Jean Deaux

Interesting challenge. Quite a bit of trudging as each peak looked higher than the next, so I actually did a lot of back and forth trudging trying to find your exact waypoint. I suspect the mod you were using was yielding a slightly different number than the stock positioning system. I gave up walking peak to peak (would have driven, but the steeps were too... well, steep and my vehicle lacked the horsepower to traverse those slopes. Flew the plane, landed on the mountain, dropped off a manned vehicle, drove it a short bit, trudged a LOT, got the soil sample, planted the flag, trudged some more, flew home, had a drink and called it a day. Looking forward to that badge.

There's plenty of existing challenges posted, a few minutes of reading could yield some new things to test yourself with.

I love MJ for those long burns, especially with those ion engines. Flying, docking, and driving I much prefer to do myself for efficiency sake.

So as not to discount or discourage the part of the community that enjoys flying IVA with cockpit mods, such as the discussed Raster Prop Mod, I'll allow the mod but will award successful entries into a new category due to the assistance of the navigational displays brought into the cockpit. Let's see you all out there in space!

That's a very impressive run, I wish like crazy I could accept this but the use of that Raster Prompt Monitor which displays your orbital progress disqualifies this as an entry per the rules of this challenge. I do hope you re-visit without this mod loaded as I'd wager you have the trained skills and practice to pull this off.

Great news? To be clear, I was not accepting the Raster Prop Monitor as an acceptable mod due to the orbital trajectory display. That is acceptable, as long as you are flying the ship yourself, you're welcome to take notes to remind yourself of turns, angles, speeds, etc. Nothing wrong with a few practice runs or trials in the simulator. And no, I am not dis-allowing the default cockpit instrumentation. I'm referring to mods that add result trajectories (whether visual or numerical) over and above what the stock version of the game provides, such as the afore mentioned Raster Prop Monitor.

I checked out that Raster Prop Moniter, that does look like a very useful mod. If it weren't for the orbital display, I'd allow it as there's quite a few cockpits that have very poor outside visibility and the external camera's would be very helpful.

Greetings fellow challengers! While this challenge could easily have scoring applied to it for various challenges, there's just no good way to scan for cheating due to video editors. So, I've opted to just make this a participatory challenge with two category awards, and a badge of honor for your signature bar. THE CHALLENGE Fly your manned SSTO, Shuttle, or Rocket to space and reach a stable Kerbin Orbit, meaning both your Apoapsis and Periapsis are at least 65km. You are not allowed to leave the view of the cockpit until you feel you have reached a stable orbit, at which time you should enter the map mode and hover your mouse over the apoapsis and periapsis points to confirm your stable orbit. While you are in the map view, you are allowed to create a single NAV point if you wish to aid with your re-entry. Once you exit map mode and are back inside the cockpit, you may not leave the cockpit view again until you have landed. You may not execute any maneuver's outside of the cockpit view. The entire trip should be video captured as proof to the world of your efforts, your video's will serve as documentaries and training tools for future wanna be astronauts. WHAT'S ALLOWED? You're free to use whatever mod or ship design you like that doesn't provide any additional navigational assistance. All piloting and course selections must be 100% set by the user without any instrument guidance or assistance, other than the stock instrumentation on your control panel. No infinite fuels or other such cheats to provide an unlimited supply of any particular resource. *EDIT* Since there seems to be a popular drive to use the mod Raster Prop Moniter, I'll create a new award category below for those pilots using any mod that shows navigation data within the cockpit. THE AWARDS [Astronaut Trainer] *Added* Accomplish the mission goals as stated above with the assistance of navigational software added to the cockpit view. [Astronaut Elite] Accomplish the mission goals as stated above, landing safely back on Kerbin. Any ship type, any duration, any safe landing. [Astronaut Legend] Accomplish the mission goals as stated above AND land and stop your craft either on the runway or the launching pad safely with no damage. Here's my entry showing one possibility for the Legend status award. Good luck to all Successful Entries: ASTRONAUT TRAINER: 1. 2. 3. ASTRONAUT ELITE: 1. 2. 3. ASTRONAUT LEGEND: 1. Jean Deaux 2. luizopiloto 3. Disclaimer: No Kerbals we harmed in the making of this challenge. Titles may or may not reflect actual public opinion of said title, boast at own risk. Do not wear while swimming. Need a video capture app? I recommend Bandicam, free for use.

My favorite SSTO to date I've built follows a "less is more" mentality. I used this one in another challenge and I find myself re-using this design quite a bit. Re-introducing the Hornet. For my vote of currently submitted entries, I like Majorjim's Eagle-1.

I can't seem to put together a plane smaller than this and have it stable enough to fly. So for now I'll toss in this entry, which is a slight modification to another . Sadly the flight ended over water, but pilot did survive!100% Stock Stats are: Mass: 3.3t (-33 pts) Parts: 13 (-13 pts) 3.6m H (-36 pts) 4.1m W (-41 pts) 5.5m L (-55 pts) Entry (+100 pts) 1 Kerbal (+1 pts) Ground Distance Covered 1,688,762m (+1688 pts) If my calculations are correct, that should be 1611 pts

I found the scoring system to be rather cryptic, some are clear, others not so much. I don't know if you mean weights at launch or upon settling for example. I was planning a trip to Laythe anyway so here's a record of that trip if nothing more than to share the experience. I'll let you do the scoring, it's by no means a winning entry. This is a Video entry, portions have been removed to reduce time, capture is of key transitions and burns. There's a slider bar on the bottom, feel free to use it to fast forward and rewind. Mods used: MechJeb

True that, not usually interested in long tedious challenges even the OP doesn't do.

This is my entry for this challenge, introducing the Wisp. -All parts stock (14 in total) -No sub-assemblies -Craft carries 2 Kerbals (one exterior for achievement) -Doesn't break at 4X speed, actually flew rather well -Safely lands and takes off again -Travels at least 150 m/s, though not sure how fast as I never opened her up to save fuel -No cheats or mods used Achievements Wind in my Face : Done Long Range : Just got it Biome Hopper : Easy score Bomber : Didn't attempt Safe to Fly : Hell ya, assuming you're a pilot! Low Budget : Yep, got this one too with a price tag of 9,700 I need a pretty badge to put in my achievement bar below...

If the challenge is all about the "rover" arriving to explore ahead of a manned flight, why are you requiring two manned capsules to be landed prior to deploying the rover module and making the drive? I like the idea of a 30 part rover challenge, but putting two MK1's there first is a big turn off for me to participate, as is downloading any file in or order to participate. How about pics instead of a download for whatever information you're trying to convey?

Science or Sandox mode comes to mind. No need to worry about skill levels or upgrading. Just get in there and play.

Those were some of the firsts contracts I tackled. I used map mode to fly my rocket and adjust my landing trajectory to be in the area of the test (don't forget to lead your target as the planet just keeps on spinning). Once I hit the zone, crew report for the win! I didn't go into orbit, stayed in the atmosphere for better control of landing area in a shorter distance.

I agree the career mode missions are a son-of-a-gun to do, but I suppose I'm also taking a different view than most. To me, KSP beginner mode is Sandbox. Then you graduate up to the Science version to learn how to unlock the tree. When you're tired of all the easy tasks or missions you create for yourself and are ready for a "real" challenge, begin Career Mode! I think most would argue that the tech tree could use a tweak or two in the order of unlocks but there comes a time in KSP when you find yourself asking... "what next"? I think the new career mode answers this challenge quite nicely as you "really" have to think about what missions you take, where you spend your money, how you market your skills, it's no walk in the park! I think if you don't like career mode, then you're starting the game play in the wrong order. I think there is a draw to career mode because players are expecting a structured guide to space in the form of missions designed to teach the game mechanics as you complete them, progressing and advancing your skills and equipment. I don't think career mode was designed or intended to be played in that manner. I will say that I think the game will benefit "greatly" by adding a Tutorial Mode which would in fact have pre-set missions to be completed in a specific order with specific goals knowing full well what features will be available by controlling what can be unlocked in the tech tree and limiting your progression and activities by a very defined plan of advancement that introduces you to every aspect of game play. Otherwise, don't knock the challenges because chances are there will be a time when you're looking for a good challenge!

Best news I've seen so far... TO THE VAB!!!

Well, here's one for you "experts". I took on the rescue a Kerbal mission, but alas I'm not able to target. Any tips for making a rendezvous in space without any guidance? Best to come back to this after I get targetting? (assuming I do get that skill later)

I am finding it quite challenging, rather enjoying it too. I am more concerned with the new player though. I'm only able to move forward well in the game because I'm already familiar with the flight mechanics and how to navigate. If I was new to the game, I think I might be rather furious and wish I never spent money on this game as the initial levels should really be learning based; but at least there is still sandbox mode. Perhaps a notice to players if this is the game's initial launch and their first selection is career mode, a little warning to say this may not be the right path for you, are you SURE you want to do this the hard way? Otherwise I do, for the most part, like the new throttled back limiting features placed in career mode because I do now have to re-think how to do a lot of these challenges as well as brush up on my piloting skills that I had been passing off to MechJeb for time sake. The only real negative comment I think I might offer up is that I feel that airplane parts should be basic or next to basic technology to have. If we're going to space, we should already have the means to fly within the atmosphere. I'm still getting used to the new assembly features, a couple of tutorials would be handy here. Overall, I really like this update so far.

Best fix that picture, Big Fish, before someone else comes along and steals your spot.

KSP: V0.25.0.642 (32 bit mode) Problem: Fuel flow not flowing equally on symmetrical build after a certain stage. Mods Installed: Mechjeb V2.4.0.0-341 Reproduction Steps : Fly craft supplied in link below or create your own using schematic also shown below Comments: I've been working on this ship for a while and finally figured out that the root cause of my problems appears to be a fuel flow bug. I've found a way to re-route to solve the problem, but thought I'd report it anyway because sooner or later it'll be an issue for someone and it's usually a good thing to have someone able to report test results to aid in debugging. I do have one mod currently loaded after just recently performing a fresh install, I did not attempt to unload MJ to duplicate, so yes, there's a chance it's MJ causing the problem. I've created a flow chart of the asparagus staging of my ship, showing where the fuel flow balance begins to fail and my resolution to the issue. You can download my CRAFT FILE HERE or try to build your own. Only the fuel cells with a "ENG" below them have rocket engines, two tanks do not have engines.

Sorry Boss, you gotta be the first up, and it doesn't look like you landed on the helipad anyway. Do keep trying, we love seeing everyone's attempts!

Wow! That was INCREDIBLY nice of you to pick a mission I'm right in the middle of, after I post this pic I'm going to get some Lottery numbers. As requested, one dead Kraken. Next up... The light bulb on the Control Tower has burned out. Send someone from maintenance up there to change the bulb.

You could be right, without the "reply" feature I wasn't sure which post he was commenting on. No offense taken.