...and so the journey begins!

[SpaceyCLE]

Greetings from Cleveland!

Ever since I was a kid, I've wanted to be an astronaut. Nothing fascinated me as much as space exploration did. The film, The Right Stuff, is what started it all for me. I was the kid with a poster from NASA showing all the manned rockets they've built.

Naturally, when KSP came along, I was intrigued. It was on sale one day on Steam and figured, why not? The rest, as they say, is history.

I've been playing it off and on since then (I think since .90), and just kind of waiting for 1.0 to come along.

Whoa.

Okay, so space just got a whole lot more complicated! Never before did I encounter a game (or anything in general), where I was motivated to look up math formulas, laws of physics and orbital mechanics. Nor did I ever have so much *fun!*

So, what my plan here is to document my experiences now and then in career mode, going from suborbital flights to interplanetary travel. In fact, one of my lofty goals is to fly to the moon and back and once around the sun as the profession of my love for my wife (we often say that to each other).

Here, you will hopefully cheer me on as I recount my successes and probably laugh at my missteps (of which there will be undoubtedly many).

Before I begin, I shall familiarize myself again by going through the built-in tutorial (which, I have to say, does not cover anywhere near enough to succeed at this game...but then it would probably be the size of a quantum physics textbook and cost as much).

Here I go and wish me luck! (Quit snickering, you.)

[Vanamonde]

Good luck, SpaceyCLE, and welcome to the forum.

[MoonMan22]

SpaceyCLE,

I can totally relate. I found myself learning how to calculate TWR and Delta V on paper for fun! If you want some more in-depth training than what the built-in tutorials can offer then I would definitely check out

channel for his tutorial vids. I've learned everything from him. Now I find making manned trips to Duna and back as easy as getting to the Mun.

Good luck and Safe Travels!

X

[Mikki]

Greetings from Cleveland!... ...Here I go and wish me luck! (Quit snickering, you.)

Good Luck!

You are definetly in the right place, KSP offers real freedom in discovering the aspects of orbital mechanics... very funny people around (not allways, even i have to do serious work sometimes... ), crazy ideas and epic fails all the way...!

There are real gems to find in KSP, have a good time!

Greetings

[SpaceyCLE]

So. Close. I previously had no problems getting into orbit before version 1.0, but now with the mass limitation, it's *really* hard. I knew I needed the Terrier engine so I wouldn't eat up all that precious fuel in no time, but breaching the atmosphere AND getting the gravity turn with less than 18.0 total mass? It doesn't help to have only a scant few parts to help me too. In the meantime, I'm reporting everything I can think of to report to rack up the points needed to get me to the next level.

I want to take some of those lower prestige contracts, like ferrying a couple of tourists, but that means I need the mk1-2 capsule, no?

Oh, I think I just read on how to upgrade my launch pad...see if this works.

[SpaceyCLE]

Oh, I think I just read on how to upgrade my launch pad...see if this works.

Well, that was new. Didn't know I had to upgrade facilities in order to advance the game. I mean, I knew they upgraded eventually, but I thought it was automatic, like it would happen once I gained XP. Now I know better.

Getting to orbit, finally, was easy. Especially in light of the fact that I had a lot of practice before this version. What I'm finding to be more complicated, though, is *when* to launch, especially if I gotta go rescue some poor Kerbalnaut stuck in orbit. More than that, how do I know to pinpoint my landings, like if I want to land by the space center in the water every time? (Hypothetically, that is!)

I'm also vaguely aware of something called delta-V. I know it plays an important role in fuel conservation, but I suspect that I'm not flying efficiently. Besides the wiki, can people suggest good and easy tutorials to read? No video suggestions, please, as I am hard-of-hearing and most videos aren't captioned.

Fly on!

[Starhawk]

What I'm finding to be more complicated, though, is *when* to launch, especially if I gotta go rescue some poor Kerbalnaut stuck in orbit. More than that, how do I know to pinpoint my landings, like if I want to land by the space center in the water every time? (Hypothetically, that is!)

I'm also vaguely aware of something called delta-V. I know it plays an important role in fuel conservation, but I suspect that I'm not flying efficiently. Besides the wiki, can people suggest good and easy tutorials to read? No video suggestions, please, as I am hard-of-hearing and most videos aren't captioned.

I'd recommend that you spend some time perusing the Tutorials subsection of the forums. An excellent thread in there to check out is the Drawing Board.

Happy landings!

[Starwhip]

A lot of this data is outdated (I'd go for one of Starhawk's links) but it should give you a good idea of what you're looking at.

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Tutorial:Advanced_Rocket_Design

The formulas are still the same. (I believe gravity in KSP is now 9.81 m/s^2 instead of 9.82 m/s^2 as it was for a long time)

[maceemiller]

Welcome aboard pilot I myself have only been playing since 0.8 or maybe 0.9, I cant really remember but what I can say is this experience has changed a lot for me.

Ive always been interested in space since I was a young lad (im 42 now) and KSP to me is the ultimate.

Stock is brilliant and a great learning pool. At present im trying to land on the Moon using the Real Solar System mod which im so close to doing but believe me its hard! (Well, to me it is)

If I can give you any advice.....walk, dont run.....time and experience brings out the best in you, however for all I know your probably better at this game than me!

Anyway, never forget the golden rule - have fun!

Good luck on your future missions

[legoclone09]

Well, that was new. Didn't know I had to upgrade facilities in order to advance the game. I mean, I knew they upgraded eventually, but I thought it was automatic, like it would happen once I gained XP. Now I know better.

Getting to orbit, finally, was easy. Especially in light of the fact that I had a lot of practice before this version. What I'm finding to be more complicated, though, is *when* to launch, especially if I gotta go rescue some poor Kerbalnaut stuck in orbit. More than that, how do I know to pinpoint my landings, like if I want to land by the space center in the water every time? (Hypothetically, that is!)

I'm also vaguely aware of something called delta-V. I know it plays an important role in fuel conservation, but I suspect that I'm not flying efficiently. Besides the wiki, can people suggest good and easy tutorials to read? No video suggestions, please, as I am hard-of-hearing and most videos aren't captioned.

Fly on!

I could show you some on Steam broad casting, and also Skype. I have a time-tested orbiter with about 5.5 km/s of Delta-V, and also Delta-V is how much you can change your velocity. Say you are in a 75x75km orbit, and you expend 850 m/s of Delta-V, the apoapsis would be roughtly near the Mun's orbit.

[SpaceyCLE]

Geez, I finally completed the contract for testing the flea booster in orbit. My biggest challenge was (and still is) the gravity turn. Unless I used the swivel engine with the 400 tank, the boosters didn't give me much leeway to pitchover. I've experimented with different configurations, most of them with varying degrees of spectacular failure.

Before I even dive into Delta-V, I need to practice my gravity turns and learn a bit about them so I can get into orbit efficiently.

Also, got my needed 45 points to get the next research node, but trying to decide which one. I'm split between the science node (which would give me Stayputnik, batteries, etc.) or the aviation node. I'm leaning towards the science node so I can pick up more points quickly. I've never dabbled in the spaceplane hangar (yet). Also, pretty sure the next money I spend will be on the VAB so I'm not stuck building with 30 parts or less.

[legoclone09]

I think the Terrier node is super important, or you can accept a test contract for it.

[lawrencetyle]

good luck man!

Keep moving forward!

[SpaceyCLE]

So I started over again. I quickly came to the realization that I was spending my money rather unwisely and basically painted myself into a corner. This time, however, I got a lot smarter about how to not only spend that money, but also how to get more science points. I didn't know I could keep using the mystery goo and science lab in different places at different altitudes. Now I'm really having some fun!

Next challenge? Trying to build a flyable plane. I've never dabbled in this part of the game before, and I'm finding it to be quite confounding. I got your basic jet plane built, engine and all, but I can't seem to take off! I can go like a bat outta hell on the ground and then tumble and explode, but not actually lift into the air. What am I missing? Do I need parts for flaps and ailerons or are those already built into the swept wings I used? I assumed they were...

[SpaceyCLE]

Yet another discovery! Well, a couple of them, anyway. The administration building? Well, that was new to me. I didn't know there were all kinds of strategies to boost money, rep and science points. Upgraded that building so I can get some more money and science points and progress a little faster during the game.

Other discovery? That a really high orbit resulted in higher science points! I came home with over 100 points on one mission, and that was with losing my mystery goo container due to re-entry! I learned I had to slow down my craft considerably getting closer to Kerbin lest I become a very expensive firework that no one would see.

Also figured out a pretty neat design to ferry a couple of civvies and not fall too fast to deploy the chutes. I added small delta wings and a tail fin to create an ad-hoc glider upon entering the atmosphere and *then* deploying the chutes behind me into the water. Nifty, eh?

Still figuring out how to do the planes, though, but I think I need more parts that I don't have access to yet. I'm learning that the planes will be pretty important for fulfilling certain contracts that would be otherwise difficult to do with spacecraft.

[RandomRyan]

Hello SpaceyCLE and welcome to the forums!

i give rep to the newbies

So. you wanted to be an astronaut since you're a kid eh? you watched The Right Stuff?

well, now you can be one!

with this game, you can manage your own space program! (WOW)

build a rocket as crazy as you want! (WOW!)

land on the moon,visit other planets,or even land on them! (WOAW!)

So welcome to the forums, SpaceyCLE, where you can share your ideas,get tips from pros and other stuff.

-do not attempt to feed the kraken while in deep space-

yes, this is my way to say hi.

[SpaceyCLE]

Argh, I think I've run into a wall with the game. Now I have contracts that I *appear* to fulfill (I activated the stage once all conditions went green), but for some reason they're not complete? So far the "Test Skipper" and "Test Ant" engine contracts are unfulfilled, even though I met all the required conditions. Weird. Am I missing something here? The "wall" is trying to rack up science points. Can't get much of them at the moment.

I successfully built a flying plane. Kinda. Sorta. Okay, I flew for a little while before crashing and burning. The point is, I can build a flyable machine now! I think I have to get a couple of more nodes in the science/tech tree before I can really go somewhere.

I'm getting ambitious now, trying to build a rocket to fly by the moon! I don't wanna sacrifice any Kerbonauts, even if it's in the name of science, so I'm using a probe with lots of batteries and the small reaction wheel to give it some control. Got a few challenges here, namely, getting it into space without flipping over (really, wth?) and figuring out a flight plan so I can get to the moon as efficiently as possible.

Question: Where and how do I design and file a flight plan? To the tutorials I go...

[SpaceyCLE]

Can you say grind? Geez, it's taking an awful long time to rack up science points and I'm trying to think of ways to get them quickly and in decent amounts. Racking up money and rep points isn't too bad as I basically take contracts and fulfill them as I go. I even implemented the strategy in the admin building to yield more science points. My flying is getting better, but I need to learn how to build a plane better. And get retractable wheels. And get the SAS module so I can use my scientist Kerbonaut to get even more points.

I think, besides completing those little easy contracts, I'm going to focus on the moon fly-by.

Grind...grind...grind...

[Ten Key]

Grind...grind...grind...

There's a mod for that.

Better Than Starting Manned

[SpaceyCLE]

There's a mod for that.

Better Than Starting Manned

Thanks for the heads up. I took a look at it, but alas, I'm using the 64-bit version of KSP and it says not to use it if that's the case. Then again, I did a little more reading...

Are there problems with the 64-bit version still? Do I need to start over with the 32-bit so I can get the science points more properly? I feel like I'm missing something here...

[Ten Key]

The official 64 bit version of the game client was extremely buggy and was abandoned by Squad a while ago. There is a community version of some sort still floating around, and that's what the warning on the BTSM page is referring to. Squad is currently working on a new official 64 bit version, but it isn't out yet.

Unless you actively sought out the community 64 bit version, if you're running KSP 1.0+ you should have the 32 bit client. Especially if you've been patching through Steam.

[SpaceyCLE]

The official 64 bit version of the game client was extremely buggy and was abandoned by Squad a while ago. There is a community version of some sort still floating around, and that's what the warning on the BTSM page is referring to. Squad is currently working on a new official 64 bit version, but it isn't out yet.

Unless you actively sought out the community 64 bit version, if you're running KSP 1.0+ you should have the 32 bit client. Especially if you've been patching through Steam.

Oh. Huh. I've been launching the 64-bit version in Steam using the path to it in the launch options in my Steam library. Just deleted it so it should default to the 32-bit version. Now I wonder if I need to start over as I bet my science points were out of whack and I should've been progressing further than I actually did. Time for a new game?

[SpaceyCLE]

Yep. Started over again. Got science points WAY quicker this time, though. Getting smarter about spaceflight too. I find it easier and more efficient to get into orbit by going *really* high then burning at peri and getting into orbit quickly (having a heck of a time with gravity turns, why are they so hard?). After I did that, a light bulb went off, I realized maybe I can go to the moon this way! The problem? How the heck do I set a course? When and where do I burn? Also learning the optimal re-entry angle, although I'm still figuring that out. Too shallow and it takes forever to finally get down. Too deep...well, you know...boom. I sense this has a lot to do with precision landings too.

Now I finally got the needed 90 points for level 5 in the tree, but I'm waffling on which one to take. I'm thinking the advanced flight control as the RCS looks mighty tasty to me for greater control. Then there's aerodynamics, I can build a plane and go anywhere on Kerbin, right? (Except for those stupid fixed wheels creating drag). Or the fuel systems for that awesome 800 fuel tank. Or the big booster in heavy rocketry to get into orbit easily and make a moonshot.

Tips? Advice? Good ways to rack up science points quickly and lots of them? I feel like I'm not doing something that I ought to be doing...

[SpaceyCLE]

OK! Racking up some points and getting somewhere now. Decided to take the aerodynamics and science nodes for 90 points each. Little did I know that the 4-Kerbonaut habitat is HUGE and not appropriate for the rockets I've been building. Meh. Next node will definitely have to be for the FL800 tank so I never have to worry about running out of fuel again. Getting that next 90 won't be easy. I'm under 100K in money too, so I can only afford so much. I'm trying to fulfill a bunch of contracts, but most are pretty unrealistic for me, like planting a flag on Mun or sending data back from Duna. I don't even know how to GET to the moon yet!

Right now, I'm focused on trying to build a stable flying jet so I can explore Kerbin's biomes and rack up points that way. Easier said than done. Landing? Sheesh, so touchy! It might be easier for me to just stage my jet and parachute down to my landing points, but I'm afraid it might wreck my craft and lose the parts.

Time to study up on plane basics. It sucks that I'm stuck with just the one elevon part to take off.

[SpaceyCLE]

I made it! To the Mun!

Not back to Kerbin, alas. Well, I did, but a little too quickly. With a speed of over 3,000, well, I knew I was going to fry to a crisp, even with a heat shield. I tried blasting my little engine retrograde until the tank was empty, but that did no good. All those science points I amassed...*snif*.

To be honest, I got to the Mun totally by accident. I designed a rocket that I wanted to take me to a super high altitude, and it did that. But after burning my engine briefly, I saw that my altitude was shooting through the roof, so I figured I might as well make it to the orbit line of the Mun...only, the Mun was close by! Sheer luck, really, that I happened to have my craft on intercept course with the Mun. What a glorious moment! Only to have it come down in flames. Literally.

Now that I've had a taste of it, though, I'm going to try again, but with a strategy of some kind to re-enter Kerbin at the appropriate angle. I know that means a burn somewhere at the right time. Can't be too hard, right? ....right?