The Saga of Emiko Station - Complete

[Mister Dilsby]

Good on you, kids! Well, who could resist a ride in a ship as awesome as the Diamondback? 

[RocketSquid]

Also, after extensive research, I have discovered the secret to a safe Pol Landing: Torque. And if that doesn't work, use MOAR TORQUE. My unmanned minmus biome hopper had to land on some pretty big slopes, and it stayed upright even when on the side of the hill. I later figured out that it's reaction wheels could output more strength than minmus could manage. Pol, however, has steeper slopes... And even less gravity. The largest reaction wheels can beat gravity on Kerbin, so honestly you could probably make do with a single I-beam as landing gear and just but a bazillion RTGs on the thing.

[Andem]

You scoundrels! Your parents are going to have a goddamn heartattack, and you've abused your freedom on the station. You are not the center of the universe and you have jeprodized the emtire mission. Shame on you, your banned from everything non-essential until the misdion is over, end of story.

[Mad Rocket Scientist]

9 hours ago, Just Jim said:

 

Oh wow!  I had no idea..... seriously.  I've never watched Orange... not really into shows like that. 

If I had known, I might have written her as one of the pirates... lol....

I haven't watched it either, I just suddenly wondered whether there were more shout-outs in the kerbal's names. 

[Just Jim]

13 hours ago, GDJ said:

Oh those little ##$%^^%%.....

Well, Auntie Kerenna is gonna be a tough mom.......

Oh yeah.....  they better not think this is just a vacation trip... 

 

12 hours ago, SpaceplaneAddict said:

Well then. Time for the Pun1sh Dungeon, AKA no snacks.

Good idea.... 

 

12 hours ago, Kuzzter said:

Good on you, kids! Well, who could resist a ride in a ship as awesome as the Diamondback? 

yup.... exactly their thoughts on the matter....

 

11 hours ago, Andem said:

You scoundrels! Your parents are going to have a goddamn heartattack, and you've abused your freedom on the station. You are not the center of the universe and you have jeprodized the emtire mission. Shame on you, your banned from everything non-essential until the misdion is over, end of story.

Oh yeah, they're in all sorts of trouble...  Jandolin's rant promises to be epic!!!  

 

8 hours ago, Mad Rocket Scientist said:

I haven't watched it either, I just suddenly wondered whether there were more shout-outs in the kerbal's names. 

Not this time....  but the coincidence is funny...

 

11 hours ago, RocketSquid said:

Also, after extensive research, I have discovered the secret to a safe Pol Landing: Torque. And if that doesn't work, use MOAR TORQUE. My unmanned minmus biome hopper had to land on some pretty big slopes, and it stayed upright even when on the side of the hill. I later figured out that it's reaction wheels could output more strength than minmus could manage. Pol, however, has steeper slopes... And even less gravity. The largest reaction wheels can beat gravity on Kerbin, so honestly you could probably make do with a single I-beam as landing gear and just but a bazillion RTGs on the thing.

MOAR!!!!     

[SpaceplaneAddict]

MOAR CHAPTERS! pls i beg.

[Just Jim]

9 minutes ago, SpaceplaneAddict said:

MOAR CHAPTERS! pls i beg.

Absolutely! 

Oh, I finally got around to updating my signature banner thingie this morning.....
I was just waiting until that last Thompberry chapter before I changed it. 

[Geschosskopf]

16 hours ago, Just Jim said:

Chapter 35
Duna Runaway

The Diamondback is STILL the most imaginative use of Mk2 bicouplers ever.  Very cool!  Attractive arrangement of lumps and bumps, plus I'm assuming a rather sturdy construction due to everything being cross-stitched together instead of just hung on radially.

Now about those stowaways.....   It was my experience growing up that delayed spankings accrued usurious interest.  I would advise those kids never to return home   

And hooooo boy, how their young, malleable minds will be warped!  I can't see Jeb ever settling down and being a dad, but he can certainly be the ultimate crazy uncle, a role I'm sure he'll relish playing.  Years of quality time with Uncle Jebby will certainly produce some very crazy niblings *.

* NOTE:  "Niblings" is my contribution to the English language, a word created to fill a void.  Just as we can say "siblings" instead of "brother(s) and sister(s)", so now we can say "niblings" instead of "niece(s) and nephew(s)".  Feel free to help make this word mainstream

Edited March 12, 2016 by Geschosskopf

[GDJ]

"Niblings".

That works just fine.

[Andem]

Niblings huh? I like the sound of that... 

[RocketSquid]

1 hour ago, Just Jim said:

Oh, I finally got around to updating my signature banner thingie this morning.....
I was just waiting until that last Thompberry chapter before I changed it. 

And I already can't remember the old one...

[Just Jim]

19 hours ago, Emperor of the Titan Squid said:

What has happened in all those years between the last chapter and this one? anyone on duna?

I wanted to follow up on this a bit more.  Basically how I'm writing this vs. playing it as a career game.

If I make a jump of a couple years, and don't get into it much, then you can safely assume either nothing significant happened, or I will be getting into more detail later in the chapter of what did happen. 

In this case, between chapters 33 and 34, I had just passed my window to Duna, and had to wait a couple years for the next window, which was year 12, somewhere around day 90.  The only significant change was the arrival of the Chariots, which had already been launched, and I focused on in chapter 34. 
In their case I purposely omitted mentioning their launches earlier on because, honestly, I didn't want anyone to know I was sending something to Bop until just the right moment.  That would have been a huge spoiler, so I kept it to myself...  

Also, I don't really see a need to detail about doing the same thing over and over, like launches, or tourists, or rescues, unless they are an important part of the story. I'll use the Duna fleet as an example.

I just sent 22 ships to Duna, all looking more or less like this:

In some cases, they went straight to Duna. Others I stopped at Emiko to get topped off first.  But the rocket itself is not really any different than the asparagus design I've been using all along, and I see no reason to post 22 pictures of the same thing you've already seen in earlier chapters. That would get really boring.  So I glossed over that and used the Diamondback as the prime example of what that whole fleet did... more or less.

Never fear, I won't skip over something important.  But I won't subject you to endless repetitious stuff, either. 
I'll try my best to find a happy medium, and keep the story flowing at a good pace. 

Edited March 12, 2016 by Just Jim

[Geschosskopf]

4 hours ago, Just Jim said:

I just sent 22 ships to Duna, all looking more or less like this:

Yeah, that was something I meant to comment on.  BRAVO!  Even if they were all the same, it's still quite an accomplishment.  Ain't huge invasion armadas fun?

[Just Jim]

8 hours ago, SpaceplaneAddict said:

MOAR CHAPTERS! pls i beg.

Actually, at this point, I'm not sure how long this is going to go on..... all I know is it will be a lot longer than I first thought... lots longer.

20, 30, 40 more chapters???  Maybe more.  It depends on the game itself, and how many more things I stumble on to use, or dream up as I go along.  In many ways the story has been evolving it's own.  The floating boulders is the best example.  When I spotted the first, I just used it as a curiosity.  But when I located a few more, I came up with the idea of the adding the Rock Lady.  She works perfectly into what I wanted to do anyway, but her and her rocks weren't part of the original outline.

And our buddy Thompberry..... while I had plans to make a super-villain character all along, I didn't think about making him into a disembodied brain until much later down the road.  It just seemed to fit, and was also very different than the other fan-fiction projects currently going on. 

I know the ultimate outcome of all this, and how it will eventually conclude. But the more I let my mind wander, the more my path getting there resembles a plate of overcooked spaghetti... lol... which I think ifs fantastic...  I'm having too much fun with this, and honestly, I don't want it to ever end.

 

10 minutes ago, Geschosskopf said:

Yeah, that was something I meant to comment on.  BRAVO!  Even if they were all the same, it's still quite an accomplishment.  Ain't huge invasion armadas fun?

 

It was quite a challenge keeping everything straight.  And I have all of the arrival times written down so I don't lose anyone. 
That's what I meant a couple days ago when I said I did a ton of background stuff.

When they arrive I'll probably gloss over a lot of the assembly so I can get right to the fun stuff.

Spoiler

I have something interesting in store for Ike...   

 

 

Edited March 12, 2016 by Just Jim

[Geschosskopf]

11 minutes ago, Just Jim said:

I know the ultimate outcome of all this, and how it will eventually conclude. But the more I let my mind wander, the more my path getting there resembles a plate of overcooked spaghetti... lol... which I think ifs fantastic...  I'm having too much fun with this, and honestly, I don't want it to ever end.

I envy people who can invoke the Muses at will like this   They occasionally wink at me from across the room while they're slow-dancing with others, but that's all I ever get from them.

11 minutes ago, Just Jim said:

It was quite a challenge keeping everything straight.  And I have all of the arrival times written down so I don't lose anyone. 
That's what I meant a couple days ago when I said I did a ton of background stuff.

You don't use Kerbal Alarm Clock?  I find it indispensable for doing anything interplanetary, let alone managing a flotilla or 3.

[Crystal_Mace]

....Wow.....     I'm trying to picture being a mom receiving a call from an ashen(but sheepish) faced Nasa official....."Uh, ma'am..about your missing children.?  Well I've got good news and bad news...the GOOD News is they haven't been found for sale on the internet,,,,"

The kids ran away to Mars.....    Every Mom's worst nightmare, right..?   So glad I never had any.....    At the moment anyway...

Visions of the short story "The Cold Equations" swimming in my head now....   I would SOOO be raising my kids to be sports stars or rock musicians at this point......

Before I completely forget about the story that brought all that on.....I LOVE THIS STORY TO PIECES!!    

A lot of my favourite SF based songs, (the kind you sit around cold hotel function room after midnight singing 'til dawn...yeah, I'm a 'filker'...), are on the theme of lovers separated by the years of space travel...they make me cry a lot.  At least it's just years, and not decades in this case.  A reunion is still possible.  Ummm....it is, isn't it?

Edited March 13, 2016 by Crystal_Mace
To fix some errors and insert the last paragraph

[Draconiator]

Oh yeah Jim, I looked at your Doodlebug, and rather than just waiting for specifications, I give you....the Doodlepod.

That's two of them stuck together, and one hauls the other one until they get to their destination, then separate.

[Just Jim]

35 minutes ago, Geschosskopf said:

I envy people who can invoke the Muses at will like this   They occasionally wink at me from across the room while they're slow-dancing with others, but that's all I ever get from them.

You don't use Kerbal Alarm Clock?  I find it indispensable for doing anything interplanetary, let alone managing a flotilla or 3.

My muse is finicky.... but sometimes comes up with brilliant ideas.  I actually find I get some of my best ideas when I'm taking a break and not playing.

And no, no KAC right now.  I'm trying to stay away from any mods until 1.1 comes out.  plus I kinda like doing it the hard way. 

 

18 minutes ago, Draconiator said:

Oh yeah Jim, I looked at your Doodlebug, and rather than just waiting for specifications, I give you....the Doodlepod.

That's two of them stuck together, and one hauls the other one until they get to their destination, then separate.

Oh nice!  And I apologize, I got into doing the next chapters and totally forgot to get back with you.

But it looks like you already have the right idea.  I just stuck a couple seats on a probe core, added a battery, small donut fuel tank and fuel cell, and some RCS and thrusters.  The only trick is getting the thrusters balanced, or it can start rocking around.  Then you pilot it with the RCS keys.  The can spin and roll quite fast, and depending on what view your set on, it can actually make you a little motion sick... lol. 

I like the idea of using them for remote science explorers on the smaller moons.  They have a fairly decent range, if you don't get too acrobatic, and can get to places a rover wouldn't dream.

[Crystal_Mace]

On 3/10/2016 at 11:52 PM, KSK said:

Time to bust out that accordion....

Ohhhh - he's been a mad rover on Bop's rugged shores.

Spent all his sanity, gobbling down ore.

Now nickel ain't bad but blutonium's best.

Blowing up Kerbin t'was only in jest.

 

And it's no, naaaaay, never.

No, nay, never no more,

Will he be the mad rover

On old Bop's rugged shore.

 

This is GREAT!  We need a thread of KSP SONGS  now, if there isn't one already!    Where'd I hide my staff paper..

In the town where I was born, lived a Ker-r-bal with mighty brains,

And he thrilled us with his plans, to go soar-r-ing in rocket planes,

So we built the KSC, and with Doc Von K to set the pace,

We collected delta-vee, and we built the first step into space!

We all live on the first step into space....

First step into space.....first step into space....(repeat)

I'll add verses and start the thread if someone else doesn't beat me to it. 

[Mister Dilsby]

10 minutes ago, Crystal_Mace said:

This is GREAT!  We need a thread of KSP SONGS  now, if there isn't one already!    Where'd I hide my staff paper..

Yeah, I've been meaning to collect my various Kerbal covers into one thread... hey, I even used staff paper once for Also Sprach Jebediah, I still have the template somewhere!   

But having all the songs from everywhere would be a great add to the general Fanworks forum, @Crystal_Mace why don't you go ahead and start it?  I can give you mine as transcripts, or post just those comic pages as you (or whoever ends up being the OP) prefers.

[Just Jim]

31 minutes ago, Crystal_Mace said:

This is GREAT!  We need a thread of KSP SONGS  now, if there isn't one already!    Where'd I hide my staff paper..

In the town where I was born, lived a Ker-r-bal with mighty brains,

And he thrilled us with his plans, to go soar-r-ing in rocket planes,

So we built the KSC, and with Doc Von K to set the pace,

We collected delta-vee, and we built the first step into space!

We all live on the first step into space....

First step into space.....first step into space....(repeat)

I'll add verses and start the thread if someone else doesn't beat me to it. 

 

16 minutes ago, Kuzzter said:

Yeah, I've been meaning to collect my various Kerbal covers into one thread... hey, I even used staff paper once for Also Sprach Jebediah, I still have the template somewhere!   

But having all the songs from everywhere would be a great add to the general Fanworks forum, @Crystal_Mace why don't you go ahead and start it?  I can give you mine as transcripts, or post just those comic pages as you (or whoever ends up being the OP) prefers.

 

Oh, I am so loving this idea!!!   And I have a song to submit, but I already know how I can use it an upcoming chapter, so I'll have to wait for a bit... 

 @Crystal_Mace, you should start this!!! 

Edited March 13, 2016 by Just Jim

[RocketSquid]

1 hour ago, Just Jim said:

 

 

Oh, I am so loving this idea!!!   And I have a song to submit, but I already know how I can use it an upcoming chapter, so I'll have to wait for a bit... 

 @Crystal_Mace, you should start this!!! 

I've got quite a few songs. Although I will note that you will probably need an entire section for remakes of David Bowie's Space Oddity

[Andem]

Hello Tylo my old friend.

I've come to land on you again.

[KSK]

There's a Songs and Poetry shelf in the Fanworks Library if that's any use? Although, thinking about it, that might work better linking to a dedicated thread rather than having ad-hoc links to a grab bag of posts from many assorted threads.

Happy to go either way.

Oh - and here's my stab at verse 2.

So we flew around the sun,
Till we found a world of green (world of green!)
And we sailed, the waves of Laythe
In our Skimmer-roomarine.

Edit. Getting my shout-outs a little jumbled perhaps but really - that one just wrote itself.

Edited March 13, 2016 by KSK
Improved scansion in line 3 and rousing echo in line 2. :)

[Commander Zoom]

I understand your desire to stay mod-light, but seriously.  Get KAC.  Now.

It makes flotilla management (and multiple interplanetary missions in progress, in general) so much easier.