Do a different rocket for each payload?

[montyben101]

Personally i have 4 rockets, 3 of which are the same but one with 4 boosters, one with 2 and one with none, They have 6 lvt 30s around the edge and one lvt 45 in the center (i use the cluster mod)(boosters are the same as the core). The last rocket is only used for extreme payloads and have 19 mainsails in the first stage, around 10-15 skippers in the second and 5 skippers in the 3rd. I have only used it once and it worked surprisingly well XD.

[Taki117]

I build rockets based on payload. Sure it's easier to have the same launch vehicle saved as a sub-assembly, but that increases your chance of leaving debris, which so far I have not done. It really just depends on your play style.

[maccollo]

I build different rockets for each payload, because building rockets is what I like to do =P

[jwenting]

For me building them is more than half the fun, so I tend to build everything from scratch usually (though I currently have flown about 20 missions in career mode using the same design, it's just so smooth and friendly).

[Guest]

I generally build a new booster for each payload, especially in career where things change so quickly. Well, I even do that in sandbox... Boosters are really quick to build with the mods I have installed anyway.

[Vanamonde]

I played the game so long before subassemblies were added that I never remember to try them.

[NecroBones]

Sometimes I'll start with a design I already have, and change out the payload (or use the subassemblies to save boosters), but more often than not lately, I've been building new lifters for different payloads. Sometimes not even bothering with full asparagus staging (rather, more like onion, rings of stages, than asparagus pairs), just to save time.

[Comrade Jenkens]

I have a few standardised lifters that I select depending on payload.

[ArmchairGravy]

I have set booster packs. My personal rule is no more than 2 deep on onion/asparagus stages. Most of my packs are Skipper onions with various numbers of engines and tank sizes. I use asparagus only on the Mainsail booster pack because that one is all about squeezing delta v out of high TWR. I've come to embrace modularity in my designs.

[Redrobin]

Depends. In RSS I use the same rockets, but in stock ksp, I build different rockets.

[Woopert]

I use the same rocket but with different boosters, and I also use engine clusters.

What is the cluster mod? Can I have a link to it?

[LordOfTheOrbits]

I generally design rockets and payloads separately.

My rockets usually have a very specific set of requirements when I build them. Generally I never use more than 2 boosters on a rocket and usually the boosters are additional main cores, like the Delta-IV Heavy or the Falcon Heavy use. Another requirement for all of my rockets is full reusability. If I can't lift a payload into the intended orbit with my current heavy lift vehicles, I make it modular and do multiple launches.

Designing and prototyping a rocket takes about 2 hours for me for a LKO lifter and about 3 hours for rockets with an interplanetary transfer stage.

[Poryy]

I use an absurdly overkill massive asparagus launcher for everything. Satellites are even better with 13000 m/s of delta-V to get into orbit!

[Scotius]

I have three standard lifters: 10 tons, 40 tons, 70 tons to LKO respectively. Two heaviest ones might be a overkill for most payloads, but since parts are still for free, i don't bother with tailoring my rockets to needs.

[Ravenchant]

Once the relevant tech is unlocked, I have 5 or 6 launchers saved as subassemblies and use those 90% of the time. In early career, though... they were generally built from scratch

[StrandedonEarth]

I've developed three lifters depending on the payload size. Since my last last few missions have been interplanetary, I've been using my 200-ton-payload Goliagus booster a lot. The last thing it lifted was my 160-ton Eve lander/ascent vehicle, with a second launch for crew and tug

[LethalDose]

I originally scratch built all my launch stages, but now I'm being more consistent. In my current modded game I've moved towards using parallel-staged liquid boosters and I've been keeping it fairly consistent with the same general design. With FAR loaded, it's easier for me to learn one launch system and get good with that system, instead of troubleshooting and re-learning the flight characteristics for a new launch vehicle every time.

[Concentric]

I usually build fresh, but whenever I just want to send something up that I've thrown together, I tend to fit it to a subassembly. I haven't really built any standardised lifters for specific payload masses to LKO, though. The lifter from Station Aleph's tank tends to be more than enough for those needs, so there's no need to complicate it at this point.

[Skorpychan]

Nope. Lifters are hard, so I design my payloads to fit what the standard lifter can take. So far, it can take up a rockomax -32 tank with assorted gubbins, as well as the central stack of jumbo tank, pancake tank, and mainsail.

My latest refinements were putting the pancake tank on the bottom, then sticking it on with a docking port so I could leave smaller debris AND use the jumbo tank as payload. When it goes up already docked to a cruise stage or station, you're in business. And can start loading it with fuel from other lifted payloads.

I'm tempted to put batteries and a few panels on the pancake and mainsail affair, so I can dock to it and chuck it out of orbit. Or re-use them somewhere, like Eve.

[rkman]

I am trying to develop some efficient launch vehicles that i'd use as sub-assembly, but in the process i end up building a new launcher or changing an existing one for almost every launch. Going so far as to lift dummy payloads just for testing the launcher. I'd vote both yes and no if i could.

[Superfluous J]

In career, I've found it's not worth saving lifters until you've reached Orange Tanks. And in my current career by the time I got there I had a Kethane/ELP base set up at Minmus so wasn't lifting much off of Kerbin any more.

However, in my next save I'll be doing Apollo-style missions to each planet and moon so I think I'll have more use for tried-and-tested launchers.

[Brotoro]

I think my kerbals would benefit from mass production and standardization… so I re-use the same rocket designs as often as possible.

[MK3424]

I think my kerbals would benefit from mass production and standardization… so I re-use the same rocket designs as often as possible.

Especially when you are using the buildtime mod: when you use a design multiple times, your kerbals gets better and faster building the next one.

[cantab]

Between the two for myself in career mode I reckon. For a new mission I'm planning, I'll tend to base the launcher on an older successful design where possible, but it usually ends up tweaked.

[AmpsterMan]

I used to do it before subassemblies came along. Now, however, I have pretty standard designs that I use. My subassemblies are extensive indeed!