Can't attach my rover to my rocket

[Name Lips]

This is the darndest thing. In Career mode, I just unlocked the rover tech. So I built one. It has the RoveMate frame, headlights, 4 wheels, solar panels, and an External Command Seat.

I thought the Seat would be enough for me to test it with a Kerbal on board, but it said I needed an actual command module. So I stuck a docking port on the end and attached a command module.

I tested it, and successfully EVAed a Kerbal and got him in the rover. I detached the docking port, extended my solar panels, and had a fun time driving around the launchpad.

OK, it works, time to attach it to a rocket and take it to the MUN!! That should be the easy part, right?

Well, first of all, I didn't want to have to build the entire rover again, so I saved it as a Subassembly. The thought being that I could stick Little Rover onto any rocket I wanted. Maybe several of them. Whatever.

But that, apparently, is where things stopped going well.

I built a rocket with a free docking port and loaded up my Little Rover subassembly, but try as I might, I couldn't get its docking port to function. It would not attach itself to the docking port on my rocket. The green dots on the top and bottom of the rover still work, but I don't want to use those. I want a rover that can detach, drive around, and reattach itself and ride home.

This can't be that unusual of a thing, right? I just want a lunar module with docking ports on either side, with a rover attached to each of them. This shouldn't be so hard, should it?

I've tried several workarounds, including building the rocket first and building the rovers directly against its docking ports, but it won't work. They won't snap onto the rear end of the RoveMate chassis unless I START building with the chassis, in which case I have to build the entire rocket starting from the rover. And while that might work, it's kind of a pain, and there would be no way to bring a second rover.

It really feels like I should be able to save it as a subassembly, but I can't get it to work.

[Bobe]

It's not good practice to save payloads as subassemblies, since they only have one attachment point which is the root node of the craft.

Instead, save the rover as a craft and save things like rockets as subassemblies.

Then, in the most basic configuration, you can put a decoupler on the top or bottom of the rover and attach the rocket to whichever side you like.

[Name Lips]

OK, but if I save it as a craft, how do I add it to my rocket? Do I then have to build my entire rocket starting with the rover? What if I want to have TWO rovers?

My plan was to have a lander with a docking port on the left and right sides, so when it landed the rovers would have their wheels on the ground. Then my kerbals could get out of the lander and hop in their rovers and drive off. When they got back, they could re-dock the rovers, and then the entire lander with 2 rovers could fly back up and dock with the mother ship.

[Tabakhase]

You want the SelectRoot Mod, that can fix these Issues =)

You play Stock? Then deinstall it after fixing the "beta issue"

[Name Lips]

Wow, I finally got it working. I had to build my rover using a piece that had a green node at the correct end, so I decided to base it around the Science Jr. So now I can fly to the moon, send out 2 rovers to different biomes, collect science, and return, dock, and take off again.

Not the final design, but proof it works:

Kerbal driving off:

It can take off and land:

As a bonus, the entire lander can drive around (in this test the docking port on the bottom broke off, but that's what we call a solvable problem):

[G'th]

Another way you may want to look into to attach rovers to your ships (particularly once you gain JR docking ports) is to go for side attachment, ala one of my older crafts:

As you can see, the docking port on the rover* connects to the docking port on the lander craft itself. On the other side of the craft I either attach a counter weight (usually the equipment box I attached to the back of that particular rover) or another rover or some other design. Later revisions to that particular setup ended up utilizing a test bed rover for a variety of purposes such as kethane mining, power generation, etc etc while the other rover served as a general purpose exploration rover.

Doing it this way eliminates the need for a sky crane system (which can get complicated when utilizing multiple rovers) while also eliminating the headache you'd have trying to design the rover to be deployed from under the lander craft.

*I also disagree with the idea of not using your actual crafts as sub-assemblies. If you build the craft properly (IE, from the point it will attach to your main craft out, usually a docking port or stack decoupler/separator) then you'll be able to easily use things like rovers or lander's as sub-assemblies.

[Bean]

*I also disagree with the idea of not using your actual crafts as sub-assemblies. If you build the craft properly (IE' date=' from the point it will attach to your main craft out, usually a docking port or stack decoupler/separator) then you'll be able to easily use things like rovers or lander's as sub-assemblies.[/quote']

This, if you start building a rover from the docking port, then when you save it as a subassembly you will be able to load it with a docking port ready to attach to your ship.

[acc]

It's not good practice to save payloads as subassemblies

that's not true in general, it depends on the way you want/like to use it.

as example: multiple payloads.

if i want to build a rover, launched on the top of a rocket, i would start building with a docking port on the bottom of the rover and build upwards. when finished, i check the mass and pick a lifter from subassmeblys with the right dV for it.

there are some cases for have two versions of payload, one with top and one with bottom node. there i would use a mod to change the root node. it's more simple than building again from top to bottom.

[Superfluous J]

I save crafts as subassemblies all the time. In my current career I have 0 lifters and 5 crafts saved so far, actually.

Like others have said. Slap down a Mk1 pod and build your rover attached to it, from the point you'll want to attach to other stuff later. When you're done, drag it off the pod and save it.

I also will second (or third) SelectRoot. There is nothing magical about the root part of a ship and you should be able to change it on a whim. Yet another should-be-stock mod.