How far do you need to explore to max out science in a career game?

[John FX]

I just finished a career game and due to the amount of cash needed to upgrade the research center I finished all the tech in the tree instantly (had 4.5K science waiting) when I upgraded it to the final tier and managed it without leaving kerbin SOI. I would have liked more steps on the way and to have to get to more than Kerbin, Duna or Eve to finish the tree. I waited for the RTG so I could explore the outer planets but when I got it the game was over so I had no need to explore the outer planets...

It felt a bit disappointing.

Where do you get to in the system when you finish your tech tree and where would you like to have to get to by the time you finish it?

[Jouni]

In my last career mode game, I completed three unmanned (Eve, Dres, and Tylo) and five or six manned (Duna+Ike, Gilly, Pol+Bop, Tylo+Laythe+Vall, Jool-5, and possibly Moho) interplanetary missions before finishing the tech tree. The Moho mission is uncertain, because I don't remember whether I finished the tech tree before or after it. The pace of progress seemed about right.

Edited February 22, 2015 by Jouni

[geb]

Since you can get science from completing contracts, it's possible to complete the tech tree without exploring at all. Just keep doing small, boring parts testing contracts over and over, until you've got all the science.

Obviously that's not how the game is meant to be played, but you can do it.

Trying to minmax your progress through career doesn't lead to an entertaining game, so it's best to push yourself into doing more exciting contracts.

[Renegrade]

I just finished a career game and due to the amount of cash needed to upgrade the research center I finished all the tech in the tree instantly (had 4.5K science waiting) when I upgraded it to the final tier and managed it without leaving kerbin SOI.

This is typical from my experience. Before contracts, you could easily complete the tree from the muns in Kerbin's SOI, although it involved a fair number of landings, but after career was released, you're pretty much buying three tier-8 nodes from a single mission at the end...

In my last career mode game, I completed three unmanned (Eve, Dres, and Tylo) and five or six manned (Duna+Ike, Gilly, Pol+Bop, Tylo+Laythe+Vall, Jool-5, and possibly Moho) interplanetary missions before finishing the tech tree. The Moho mission is uncertain, because I don't remember whether I finished the tech tree before or after it. The pace of progress seemed about right.

Are you playing on default settings and leveraging all science bits? I'd almost call that a challenge to NOT complete the science tree while doing that many extra-Kerbin-SOI landings...

Since you can get science from completing contracts, it's possible to complete the tech tree without exploring at all. Just keep doing small, boring parts testing contracts over and over, until you've got all the science.

Or do three surface base contracts... I don't see why contracts need a science reward at all, especially since you can piggyback your own science missions when doing a contract.

[Jouni]

Are you playing on default settings and leveraging all science bits? I'd almost call that a challenge to NOT complete the science tree while doing that many extra-Kerbin-SOI landings...

I was playing on moderate. The basic idea was that there are no science experiments (except when required by a contract), no biomes, and no distinction between low/high orbit and low/high atmosphere. Then I relaxed the rules a bit, in order to get two crew reports (orbit/surface), one EVA report, and one surface sample every time I visited a planet.

[keeper]

Thats exactly what I did, I did many contracts rewarding money and science, i went for minmus and my first recovered land from teh mun topped me up with my last batch of science. Its been sat there ever since, all other science since then went into money.

I dont mind the tech tree, its bound to get done sooner or later, and making everything more expensive is going to turn it into more grind.

Now im chillin building and sending craft wherever I want, picking up contracts as they suit me :s

[Guest]

Man, I started a modded stock-ish career game the other night and I'm about a 1/4 way through the tech tree (in science points, half-way in nodes), paying for part unlocks and such, and I'm finding it incredibly grindy. In fact, it was far better to send a few missions outside of Kerbin SOI for cash rather than launch Yet Another Polar Satellite because cripes are those terribly rote. Same for parts testing contracts... I even gave myself 500K starting funds and another 500K fund injection a few play hours ago because ~grind~. Now that I'm getting base contracts and setting up an EPL/Karbonite station on Minmus, things are picking up, but damn, were there a ton of really boring launches on the way there. Can't imagine staying totally in Kerbin SOI for the entire tech tree, I'd go stir crazy and delete the save...

[Aragosnat]

In carrer with science in contracts. Just need to stay within Kerbins atmosphere. Sure one can go out and hit other planets and get a lot of science that way. But, all the science you need is right within Kerbin SOI. Pretty much doing all of Mün and some of Minmus will net you all the science points you will ever need right now.

Suggestion: If you want to start over. Do so with the mod that removes science from contracts and reduce severlly the science gained... Otherwise the only reason to go out to other places is to read the funny text they have associated with the science tests.

[GoSlash27]

I just finished a career game and due to the amount of cash needed to upgrade the research center I finished all the tech in the tree instantly (had 4.5K science waiting) when I upgraded it to the final tier and managed it without leaving kerbin SOI. I would have liked more steps on the way and to have to get to more than Kerbin, Duna or Eve to finish the tree. I waited for the RTG so I could explore the outer planets but when I got it the game was over so I had no need to explore the outer planets...

It felt a bit disappointing.

Where do you get to in the system when you finish your tech tree and where would you like to have to get to by the time you finish it?

I finished my tech tree without a Mun landing.

Starting out sucks because it's so grindey, but the contracts make it a cinch to max out the tech tree. Some rebalancing here is in order IMO.

Best,

-Slashy