Is My Contract Bugged? Or Am I Missing Something?

[Srpadget]

My current Exploration contract requires a "rendezvous" near the Mun.  Now, I am a "von Braun-style infrastructure builder" by playstyle.  By the time I go interplanetary, I generally have orbiting fuel depots in low Kerbin orbit, low Mun orbit, and low Minmus orbit, with reusable landers at each moon, "reusable" SSTOs shuttling from KSP to the Kerbin station, and multipurpose nuclear tugs transferring crew/cargo/etc between stations.  In other words, I do LOTS of docking and I can set up and execute a rendezvous in my sleep.

This contract was offered immediately upon completion of the "land on the Mun" exploration contract, while Jeb was still doing his "science, flags, and footprints" dance on the surface.  And I already had a "rescue from Mun orbit" contract, so I figured I'd just stop by and taunt the poor marooned Kerbal before heading home.  No joy--the contract refused to complete.  I figured it was because I had left Jeb for a while to do something else, and when I came back the 2 ships were within a few hundred meters--and the contract probably looked for the moment a ship crossed the 2.5km (or whatever it is) limit for loading a craft in order to check off "in visual range".  No sweat--I had plenty of dV, so I figured I'd boost apo so Jeb did one orbit while the victim...err, rescuee...went round twice, RE-rendezvous (while maintaining focus this time) and it'd complete.  Again, no.

Fine.  Maybe the contract doesn't recognize the rescuee and derelict capsule as "my" vessel, and therefore doesn't consider it a valid target?  Okay.  Jeb stayed in Mun orbit while I launched a second (uncrewed) Munar lander--my plan was to rendezvous with Jeb to complete that part of the exploration contract, then pop over to rescue the Scientist in his capsule, and land on the Mun for a tasty batch of additional science.

But NOOOOO...

So, to recap:  two separate vehicles launched on separate boosters on separate occasions.  And I bumped their rocket nozzles together at a relative velocity so low the navball registered 0.0.  Nada.

Screenshot showing contract, ships, and navball with target velocity:

https://imgur.com/u3Soyl2

(I cannot for the life of me get the darned thing to embed, so you get a link to click...)

So am I missing something?  If it wants me to DOCK (using a docking port), I'd think it would SAY so.  (I'm pretty sure I've had "DOCK two vessels in orbit around (body)" contracts before...) 

Ditto if it needed to be two NEW vessels launched after accepting the contract (like the standard language called out on satellite contracts).

Or is my contract just bugged?

 

Edited June 14, 2019 by Srpadget
clean up mess from multiple attempts to embed screenshot

[Superfluous J]

Sounds bunged to me. I've gotten it by alt-f12 rendezvous before. I frequently get it while also doing a rescue or recovery.

Were I you I'd have no qualms completing the contract via alt-f12

[Srpadget]

So, I opted to send Jeb home, and after his return (the other half of the contract) I'd Alt-F12-complete it.

Mun-escape burn complete, Jeb headed back down to the bottom of Kerbin's gravity well.  I still had this Mun lander in low orbit, just a few km away from the contract rescuee, right?

I scooted on over there, matched velocities, rescuee jetpacked over to the rescue vessel, grabbed on and climbed on board--and BAM.  The rendezvous contract parameter completed.  Near as I can tell, it completed when the rescuee climbed aboard (though I can't be sure; it's not like I was staring at the upper right corner of the display at the time).

(Bert from Sesame Street) "It's not fair...it's just not fair..."  ::sad trombone::

[Geschosskopf]

Question:  was Jeb's ship already in existence when you got the rendezvous contract?  If so, that might be why it didn't work.  But when the rescued Kerbal came aboard, it kinda turned the tables, maybe.

I dunno.  A bug somewhere.  Just not sure what it is.

[bewing]

Those contracts are supposed to complete when you are closer than something like 5Km, and your relative speed drops below .5 m/s for more than 1 second -- or something like that.

 

[Superfluous J]

6 hours ago, Geschosskopf said:

Question:  was Jeb's ship already in existence when you got the rendezvous contract?  If so, that might be why it didn't work.

No, another thing I've done often is send a ship (or two) to Mun ahead of time with the intention of rendezvousing when the contract comes up. They never fail to complete that contract.

What the OP is experiencing really can only be a bug.