KSP meets FTL

[Bilgewater]

That might be a misleading title. I meant FTL the game not the actual concept. Whatever!

I just completed work on my first model of the Kestrel:

It's got a few embellishments but I think they're reasonable. I had wanted to use fuel lines to recreate the decals on the ship but... I forgot. And now it's up there. Oh well.

Assembly was performed in orbit. The two engines are mounted radially using bi-couplers to ensure proper spacing and alignment. The main body is split front and back. You should be able to see a seam running horizontally down the midsection just ahead of the engine attachments.

The ship has 2 Jr. ports and 2 regular ports and can be equipped with a variety of armaments or droids. A big mistake was not putting a port on the rear of the ship. Trying to refuel this thing with anything larger than those skinny tanks is an exercise in wobbly terror. But after all, it's more a vanity ship than anything else. I wanted to get as close to the Kestrel as I could and I'm fairly satisfied with this.

Specs:

316 parts

Approx. Weight: 160 tons

Max. Fuel: 8640 Liquid, 3000 MonoProp

Max. Crew: 3

Propulsion: 6 Nuclear Engines

Sadly, no transporter, engine room, shields, weapons, medical, FTL drive, door control, surveillance, or stealth capabilities. In fact, the interior is mostly fuel tanks so if this thing got in a fight it would probably explode faster than actually playing FTL.

Gonna try for the Torus next. I'd love to see what others can come up with too.

[jaked122]

My only question is whether or not there is any interior space for your kerbals to play around in at all?

[Bilgewater]

Sadly no. I'll probably make another version that's a bit better looking with more compartments like the FTL Kestrel, but for now I wanted to post this and see if anyone else had tried building any of these. Like I said, I'm probably going to work on the Torus next but I'll use that suggestion for future builds, thanks!

[meatballcannon]

And... you beat me to it. If I make some of the others, could I put them here like a showcase thread?

[Bilgewater]

And... you beat me to it. If I make some of the others, could I put them here like a showcase thread?

Absolutely! I was kinda hoping other people had already made versions of the FTL catalog so we could compare and get tips. If you've got a Kestrel or a FTL inspired design I'd like to see that too.

[meatballcannon]

Absolutely! I was kinda hoping other people had already made versions of the FTL catalog so we could compare and get tips. If you've got a Kestrel or a FTL inspired design I'd like to see that too.

Sounds great, I'll maybe get on the Osprey. Maybe we could set up a standard mount for weapons, I'm thinking a double jr. clamp. This would be a neat thing to set up a sort of community project for.

[Bilgewater]

Sounds great, I'll maybe get on the Osprey. Maybe we could set up a standard mount for weapons, I'm thinking a double jr. clamp. This would be a neat thing to set up a sort of community project for.

Sure. Is there a better way to set this up as a community project? I thought this would kind of be it. My OP was my second post on these forums so I'm a little inexperienced with the community.

Also, I don't want to discourage people from using mods if they want to. Vanilla KSP is just how I like to play.

I like the idea of jr. clamps as being weapon mounts, but for some of the more unusual designs (Engi/Zoltan vessels in particular) people should definitely get creative with the placement. There's something attractive about asymmetrical ship designs. Looking forward to your Osprey.

[info600]

Sadly no. I'll probably make another version that's a bit better looking with more compartments like the FTL Kestrel, but for now I wanted to post this and see if anyone else had tried building any of these.

You know, with a few small changes, we might have the Federation Cruiser instead of the Kestrel.

[The Error]

My Attempt @ the Kestrel

[Bilgewater]

As promised, the Torus:

Like the Kestrel I made earlier, this one is also composed of four modules assembled in orbit.

Docking the left arm to the rear body.

Docking the front body to the right and left arms.

The suggestion jaked122 made of having more interior room for the Kerbals to move around was appreciated and used. There are now seven manned compartments, most notably the bridge on the front of the vessel. The current crew is eight, but this ship could carry many more. This Torus also has two jr. clamps for torpedoes or other small arms on the left arm and front body and another two clamps on top of the left arm for droid or small fighter berthing.

I can try to upload the craft files if anyone is interested. Some assembly required.

[Superfluous J]

That Torus is frickin' awesome! I can just imagine the Engi swarming over it while it's being built in orbit.

Nicely done!

[Bilgewater]

@ info600

The Future! I'd love to see you or anyone else give the Osprey a try.

@ The Error

Nice Kestrel, bud! Thanks for the contribution.

@ 5thHorseman

Thank you, I'm definitely most proud of the Torus above everything else I've made recently. I just attached a utility droid to it. Once I've got an anti-personnel droid and torpedoes attached I'll show the truly finished product. Thanks again!

I'm glad there's been some interest in this. I'd still love to see some other submissions. Anyone want to take on the Mantis Cruiser or one of the rebel ships?

[meatballcannon]

Osprey is about 60% done, I'm probably on the Bulwark next. that overlapping paneling on the bow is just too cool. Unfortunately, My Osprey may not actually be combat capable compared to that glorious torus you just made, if you're adding drones. I love it!

[Bilgewater]

Osprey is about 60% done, I'm probably on the Bulwark next. that overlapping paneling on the bow is just too cool. Unfortunately, My Osprey may not actually be combat capable compared to that glorious torus you just made, if you're adding drones. I love it!

Thanks! It's not real hard to make a ship combat capable. If you add some jr. clamps to the stern you can always add torpedoes or smart bombs later. I had to give up on an anti-personnel droid; it's just to cumbersome and stupid looking. I have attached two utility droids and I'm planning on attaching one smart missile and a torpedo group to the front of the Torus. Maybe someone would be interested in passing a save file back and forth to have a legit FTL/KSP battle?

[Bilgewater]

Here's a shot of the newly armed Torus, four torpedoes, one smart missile, and two utility droids:

And a video of the ship's assembly: