I think that Kerbals are subterranean dwellers

[SmarterThanMe]

Maybe someone has figured this out before, but I just had an epiphany (and I'm waiting for KSP to load).

Let's consider the facts:

(1) No cities on the surface of Kerbin. In fact no kerbal-made structures on the surface of Kerbal, besides KSC and a couple of others.

(2) "The Mun's discovery is widely regarded as one of the more important breakthroughs of Kerbal evolution. Granted it didn’t happen all that long ago, but its still fair to say that Kerbals are wiser and more evolved now than they were back then." Why wasn't the Mun discovered earlier? Because they weren't spending a lot of time outside to look at the thing (like we have through our life).

(3) I had a point 3, but I forgot it, and KSP has loaded.

Thoughts?

[Red Shirt]

I agree. I used to imagine them living like Hobbits, but there are no roads. I use E.V.E. with its city lights. At first I imagined the Kerbals were nocturnal and lit up their world at night, but even if their homes are underground, there are no daytime roads. So my latest theory is they are subterranean, coming out in the daytime only to launch spacecraft. All the city lights I see from above are not city lights at all. They are the naturally occurring bioluminescence of the fauna similar to the forests in Avatar. That explains why the lights disappear when a ship gets close to the ground. It is a survival instinct.

[PB666]

Maybe someone has figured this out before, but I just had an epiphany (and I'm waiting for KSP to load).

Let's consider the facts:

(1) No cities on the surface of Kerbin. In fact no kerbal-made structures on the surface of Kerbal, besides KSC and a couple of others.

(2) "The Mun's discovery is widely regarded as one of the more important breakthroughs of Kerbal evolution. Granted it didn’t happen all that long ago, but its still fair to say that Kerbals are wiser and more evolved now than they were back then." Why wasn't the Mun discovered earlier? Because they weren't spending a lot of time outside to look at the thing (like we have through our life).

(3) I had a point 3, but I forgot it, and KSP has loaded.

Thoughts?

1. They are green so the are photosynthetic

2. Since the are photosynthetic that cannot live inside of buildings

3. And since the cannot live inside of buildings they don't build cities

4. Because they are photosynthetic this is why the can live in space for months without being fed.

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

Brilliant!

(that should be canon)

- - - Updated - - -

Maybe someone has figured this out before, but I just had an epiphany (and I'm waiting for KSP to load).

Let's consider the facts:

(1) No cities on the surface of Kerbin. In fact no kerbal-made structures on the surface of Kerbal, besides KSC and a couple of others.

(2) "The Mun's discovery is widely regarded as one of the more important breakthroughs of Kerbal evolution. Granted it didn’t happen all that long ago, but its still fair to say that Kerbals are wiser and more evolved now than they were back then." Why wasn't the Mun discovered earlier? Because they weren't spending a lot of time outside to look at the thing (like we have through our life).

(3) I had a point 3, but I forgot it, and KSP has loaded.

Thoughts?

Rick Perry? Is that you?

- - - Updated - - -

1. They are green so the are photosynthetic

2. Since the are photosynthetic that cannot live inside of buildings

3. And since the cannot live inside of buildings they don't build cities

4. Because they are photosynthetic this is why the can live in space for months without being fed.

Assume "mold" not "plant" and they live in the dark.

[keeper]

I like the sound of that!

But what's with the kerbin aught complex, that's where most of mine begin, or end up lol

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

The 3rd one is that they haven't explored Kerbin?

[KerBlammo]

They used to live on the surface, until they discovered rocketry, then they started living underground to avoid getting hit by falling flaming wreckage.

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

This is "Sofa King" good.

It's why there are no cities or roads or farms.

Its why they never go out.

Its why they wear spacesuits outside (to protect them from the sun)

[Red Iron Crown]

Meh, their cities are visible:

[problemecium]

This is about the 5th thread about this, but meh, it's a fresh one for us to continue the discussion.

I think the Kerbals are simply aquatic. They already resemble frogs (not that means much though), and in the stock game never went outside without a space suit, even on Kerbin. For a semi-amphibian creature in the domain of a mudskipper, this makes sense. Underwater they can build all their homes and cities, but it's prohibitively difficult to launch anything to space. Indoors, they can control the climate, keeping the humidity high so they don't dry out.

Since we never get to see underwater (any more than we ever get to see underground), the cities could easily be there, and KSC is on land (interestingly, right by the water despite the low altitude) where space is easier to access.

[Edax]

In vanilla KSP, the Kerbals merely live in "imagination land"

[ModZero]

Underwater they can build all their homes and cities, but it's prohibitively difficult to launch anything to space.

Pffft!

[FishInferno]

Meh, their cities are visible:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/61004449/KSP/1.0.4/Moons4Less/screenshot956.png

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/61004449/KSP/1.0.4/screenshot656.png

That fighter jet. I want. Now.

anyway, i see your logic except for one thing: if the entire Kerbal civilization is underground, wouldn't it make more sense if they constructed their rockets underground and launch them in silos akin to RL ICBMs? and why dis they build the Administration building and RND center aboveground?

[problemecium]

I meant they live on the sea floor. They could, I suppose, build a submarine to go up near the surface to launch, but that'd add more restrictive size and weight limits.

Likewise, underground silos would restrict the size, if not so much the weight. And we all know Kerbals' first resort when encountering issues is to make it bigger and add moar boosters.

[Red Iron Crown]

That fighter jet. I want. Now.

Here you go. It's nothing special IMO, just a simple, basic plane I use when I just feel like flying around. Be careful running it at full throttle, it is way overpowered and can easily burn up. Have fun with it.

[Spacetraindriver]

I Think all the cities are slightly underground. Rockets have been with them for a LONG time. Kerbals learned early that they have to build their civilization underground to prevent damage and deaths in rocket crashes. Because rockets can explode on launch pad they built the KSC above ground. My OTHER idea is that most kerbals lived under the KSC (reason for so many kerbals at your dispossal) as most kerbals wanted to go to the stars and most kerbals were convinced that they were destined to live on other planets.

[windows_x_seven]

1. They are green so the are photosynthetic

2. Since the are photosynthetic that cannot live inside of buildings

3. And since the cannot live inside of buildings they don't build cities

4. Because they are photosynthetic this is why the can live in space for months without being fed.

Yes, they are photosynthetic, but they can also eat AND drink when in Kerbin.

So, you see, they have underground farms, somehow.

But how do plants grow underground?

LEDs.

[problemecium]

Ooooor they have underwater farms, where plants CAN grow

[SAI Peregrinus]

No need for LEDs. Ever crash into Kerbin at high speed + time warp, and notice that it sometimes seems to be naught but a thin shell surrounding a brilliant white dot? That's because Kerbin is a Dyson shell around a neutron star. Kerbals live on the inside, there's some sort of artificial gravity system, etc. Kerbals almost certainly didn't build the thing, or if they did they've long since lost the knowledge required. But a neutron star would be plenty hot enough to glow and provide light. It also explains the Kerbals seeming immunity to radiaton.

After all, we know they have roads. Not tunnels, roads. They find rocket parts lying around by the sides of the roads. Yet there are no visible roads on the outer surface!

[windows_x_seven]

No need for LEDs. Ever crash into Kerbin at high speed + time warp, and notice that it sometimes seems to be naught but a thin shell surrounding a brilliant white dot? That's because Kerbin is a Dyson shell around a neutron star. Kerbals live on the inside, there's some sort of artificial gravity system, etc. Kerbals almost certainly didn't build the thing, or if they did they've long since lost the knowledge required. But a neutron star would be plenty hot enough to glow and provide light. It also explains the Kerbals seeming immunity to radiaton.

After all, we know they have roads. Not tunnels, roads. They find rocket parts lying around by the sides of the roads. Yet there are no visible roads on the outer surface!

Hmm... if kerbals live in the inside, then there must be cities in there.

Cities = roads.

This is getting good. Kerbal secrets exposed!

[ModZero]

Yes, they are photosynthetic, but they can also eat AND drink when in Kerbin.

They evolved from Venus flytraps.

Also, just because something's photosynthetic doesn't mean it works on sunlight alone. They would need fertiliser.

[StarStreak2109]

I think they live not unlike humans do. For now, the Kerbal cityscape only exits in our imagination! However - and this is something I would like to see in KSP 2.0 - at some stage, I would love to have procedural cities on Kerbin...

[SAI Peregrinus]

Another point towards Kerbin being a Dyson Shell: Their initial "World first" altitude records are absurdly low. At the start of a career game no Kerbal has ever been more than 1000m up. Yet the have the knowledge and manufacturing capability to develop turbojets within a day or so. So they have to have figured out propellers and gas turbine engines, wings, etc. It's likely they've been flying around on the inside of Kerbin for decades. Simple caves or underwater dwelling can't explain this, but a hollow Kerbin can.

[windows_x_seven]

So, basically:

1. Kerbin is a Dyson Sphere built by Kod knows who, and it's around a neutron star.

2. Kerbal civilization has evolved inside the sphere, and was only able to find out that there was an "outside" just a few years ago, where they had a fairly good amount of technology.

3. Although kerbals are photosynthetic, they can also drink and eat, and they have "underground" farms to feed themselves whenever they want.

4. Kerbals have dug through the sphere recently and only now they found out about the Mun.

5. This is some deep hidden story, man.

Although this raised me some questions.

How'd a day/night cycle happen if the sphere was enclosed around the neutron star? It would always be day...

And what about Kerbin's outside shell's water? Is the outside sea a hill inside the sphere?

Lastly, why didn't the sphere collapse into itself?

[SmarterThanMe]

Oh, a third argument in regards to them being underground dwellers is their mole-like characteristics, such as their disregard for CO₂, and their generally slow snack-oriented diet. Moles, as you might be aware, have blood adaptations, that allow them to survive in Oxygen-depleted environments, and they eat numerous small meals (snacks).

I'm not so sure about the idea of Kerbin being a Dyson Sphere around a Neutron Star. Such a system would have greater gravity than we are seeing around Kerbin. Further, there's evidence that Kerbin is quite solid and hardy, see the impact crater; such an event would surely have punctured the skin of a Dyson Sphere.