch vehicle(s) that can send specified amount of payload up to KSO. [*]For Tier-4, LKO model must be used, and it is allowed to send launch vehicle up to GTO first, then perform transfer up to KSO. If Tier-4 challenge fails but made up to GTO, LKO model do receive GTO Achievement. [*]If GTO model was used for Tier-4 challenge, Launch vehicle does not receive any tier but do receive GTO achievement award of 5,000KCU. [*]For GTO achievement, launch vehicle must be able to orbit 100km then perform transfer up to KSO. However, if transfer fails but 100km orbit succeeds, GTO model do receive Tier-1. Mission Package 2 : Satellite Project KASA is ready to step up on their mission scale.... Maybe a little bit. At the end of this mission package, you will have total of 5 satellites. Broadcasting Satellite - Construct three broadcasting satellites with following restriction(s) & requirement(s) General Restrictions & Rules Satellite must be able to launched by SLLV A1 Model Satellite must orbit between 80 to 100km. Satellite must be operational when orbiting over night side. (Which means it must be operational without solar charges) Satellite requires to have 3 antennas, one facing outward, and the other two facing Kerbin. [*]Requirements KABS-01 must orbit LKO~100km, with 0 degree inclination. KABS-02 must orbit LKO~100km, with 45 degree inclination. KABS-03 must orbit LKO~100km, with 135 degree inclination. [*]Funds SLLV launch fee will be provided by KASA. (Not a part of the reward) Construction Fund of 40,000KCU (For each satellite launches, does not get deducted if re-attempted) Satellite Fund of 15,000KCU (For each satellite launches) [*]Scientific Research Satellite - Construct two satellites with following restriction(s) & requirement(s) General Restrictions & Rules Satellite must be able to launched by any launch vehicle with GTO Certificate. Satellite must be operational when orbiting over night side. (Which means it must be operational without solar charges) Satellite requires to have 3 antennas, one facing outward, and the other two facing Kerbin. Satellite must have minimum of 2 scientific devices. [*]Requirements KASS-01 must orbit GTO, with 45 degree inclination. KASS-02 must orbit GTO, with 135 degree inclination. [*]Funds Launch fee will be provided by KASA. (Not a part of the reward) Construction Fund of 40,000KCU (For each satellite launches, does not get deducted if re-attempted) Satellite Fund of 20,000KCU (For each satellite launches) [*]Secondary Objectives - Perfect Orbit Altitude Challenge All satellites are eligible for this challenge. Perfect Orbit Altitude (POA) will examine how close did a satellite reached to a target altitude. POA will examine both AP and PE altitude for KASB and AP only for KASS. POA starts with 20,000KCU, and depends on how close did a satellite reached, amount of award changes. For KASB satellites, if difference between AP and PE is less than 5km, you receive 100% of the award. If 5~10km, 50% of the award If 10~15km, 25% of the award If 15km~, 0% of the award [*]For KASS satellites, If difference between AP and projected GTO altitude(2868.75km) is less than 5km, you receive 100% of the award. If 5~10km, 50% of the award If 10~15km, 25% of the award If 15km~, 0% of the award Following images are to aid Mission Package 2 1. Example satellite design for KABS-XX 2. Example satellite design for KASS-XX 3. Map view of finished Mission Package 2 (Does not need to be same) Mission Package 3 : Interplanetary Survey Satellite Project TBA -----(End of Mission profiles)----- Scoreboard Only top 5 will be shown on the scoreboard Mission Package 1 sgt_flyer with net profit of 422,554KCU (Pending) (Pending) (Pending) (Pending) [*]Mission Package 2 (Pending) (Pending) (Pending) (Pending) (Pending) p.s.1 : Isn't 30,000KCU too much? Nope. I spent 36,923.75KCU for my first SLLV and failed p.s.2 : Comments, thoughts, and concerns, I'll read them since this is my very first challenge to post. p.s.3 : English = hard.

Mistake was made, I do request mods to delete this thread. Thank you. Well I'm currently using two mods: KW Rocketry(KWR) and MechJeb. MechJeb seems fine, but KW Rocketry, tiny problem with it. 1. It seems SRBs hate decoupler. Every time I attach one of KWR's SRBs on decoupler and bring it to the launch pad, report gives me that there was structural failure between SRBs and liquid fuel tank. So I tested different types of decouplers. Both TT-38K Radial Decoupler and HDM had 9 out of 10 structural failure with KWR's SRBs, mostly with Globe X-5 "Thor" SRB. First thing came to my mind was that it could be collision detection problem, so I changed to TT-70 radial decoupler(To give more space between liquid fuel tank and SRBs). This time, 4~5 out of every 10 launches showed structural failure, and this time, most of KWR's SRBs shared same number of structural failure report. 2. Attachment problem with SRBs. Way before with SRB's random structural failure on the launch pad, I had problem where I can't attach KWR's SRBs on decouplers. Nothing overlapping was there, and yet unable to attach. I had to use debug(Part clipping debug) to attach those. 3. Attachment problem with LEs and interstages. Liquid Engines do attach normally in VAB, however, when I try to launch my rocket, LEs start to cause two problems. First problem happens right before launch, where LEs start to wobble violently as if they were not attached properly to liquid fuel tanks, or as if they were colliding to some 'invisible' object. This continues after launch, and it messes up entire lift off & climb stage. Quick fix to this problem was to attach struts between LE and liquid fuel tank, as well as SRBs. Second problem happens mostly during launch & climb phase, where interstages fail to decouple with engines so that decoupler 'debris' are still attached to an engine. With interstages, I tried to detach them by attaching normal decouplers within interstages, but didn't work out well. Funny thing is that, if I attach decouplers correctly, LEs starts to wobble, and if LEs were attached properly, decouplers fail to decouple. Added : I zoomed into climbing rocket and found out that first stage LE was attempting to "attach" to SRBs, and second stage LE was drifting out of interstage. Those 3 are my problems, and I wanted to know if anyone was having same problem. +KW Rocketry version is v0.2.3, which, according to Kerbal SpacePort, SpacePort was corrupting mod files so they uploaded txt file with download link in it. But since there was no txt file with download link, I assume they have fixed the problem with it. +For those who does not know(Just in case I mean) - -SRB: Solid Rocket Booster -LE: Liquid Engine -Interstage is a decoupler with engine cover already attached to it.

Well, just found out that Voyager 1 & 2 was possible because of the "Grand Tour" alignment of planets. I guess it means I need to wait until all planets are aligned in KSP

Is that mean even if I attach ion thruster on the satellite to perform minimum maneuver, my satellite cannot travel to next celestial body? (Assuming that I calculated Hohmann transfer from Duna to next body)

Don't know if anyone tried this before, but. So, Voyager 1 & 2 changed direction and increased their speed by performing swing-by technique in real life. Then, if I were to launch a satellite to put it on escape trajectory from the sun, first I need to calculate minimum delta-v to escape from Kerbin, then calculate Hohmann transfer to nearest planet, in this case, Duna, then let it travel so the satellite can catch Duna's gravitation then perform swing-by. Though I can't just let the satellite to perform only one swing-by, because that is still not enough speed for the satellite to escape from Sun's gravitation, which means I need to calculate (or use minimum thrust) next Hohmann transfer to a next celestial body and so on. However, even if I successfully make this satellite to enter other celestial body's gravitation, will swing-by technique work in KSP?