What are the most important things you've learned about playing KSP to pass on?

[Coga19000]

In regards to the SRB subject, well -managed solids are generally enough for any job that doesn't require orbiting- whether that is parts testing, suborbital tourist contacts, or lunging probes to a solar orbit for extra science.

[Wakaleo]

When you're stuck, visit the forum. Someone will have an answer to winch you out of the mire.

[mpk10]

Rendezvous:

There are many tips, but one of the first things to know is that when you launch, you should switch to map view and then time warp until your target is roughly overhead. I didn't even realize I could do this when I first started and it made rendezvous much harder.

[299792458 m/s]

I think most people are going to disagree with you on this one. I certainly do. The feeling you get when you make a perfect touchdown on another planet or dock two giant ships in orbit is incredible. I'd recommend the Kerbal Engineer mod, gives you all the data that MJ does, but without the autopilot.

Anyway, things I've learned:

1. Learn to use the navball. Knowing what every indicator means, what it does, and why is so useful. I think 90% of people's issues with things like docking can be attributed to not fully understanding how to use the navball.

2. When in doubt: Simplify. Every ounce of weight you add at the top of your rocket will force you to make every stage under it bigger, which gets out of control exponentially. Learn what you really need, and what you can do without. Lean, mean rockets are easy to lift off, easy to fly, and easy to land.

3. Learn to dock, and get good at it. It opens up a whole new world... well worlds actually. Why struggle getting a massive ship into orbit when you can split it into two parts and have them docked in less than half an hour?

4. Rovers are fun... for about 30 seconds... then they flip over.

5. Understand why things happen. There's so much information at our disposal, here on the forum, in youtube vids, wikis, ect. It's easy to look up an answer to a specific question, but if you take the time to learn why things work they way they do you'll have learned a skill that you can use to solve future problems without needing to look up the answer. It's rewarding, it's enlightening, and it's fun. "Give a man a fish and he'll be fed for a day, teach a man to fish and he'll feed himself for a lifetime"

I remember a typical minmus mission in .25. Nothing too fancy, just a simple lander. I found myself overshotting and eventually found my way to Laythe. LAYTHE! Trust in your rockets and minimalize. Also try Kerbal Engineer out, so you can learn to play ksp on your own.

[Sharpy]

Some advice during docking:

- the encounter may be lousy, but orbital speed matching should be perfect (it can be 5 or 50km away, but it should be 0m/s relative to target before you begin your approach. Use RCS to fine-tune the last fractional m/s).

- Disable RCS when turning. It will ruin your movement direction. Turn towards your target, wait until it's squat in the center of the navball and burn prograde. It shouldn't be very fast, but you should try to get there in less than, say, 1/8 the orbital period.

- Watch the navball. Prograde should sit squat in the middle of Target. If it doesn't, use RCS "translation" controls to get it there. "I" pushes the prograde marker down, "K" up, "L" right, "J" left.

- Don't crash. If you did everything as I said, you're more than likely to be on collision course for the station. Instead of turning retrograde to brake, you can lose that 10m/s or so with "N" control (RCS backwards). Stop at a place where you can easily move in position to the port.

- Stop again. Doesn't have to be a perfect zero but it helps.

- Set the port as target and "control from here" on your port.

- Move somewhere roughly in front of the port, some distance away. Turn to face the direction at which you will be when docked.

- The navball is your view forward from behind your ship. The main screen is the view from the side of your ship, telling you how far you are and what direction you're moving in.

- and again, chase the prograde marker into the very middle of the target marker using RCS. Keep chasing it as any errors grow much larger the closer you are and it will keep escaping. Only pay attention to the main screen to see the distance, and control the approach speed with "H" and "N"; but the main game is being played in the navball.

- reduce the speed to some 0.7m/s when you're final meters away.

Also, heed my advice on placing three differently-colored headlights in front of your ship. The above procedure depends on keeping a progression towards your destination. If you miss, you need to back away quite a bit, and try again. If you have three lights radially around your docking port, you can stop dead two meters from the target ship (and ten meters to the side from the port), then "translate" until the port is right in the middle of the "white" (where the three colored lights overlap), then just press "H" for a moment and you're docked.

[Sharpy]

So you just can't balance your load? Your "truck"'s wheels hang to the side of the carrier rocket or something like that, and you really don't feel like putting a dummy weight on the other side?

There's no imbalance that enough RCS thrusters won't overcome. Make the nose of your rocket look like a pinecone covered with vernor engines. You may discard it when in orbit.

Also, remember: "RTZ". That's what you type before pressing space when on the launchpad.

Separatron not strong enough? Strap a Flea to get that stubborn stage off.

Make all the useful contraptions your subassemblies. How to make it whole a subassembly? Attach two useless parts to whatever part you want to attach your thing by to other objects. Set one of the two as root (when prompted to click another, clock the other. Open the Subassemblies interface, detach your whole contraption from the two dummy things and click on the "drag here" area. And don't hesitate to use Symmetry on them later on. Sixteen neat miniprobes currently fly towards Eve in a neat mothership. A cargo of four big fuel trucks heads on a carrier rocket to Minmus where nine little, highly maneuvrable speeders are being distributed between various facilities to allow for fast crew transfer without need to bring them together.

Always include a probe core, even on kerbed crafts.

You know the advice "when you ran out of gas, get out and push"? Well, I did. Then I pushed a bit too off-center and the craft began spinning so fast I was unable to get back in. And with no probe core I was unable to switch back in to stop it.

Overshot your maneuver by a meter per second? Activate RCS and keep "N" depressed.

If you began your maneuver too late, there's nothing to do about it other than add another and plan your full corrections. But if you began it too early:

- burn until you're halfway through the delta-V needed (the bar next to the delta-V left depleted halfway.

- shut off your engine and note the "T -" how much time is left until the planned maneuver point in time.

- Wait until the timer reads T + as many seconds.

- Burn the rest of the delta-V.

Example: Your maneuver is to take 28s and burn 240dV. The perfect time to start it is T -14s. But you got confused somehow and began burning at T -20s. So, keep burning until you reach half of dV, 120m/s left. The timer will read T -6s. Shut the engines off, wait until the timer reads T +6s, start them again and continue until dV left is zero.

[jkool702]

The biggest thing I have learned so far is to SAVE YOUR GAME! I usually try to quicksave (F5) every few minutes and make a permanent save (alt+F5) at major mission points (pre-launch, LKO, 1st solar orbit, etc.).

Considering how often the game screws up (like deciding that decoupler is going to randomly make your rocket explode in Eve orbit) and how often I screw up (once I literally forgot to put engines on my lander....) saving often and having LOTS of save points to return to has been invaluable.

[Sharpy]

Originally Posted by Alchemist

* use structural parts to position the wheels as widely as you think fit. And don't make the rover top-heavy. Or it will have problems with stability

*This also goes for landers. Place the landing legs far enough out so that you don't flip over if you land with too much horizontal velocity.

My solution is different. Embrace the Tipping. Give yourself enough RCS to stand upright. Add landing legs on top. Make a lander that can raise its nose enough for a diagonal launch.

My "Minmus Jumping Laboratory" has engines on both ends, facing in opposite directions. A cyllinder with two "crowns" of landing legs around both ends and two big Poodles. Roll into position using the reaction wheel, aiming for a new biome. Raise one end using RCS. Launch the engine that's currently "bottom" and set your trajectory for the target biome. Switch to the other engine, and brake before landing. It can jump both ways just the same.

[Goddess Bhavani]

The biggest thing I've learned in my years of playing KSP is - do your own thing! It's a sandbox game, with no rights or wrongs. Decide on the right choice of mods (or go commando), assemble ships that are unique and useful to yourself, and develop a unique sense of aesthetics and willingness to develop unique solutions to common problems.

Information gleaned off the forums, popular YouTubers and from tutorials are useful for illustrating the fundamentals, but once basic spaceflight mastery is attained, the sky is definitely not the limit.

[Ape_Descendant]

Most recently I have done this to make my life easier - Download the Kerbal Protractor for telling you when to launch for interplanetary travel. then attach one to a little lander with enough TWR for Kerbin flight and land it on one of the helipads ontop of hte VAB (or anywhere around KSC I guess I just wanted it to look cool sat up there).

You can now always switch to a craft that will give you launch windows without cluttering up the launchpad.

[kasuteru]

Sometimes, the SAS causes Rapid Unplanned Disassembly. If the craft is instable but near-perfectly balanced, you will be able to accelerate without SAS for a while before deviating from your course significantly. With SAS on however, it will try to correct for the course or stabilize the craft, this will induce oscillation and break the craft.

[Sharpy]

That triangle on the decoupler. Look at it as the way it's attached: the broad side of the triangle means firm, solid attachment. The tip is flimsy and gets broken off. Meaning the decoupler stays glued to the part on the base of the triangle.

The exit from the lab module is the side WITHOUT the logo/flag.

Now I just wish for such a hint as to which way a wheel turns when you press the "forward" key. I built a fine backwards-driving lab-rover...

[Goddess Bhavani]

Hitting CapsLock enables Fine Control, allowing me to fly rockets into orbit without use of SAS.

The utility of Fine Control is not readily apparent and the indication that FC is enabled is very little (the arrows on the pitch/yaw/roll rate gauges change color), but anyone with a few days of gameplay experience will appreciate being able to maneuver their craft without it vibrating like a floppy noodle

[BasKing]

-To explore the KSC, you don't have to make a rover: make a roller with a simple pod, some batteries, some science stuff, and: 2 science jr's at each end. Perhaps add an inline reaction wheel. Put in a scientist, and roll roll roll your way around KSC grabbing that science. It is a bit slow, but nothing that time acceleration cant fix.

-You can change the output force of rockets.

-And the amount of fuel in a tank.

-Remove monopropellant you dont use: shaves off a little weight, reduce amount off ÃŽâ€v needed

Edited June 30, 2015 by BasKing

[Vegetal]

Select your entire rocket by pressing on the root part

Press Q

Place it and save it

Profit!

[nigelvn]

Ctrl + Z in the VAB or SPH works as undo

[Bev7787]

Always plan ahead before launching or unexpected things will happen

[Feradose]

Dont forget landing legs.

[Wemb]

When you're sending a rescue mission, always check the seats are empty.

- - - Updated - - -

Play with MechJeb - a lot. And then do it all again without it - or at least without clicking on any of it's buttons. It's a great bit of tech, can save a lot of tedium and watching it do it's thing can teach you a lot about how to perform the manoeuvre you want - but it's no subsitute for knowing what you're doing.

[Sharpy]

The docking port acts as a decoupler if you attach something to it. Need to bring a segment of your base to the rest? If the segment carries some fuel, just slap the engine over the docking port and detach it right before docking.

[GarrisonChisholm]

When you get into high-powered jets and SSTOs, it becomes absolutely critical to understand how to move fuel around your ship to stabilize the center of mass. Always have a small fuel tank apart from the others (near the nose), so that you can change the weight distribution. Alt + right click on 2 fuel tanks and practice until it's automatic. This will save the lives of many Kerbalnauts.

THANK YOU! The Arcane is Explained!

[Friend Bear]

1. Kerbal Engineer - why not mechjeb, see #2.

2. Cheating is not fun. When you cheat with mechjeb or with videos that show you super advanced things to learn early...kinda hurts the game and you limit yourself in imagination. Use patience and try everything. There is a reason Kerbals are combustible.

3. Full throttle is most often not a good idea.

4. EVE is awesome. Funin OpenGL if you have to, but that added touch is nice.

[Red Iron Crown]

3. Full throttle is most often not a good idea.

Why do you find this to be so?

[Tourist]

It seems a bit obvious considering its the way you build in VAB, but I think its worth mentioning, plan your mission in the reverse of the order you'd play it. So often you're focused on getting stuff up, you rush the other (arguably more important parts).

So for example, on a Duna mission, don't plan by saying, right, gotta get into orbit first, lets start asparagusing!.

Plan to return back to the surface of Kerbin first. Then how to get to Kerbin orbit. The how to transfer from Duna. Then how to reach Duna orbit from the surface, etc.

I find it amazing just how easy it becomes, with just a change in mindset.

[hellblazer]

1. . Start at the docking port (first part placed is the root) then work your way up or down. Now you can hold shift and click on the part directly under the docking port to copy the craft (minus the docking port of course). I never start at the command pod/drone.

Tip: KSP will not allow you to use that docking port (maybe its just my version) if it is from the sub-assemblies section (I only get one attachment point - bottom of the docking port).

2. Crate up sections that can be reassembled later. I usually create some elaborate over designed docking port. I like to protect my sections so there is no risk of damage/explosions. I use large decouplers (I manually decrease the force of the separation) and struts. Then encase it with fairings. I then get to use my tug to position the new pieces.

3. Infernal robotics - Rototrons are the best after docking up to a station. I attached it to the docking port on the station side so I can rotate the new section. Lining up RCS (painful to maneuver if not) or just for aesthetics.

Edited July 25, 2015 by hellblazer