can I get an astronaut to level 3 within the Kerbin/mun system?

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

Jeb and crew seems to have topped off at 2.75, we haven't been interplanetary yet.

Does an Engineer really need to go to another planet (and back) before he knows how to change a tire?

[monstah]

After doing both moons, you can do a short venture just outside Kerbin's SOI and back (if I'm not mistaken, you can eject prograde from Kerbin's orbit and it will catch up and bring you back, but I'm not sure), and that's enough for level 3.

[Leeman]

According to here http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Experience he needs 16xp for level 3

 

Orbit the 3 Celestial Bodies within Kerbins SOI are 8,75 XP

Flyby the 3 Celestial Bodies are 6 XP

Landing on the 2 Moons (Mun and Minmus) give 10,35 XP

Plant Flags on the 2 Moons gives 11,25XP

Flying on Kerbin gives 1 XP

 

So all in all if I did not leave anything out you will be able to gain 37,35 XP without the need of going interplenatary. This will give you level 5. Given that the wikipedia is still up to date.

 

Edited April 14, 2016 by Leeman

[monstah]

And about the tire, there's this mod (Engineer Level Fixer, I think?) specifically to lower that level requirement, cause... yeah.

edit - Oh, posts don't auto-merge in this subforum? TIL.

Edited April 14, 2016 by monstah

[Hodari]

2 minutes ago, Leeman said:

According to here http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Experience he needs 16xp for level 3

 

Orbit the 3 Celestial Bodies within Kerbins SOI are 8,75 XP

Flyby the 3 Celestial Bodies are 6 XP

Landing on the 2 Moons (Mun and Minmus) give 10,35 XP

Plant Flags on the 2 Moons gives 11,25XP

Flying on Kerbin gives 1 XP

 

So all in all if I did not leave anything out you will be able to gain 37,35 XP without the need of going interplenatary. This will give you level 5. Given that the wikipedia is still up to date.

 

The info in the wiki is still accurate as far as I know, but you're missing one important thing. Those xp amounts are not cumulative.  You only get the points for the most valuable one.  So orbiting Kerbin and planting flags on both moons will only get you to 13.25.  To reach level 3, you don't need to go to another planet, but you will at least need to leave Kerbin's SOI and get into orbit around the Sun.

[JedTech]

3 minutes ago, Hodari said:

To reach level 3, you don't need to go to another planet, but you will at least need to leave Kerbin's SOI and get into orbit around the Sun.

No engineer on Earth has the experience needed to repair wheels. 

 

If I were the game designer, I'd make it so that a Kerbal could earn the top level of experience for their profession within Kebin SOI. Then I'd make it possible to Kerbals to gain levels in other professions by going above and beyond Kebin SOI experience levels.

Edited April 14, 2016 by JedTech

[Leeman]

Just now, Hodari said:

The info in the wiki is still accurate as far as I know, but you're missing one important thing. Those xp amounts are not cumulative.  You only get the points for the most valuable one.  So orbiting Kerbin and planting flags on both moons will only get you to 13.25.  To reach level 3, you don't need to go to another planet, but you will at least need to leave Kerbin's SOI and get into orbit around the Sun.

 

Oh so you mean if Jebediah plants a flag on Mun.. and then on Minmus he just gets the difference added that he was "short" by planting it on the mun? Okay. Good to know.

But yea. Leaving Kerbins SOI and orbit the sun is also a quick way. Fly by the two moons, slingshot to leave the SOI and then reenter the SOI and head back home and you are lvl 3.. I use a system where I use the hitchhiker module and the MK1-2 Command Pod to get 7 Kerbins at once in there.. 1 of them a leveld pilot for easier SAS and the other 6 to level them to 3

[Hodari]

Just now, Leeman said:

 

Oh so you mean if Jebediah plants a flag on Mun.. and then on Minmus he just gets the difference added that he was "short" by planting it on the mun? Okay. Good to know.

No, he would get full points for planting flags on both moons, but he does NOT also get the extra xp for landing on each one, orbiting them, or flying by them.  If you fly-by, orbit, land on, and plant a flag on a body, you only get the points for the flag.

[Violent Jeb]

You can get level 3 in a single mission with any Kerbal. Usually I build a 3 person craft with 8kms dv, so i can "prep" a whole team at once. I also call this ship the "Gauntlet Runner" - But that's just me.

Part 1: Orbit Kerbin, do a flyby around the mun, land at minmus.
Part 2: From Minmus, leave Kerbins soi from prograde, just far enough that the crew has new reports/observations from the sun. Burn retrograde and fall back into Kerbin

To recap:
(In any order)

i) Orbit Kerbin - Have all Kerbals get out and do report
ii) Mun flyby (anything in Mun SOI is sufficient) - Have all Kerbals get out and do report
iii) Land on Minmus - Have all Kerbals get out and do report, get samples, plant flags
iv) Leave Kerbins SOI - Have all Kerbals get out and do report

Upon landing back at Kerbin all Kerbals will be level 3. Don't know what everything is worth but I know it's the easiest way to get to level 3.

Edited April 15, 2016 by Violent Jeb
Grammar and stuff

[Superfluous J]

20 minutes ago, Violent Jeb said:

i) Orbit Kerbin - Have all Kerbals get out and do report
ii) Mun flyby (anything in Mun SOI is sufficient) - Have all Kerbals get out and do report
iii) Land on Minmus - Have all Kerbals get out and do report, get samples, plant flags
iv) Leave Kerbins SOI - Have all Kerbals get out and do report

I used to do a similar thing but I did mun flyby->escape, then burn back to Minmus, land, flag, return to Kerbin. Not necessary to do any science or whatnot. I liked doing the Minmus part last because I figured the flag planting ceremony was their graduation.

Nowadays I use that mod that gives them experience in flight. The name totally escapes me right now.

Edited April 15, 2016 by 5thHorseman

[monstah]

8 hours ago, 5thHorseman said:

Nowadays I use that mod that gives them experience in flight. The name totally escapes me right now.

Field Experience, I believe?

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

I see.

to max out the Xp you should flyby the moon, go home, orbit the mun go home, land on the mun go home, plant a flag, go home. And then make those same FOUR flights to Minmus?!

That's silly.

 

[Superfluous J]

52 minutes ago, monstah said:

Field Experience, I believe?

That's the one.

38 minutes ago, Brainlord Mesomorph said:

I see.

to max out the Xp you should flyby the moon, go home, orbit the mun go home, land on the mun go home, plant a flag, go home. And then make those same FOUR flights to Minmus?!

That's silly.

 

It would be, if it was the way it worked. But it doesn't. You don't have to do it in the same mission for it to overwrite. If you orbit Mun and then 18 years and 152 mission later plant a flag on Mun, the Mun XP will be equal to the flag XP, not (flag + orbit) XP.

So to maximize XP, just plant flags everywhere. except Kerbin. Orbiting is more XP than planting a flag because it's harder.

The reason we do the "Mun flyby, escape Kerbin SOI, land on Minmus and plant a flag" mission is because if you add up those XPs it is JUST enough to get to level 3. Once you're at level 3, you're halfway to anywhere fully leveled up, essentially.

Edited April 15, 2016 by 5thHorseman

[Starhawk]

57 minutes ago, Brainlord Mesomorph said:

I see.

to max out the Xp you should flyby the moon, go home, orbit the mun go home, land on the mun go home, plant a flag, go home. And then make those same FOUR flights to Minmus?!

That's silly.

That would be silly, but it's incorrect.  Your Kerbal gets the experience from the most valuable action they've completed at each SOI.

The order of value is flyby, orbit, flight, land, plant flag.  (flight is only for bodies with an atmo.)

There is no experience value in doing multiple trips.  If you went on a Mun flyby and came home your Kerbal has the flyby experience value.  If you later go and land on the Mun with the same Kerbal, then that Kerbal gets the value for 'land on Mun' instead of the value for 'flyby Mun', not added.  It makes no difference if you land on the Mun in your first mission or the second, you still have the same experience value for Mun.

Once your Kerbal plants a flag in an SOI other than Kerbin, that's it.  There is no more experience they can gain in that SOI.

Happy landings!

Edited April 15, 2016 by Starhawk