Gaby's Submarine P.O.C. (Download Fixed)

[gabyalufix]

EDIT: Uploaded it to mediafire. Download it here:

v0.4.1 Edit: Revamped the whole system with a new refinement: the 'empty' tank is now HEAVY, the 'full' tank is light. This is useful, since the tanks start full. You no longer need to brace the part so much, too, since I strengthened the connection to silly levels. The 'up' and 'down' RCS are adjusted accordingly, so you can use them as before.

v0.4 Edit: Just added a whole new set of parts, my first truly original creations. Just a quick milkshape cludge, nothing fancy. But it\'s a propeller engine and a mount point for it. They have a low profile, so they won\'t knock off the balance of your ship, and they have the thrust and efficiency to actually get you somewhere while sneaking around under water! NOT RECOMMENDED FOR USE ABOVE THE WATERLINE!

v0.2 Edit: New update. Newer version includes more tanks of various size and shape. A few of them use the MK1 fusalage/tanks, some use the 'hard points', just to make it easier to place the ballast tank in the perfect 'balance' point (which is actually pretty tricky to do. I evidently got fantastically lucky the first time). I also labeled the tanks with their weights.

v0.3 Edit: Fixed the mirrored textures.

Tired of exploring the wild blue yonder? Why not try exploring the wild blue under!

That\'s right, fellas. I made us a SUBMARINE MOD! It\'s really just a proof-of-concept using some minor config/texture edits--not a proper mod--but using it, you can surface, dive, maintain a given depth, and putter around however you like.

Here\'s how it works: The modpack has 2 RCS jets and an RCS tank. The RCS tank is standard-fuel-tank-sized, but weighs 50 tons, full, and 0.1 tons, dry (edit: the new version is the reverse of this). The RCS jets have near-zero thrust. One has negative fuel use, the other has positive. Using the two, you can adjust the density of the RCS tank (ie, your ballast tank).

In other words, you can, at last, freely explore the wine dark sea.

Ever wonder what this thing is? Someone pointed it out a while ago on the forums. It\'s a weird feature, just off the coast of the KSP facility.

Let\'s go exploring!

I start out here, on the Kerbylon launch tower:

I have the 'dive valve' on the bottom, with the ballast tank.

and the 'rise valve' on the top:

The tank is insanely heavy, so it needs to be heavily braced or it will rip itself off before you have a chance to empty it. (Edit: no longer true.)

So I just hold down 'up' (or translate up) button until the tanks are ALMOST empty (if you empty them completely, they deactivate and will NOT refill. Now my plane is light enough to actually take off. Don\'t forget to turn off RCS before you launch, or you\'ll accidentally empty your tank.(Edit v0.4.1: this is no longer necessary. You can just take off at the start, and you add ballast to your tank once you\'re in the water.)

Here is my flying submarine.

I use the parachutes to make my landing easy. I\'m feeling lazy, and not in the mood to bother with a proper water landing.

Once I\'ve landed, I don\'t need those wings anymore. The same with the chutes. So I let them go:

Now I just hit the 'k' key and sit on it as that insanely heavy ballast tank refills.

Dun-dun dun-dun DUN-DUN DUN-DUN DUN-DUN DUN-DUN DUNDUNDUNDUN!

(because I\'m a shark!)

You can adjust your buoyancy to whatever you want by adjusting the amount of fuel in your ballast tank.

Darling it\'s better; Down where it\'s wetter; Take it from meeeeeeeeee.

So, just to let you know: It\'s a wall. (The other shadows are cast by my discarded wings and my chute mount)

From above, blue hades lurks in the deep.

More pics:

You can even swim around. Unfortunately, kerbal\'s ocean must have ENORMOUS density, because it takes a huge weight to get you to sink. The ballast tanks\' enormous mass means that you\'re SLOW. Maybe with some config editing you could make a 'propeller' drive, but I dunno. (Edit: I made one, and added it to the pack.)

Also note: your enormous momentum means that if you were to say, accidentally bump that wall? Your ballast tank will NOT stop, and will tear itself right out of it\'s fittings. This is usually fatal, as you are hurled upwards with such force that you are catapulted into the air, only to be shattered apart when you land.

Have fun with this, people. There\'s a lot of coastland to explore! This is just a proof-of-concept. Someone should really make some proper submarine models. Then we can have submarine ICBM launches, submarine satellite launches, all kinds of neat stuff! Woo new things!

Huge thanks to C7, for making his awesome plane parts, and letting me fiddle with \'em (should call \'em the 7-Sea pack. ha! I crack myself up.). Get the originals here: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=1172.0

Part List: All parts currently set to category 3.

---Motor and mount:

-GQDP_subPropMotor

-GQDP_subPropMount

---Ballast weight Equalizers: (ie, the RCS motors)

-GQDP_depthEqualizer_down

-GQDP_depthEqualizer_up

---large Ballast tanks: (uses the MkI fuselage mesh)

-GQDP_SubmarineBallastTank_50

-GQDP_SubmarineBallastTank_100

-GQDP_SubmarineBallastTank_200

---'small' Ballast Tanks: (uses the hardpoint mesh)

-GQDP_superdenseBallastTank_100

-GQDP_superdenseBallastTank_150

-GQDP_superdenseBallastTank_250

Additionally, 2 ships:

-The Blue Hades example sub

-The Blue Hades Lite example sub. Similar, but uses only C7 and this pack.

To open the Blue Hades example airsub, you will need (sorry, this is just how I roll):

-C7, main pack + hard points.

-Novapunch

-DownUnder: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=3362.0

-That quad parachute mount: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=611.0(that I cannot find for the LIFE of me in the search. Can anyone link me?, Thanks spootknight!).

-The kerbylon launch tower: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=2750.0

[Goddess Bhavani]

This is the most awesome development news I\'ve seen

Hmmm... submersible aircraft carrier. Drool.

[venku122]

At first, 'Wrong section, Nothing to see here' then 'HOLY SHIT ITS SOO AWESOME!'

[Tosh]

Wow! That ideal is finally working)))

I wonder it there a way to empty/fill RCS tanks separately. Trim tanks (one in the fore and one in the aft) would be quite handy for a larger ship.

[gabyalufix]

Have not figured out a way to do this. Currently wrestling with this exact problem in my big submer-hydrofoil-space-plane.

Getting the center of balance just right is crucial, or else the submarine ends up flipping upside down, or tilting in a weird angle. I\'m currently using one of those landing seaplane floats as a counter-float, to keep it pointed upright. Of course, this requires an even more ludicrously heavy ballast tank, which of course tears itself clean off it\'s hinges on the launchpad. Gonna have to start turning to neutronium or something.

Is kerbin\'s ocean made out of mercury or what? You need SERIOUSLY heavy stuff to sink in it.

[Tosh]

I\'m currently using one of those landing seaplane floats as a counter-float, to keep it pointed upright.

Oooops... I\'ve never even thought of that pontoon usage ???.

Game hacks develop rapidly))

[iamwearingpants]

Ohmygod. That is GENIOUS, good sir.

[C7Studios]

Very nice, I think your project turned out rather well. It\'ll be nice to see how this evolves now that you\'ve paved the way for everyone else.

[Iskierka]

Is kerbin\'s ocean made out of mercury or what? You need SERIOUSLY heavy stuff to sink in it.

It\'s not made out of mercury, it\'s that the parts we have are very low density compared to even water. Make the fuselage parts heavier and you won\'t need to much ballast.

[xzbobzx]

Lol that\'s so sweet.

[Ferrit]

This is just silly.

I like it!

Cunning solution to the problem of ballast too. I ownder if we can persuade Harv/Squad to provide actual ballast tank parts/coding?

[aphazael]

That is very, very cool. I appreciate how you\'re using parts in not-the-intended-fashion in order to achieve a novel effect. I\'ve been messing around with turning rcs blocks into tank treads and rover wheels, and I have this concept in my head right now for a helicopter. I\'m not to start that project next.

It\'s cool that that thing down there is a wall. I wonder what other anomalys and easter eggs might be out there. I can\'t wait until we have some more interesting landmarks out there.

[Caesar15]

Can some just upload their parachute mount or give me a link to it?

[gaiaalpha]

-That quad parachute mount (that I cannot find for the LIFE of me in the search. Can anyone link me?).

Search 'MultiChuteMount'

[gabyalufix]

Did some more exploring. There are some really odd terrain features around the launch base.

The walls are all over, and appear to be the seam where the procedurally-generated coastal terrain meets the flat, featureless deep-sea. They aren\'t uncommon, you can find them all along the coasts.

In some places they actually cut above the waterline:

In one place it\'s actually circular, almost like a crater.

[NovaSilisko]

Huh, I previously had declared submarines impossible. Glad to see I was wrong!

[gabyalufix]

Got tired of slugging around at 0.5 m/s, but couldn\'t find an engine that was a good shape (ie, very small, low profile, since collision-mesh density is what really matters).

So I fired up milkshape and added a propeller and a mount. It\'s strictly amateur work, and I\'m sure pretty much any of the modders here could do a zillion times better. But whatevs. It\'s just something I needed for one of my constructions.

Using this enormously overpowered engine, I was able to get up to 26m/s on the surface and 5m/s submerged, in a ~17m sub (though in the surface drag race run, I did lose a few rudders, and I exploded the second I switched off the ASAS).

Anyways, I added it to the pack. Enjoy.

[MC3craze]

For the ballast, you could try a no thrust, short burn SRB that has a very heavy dry mass, and a low 'wet' mass.

[Damonjay]

well this is an exciting development. i have almost convinced myself to download your pack.

i have one request though.

on your OP

Could you include a list of all the parts that would be downloaded.

Thanks

Damonjay

[Spoot Knight]

To open the Blue Hades example airsub, you will need (sorry, this is just how I roll):

-C7, main pack + hard points.

-Novapunch

-DownUnder: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=3362.0

-That quad parachute mount (that I cannot find for the LIFE of me in the search. Can anyone link me?).

-The kerbylon launch tower: http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/forum/index.php?topic=2750.0

And hold on I can find out what the radial mount was for the parachutes.

Here it is. Forgot it was bumped up some.

[gabyalufix]

Could you include a list of all the parts that would be downloaded.

Done. Also added the link to the chutes.

For the ballast, you could try a no thrust, short burn SRB that has a very heavy dry mass, and a low 'wet' mass.

Big problem with that is there\'s no way to resurface once you\'ve dived. With the RCS method, you just press up to go up, down to go down, and you can dive and surface and change depth however you wish, all day long. One of my experimental builds additionally adds lateral thrusters with higher burn rates, to allow you to perform emergency dives / breaches. (but it had better be a real serious emergency, because this is almost always catastrophic)

Edit: HA! So new refinement: the wet mass is now light, the dry mass is now heavy. The fuel usage on the RCS modules are switched. This means

(1) You don\'t have to sit around emptying your tank every launch (huge pain, after a while, especially since if you over-empty it deactivates).

(2) You don\'t need to brace the ballast tank so much, since it won\'t be at full weight on the launchpad.

Edit 2:

I\'ve done quite a bit of exploring. Learned this: Kerbin\'s collision mesh never appears to drop below 60m below sea level. At around that depth, you will hit a surface, even if the rendered mesh looks like the floor is much further down. So watch out for that.

[MC3craze]

Currently in the process of making a sub that launches little rockets, SLBM style.

[YoshiFan501]

zips corrupt

[gabyalufix]

It seems to work for me. What\'s your OS, and what unzip program are you using?

I\'m using Windows 7 and winRAR.

[Blinkin]

Submarines with plugins... pure awesomeness.

Me want me want me want.