Is the game becomeing too easy?

[Col_Jessep]

I think the SLS parts and sturdier joint help a lot with part count. We wanted to build ever larger rockets and now we can. Building the lifter to get my contraption into LKO often was just necessary busy work and I used subassemblies when possible. Now I can spend more time on designing the lander. I like.

Maneuver nodes are very useful if you want to set up precise transfer burns to other planets. Nothing wrong with that imo.

[Sirrobert]

I've been playing 3 weeks and I'm debating on whether I need to seek help to do something other than Mun and Minimus. Because I have to tell you, I am flailing around on my own trying to figure out to get more fuel into orbit so that I can go to Duna or Eve. Having bigger rockets that have more thrust is obviously not the answer. Because I get them to orbit and they usually have very similar fuel %-wise left than what I was getting with my smaller rockets. I did once get within shouting distance of Eve, then I had to revert because there was no way I was getting back.

A few tips for you than:

Asperagus staging can help you gain more efficient rockets, which allows you to get more fuel into orbit.

Docking will allow you to assamble an interplanetery craft in orbit. This means you can fly up small parts per launch, rather than the entire thing in 1 go. Should make it alot easier.

For docking, you'd need to practice if you can't do it yet. It's the most difficult thing in KSP, but it will make your problems awhole lot easier

[SSSPutnik]

Because I have to tell you, I am flailing around on my own trying to figure out to get more fuel into orbit so that I can go to Duna or Eve.

Here is some hundreds of tons of fuel to LKO Note the position of a gantry tower, in mid air!

For long distances, you need less rocket and more fuel. Use LV-N for thrust and learn to live with a low TWR.

Edited May 27, 2014 by SSSPutnik

[joekidd1992]

A few tips for you than:

Asperagus staging can help you gain more efficient rockets, which allows you to get more fuel into orbit.

Docking will allow you to assamble an interplanetery craft in orbit. This means you can fly up small parts per launch, rather than the entire thing in 1 go. Should make it alot easier.

For docking, you'd need to practice if you can't do it yet. It's the most difficult thing in KSP, but it will make your problems awhole lot easier

Yes, I need to learn how to do that. I just wanted to figure it out on my own, but it's like going from knowledge of stone tools to knowledge of a circular saw. I can't just make the jump, even with prior knowledge that it can be done.

[joekidd1992]

Here is some hundreds of tons of fuel to LKO Note the position of a gantry tower, in mid air!

For long distances, you need less rocket and more fuel. Use LV-N for thrust and learn to live with a low TWR.

http://i.imgur.com/tdcXVhE.png

http://i.imgur.com/k2Xqpje.png

The problem with your reply is I really don't know what LV-N OR TWR means. I just know build a rocket, get it to orbit, then land on the Mun or Minimus.

[SSSPutnik]

LV-N = The nuclear engine. And TWR is thrust to weight ratio. IE for interplanetary, a low TWR usually means more DeltaV to get further.

The nuclear engine is very fuel efficient, add two or three to a big mass of fuel and you can get most places.

[cantab]

I've been playing 3 weeks and I'm debating on whether I need to seek help to do something other than Mun and Minimus. Because I have to tell you, I am flailing around on my own trying to figure out to get more fuel into orbit so that I can go to Duna or Eve. Having bigger rockets that have more thrust is obviously not the answer. Because I get them to orbit and they usually have very similar fuel %-wise left than what I was getting with my smaller rockets. I did once get within shouting distance of Eve, then I had to revert because there was no way I was getting back.

As much as anything else, you probably need to learn about transfer windows and phase angles, and thus how to make efficient interplanetary transfers. Various sources can help you with this.

In terms of what your ships can do:

A ship that can do a Munar orbit and return can do a one-way flyby of Eve or Duna, or make orbit with aerobraking. With precision it can get back to Kerbin with a gravity assist but that's more advanced.

A ship that can do a direct ascent Munar landing can orbit and return from Eve (with aerobraking) or Duna (no aerobraking needed), land on Gilly, possibly land on Ike, or do a one-way flyby of Dres (in a favourable window) or Jool.

The comparisons come from delta-V maps. This simple one is good for visiting other planets: http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/w/images/7/73/KerbinDeltaVMap.png

These more sophisticated ones are harder to use but give lower, more accurate, values for visiting moons of other planets: http://www.reddit.com/r/KerbalAcademy/comments/1qu5jv/deltav_charts/

PS: By "direct ascent" I mean a mission that takes off from Kerbin, lands on the Mun, takes off from the Mun, and lands back on Kerbin, staging along the way but without any dockings or rendezvous.

Edited May 27, 2014 by cantab

[phoenix_ca]

This game is way too easy. It won't be acceptably realistic until there are Kerbal politicians that randomly cut funding to your program because reasons and parts randomly fail without any sort of warning.

Remember, any tools you use to help you in flying through space in KSP are cheating. Especially those damned manoeuvre nodes.

[joekidd1992]

LV-N = The nuclear engine. And TWR is thrust to weight ratio. IE for interplanetary, a low TWR usually means more DeltaV to get further.

The nuclear engine is very fuel efficient, add two or three to a big mass of fuel and you can get most places.

Thank you.

[joekidd1992]

As much as anything else, you probably need to learn about transfer windows and phase angles, and thus how to make efficient interplanetary transfers. Various sources can help you with this.

In terms of what your ships can do:

A ship that can do a Munar orbit and return can do a one-way flyby of Eve or Duna, or make orbit with aerobraking. With precision it can get back to Kerbin with a gravity assist but that's more advanced.

A ship that can do a direct ascent Munar landing can orbit and return from Eve (with aerobraking) or Duna (no aerobraking needed), land on Gilly, possibly land on Ike, or do a one-way flyby of Dres (in a favourable window) or Jool.

The comparisons come from delta-V maps. This simple one is good for visiting other planets: http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/w/images/7/73/KerbinDeltaVMap.png

These more sophisticated ones are harder to use but give lower, more accurate, values for visiting moons of other planets: http://www.reddit.com/r/KerbalAcademy/comments/1qu5jv/deltav_charts/

PS: By "direct ascent" I mean a mission that takes off from Kerbin, lands on the Mun, takes off from the Mun, and lands back on Kerbin, staging along the way but without any dockings or rendezvous.

I just looked at asparagus staging. It's actually not as hard as when I first looked at it. I just have to do it logically.

[Northstar1989]

This game is way too easy. It won't be acceptably realistic until there are Kerbal politicians that randomly cut funding to your program because reasons and parts randomly fail without any sort of warning.

Haha, apparently you haven't been playing with the mods I have, or doing much roleplaying...

Parts that randomly fail- CHECK (these engines both had enough electricity to keep running for a bit longer- but one suddenly cut out without warning...)

Random funding-cuts- well that's a matter of roleplaying, but, see my mission report thread- where I decided to arbitrarily cancel all funding to (recover) my mountaintop alternative launchpad (as well as several other space stations, missions, and ideas at various times) for roleplaying reasons, as well as because I had too many vessel in flight...

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/57509-Kerbin-and-Beyond-a-Maturing-Space-Program

Regards,

Northstar

[PTNLemay]

Ever since they nerfed science spamming I would classify my experience with the game as somewhere between a healthy challenge and brutally difficult. I mean, yeah, sure I could just play in Sand-Box, but... I don't wanna. Yeah the new super tanks and engines do help, but... 550 science points to get 'em. And the tech tree is so big!

I do like it difficult, it just means it will be that much longer for me to go through it all and do everything there is to be done.

[Jenkins]

@Northstar Fantastic idea, then we can all roleplay the Mars Climate Orbiter. You're happily inserting into Duna orbit then suddenly: "Your Agency made a conversion error! Adjusting trajectory!". You then proceed to crash and burn into Duna .

But in all seriousness, the game is getting easier only in the short term, because the mechanics being currently worked are all UI, physics tweaks, and bugfixes. The long term changes will well balance the temporary easiness for sure. Once they implement the real challenges like cost and thermodynamics, when we can no longer build cost-free hundred-engine ships, and aerobraking at infinite speeds doesn't let us get away with sloppy transfers, trust me, everyone won't even remember the difficulty of not having maneuver nodes or parts blowing off in timewarps.