Really worried about how rescue missions are going to mess up life support.

[brdavis]

...seriously, rescuing a stranded kerbal in orbit as an early mission? I think it would be better if it were placed with high-tier missions, at least after you've completed a "dock this part to this vessel in x hours" mission.

So… we're questioning the hierarchy of potential contracts, based on something seen in a brief video, on a version that hasn't been released yet, when the contract system is brand new & untested for even simply things like full functionality, not to mention balance.

This isn't putting the cart in front of the horse. This is launching the cart to Duna after removing the wheels, then giving the horse a map that's upside down and telling him he needs to find the cart and land it on Tylo.

[Klingon Admiral]

Well, 6 hours is plenty. If you know how to RV, even to the most basic level, there's no reason why it should take you more than 10 orbits to get close enough.

Assuming rescues from orbit are the only rescue mission. A standard Hohman-transfer to the Mun are already 6 hours or something. And we don't know if it stops there, we might get contracts that requires us to rescue a Kerbal from Eeloo orbit or something.

[Algiark]

...when the contract system is brand new & untested for even simply things like full functionality, not to mention balance.

I thought all the extra time it took to release this update was to test & balance things?

[Streetwind]

No, the extra time was for adding the currency system. They had the contracts finished, but their internal testers said it felt pointless without having rewards attached. Thus they decided to postpone .24 until the currencies (originally planned for .25) were ready as well.

[turkwinif]

But using WNTS list as an argument for that clearly shows lack of knowledge.

How does it show a lack of knowledge? Just curious, I don't want to get into an argument or anything.

[klgraham1013]

I'm sort of against spawning random Kerbals / ships. I believe Squad said contracts will be mod-able, so maybe they can be disabled. I'm actually not that worried about it. I can just avoid those missions if I like.

[nholzric]

I keep waiting and waiting for Squad to put life support, and yet seems like every patch they throw up another roadblock, so I use mods... but now they're going to spawn kerbals in suits orbiting, I'll have 6 hours to rescue.... .

I'm sort of against spawning random Kerbals / ships. I believe Squad said contracts will be mod-able, so maybe they can be disabled. I'm actually not that worried about it. I can just avoid those missions if I like.

Bingo. Contracts are supposed to be moddable. If stranded Kerbals don't fit with your life support mod, then the mod should address the types of contracts generated - or stick it in a second follow-on mod, whatever.

[Sandworm]

Six hours is not enough. If the stranded kerbal's orbital inclination is anything other than 0* then the chances of an intercept within 6 hours is practically nill. Unless they are always going to be in convenient orbits ... ick. The mods could come up with some way to ignore these targets but I agree with the OP in being disappointed that Squad is turning away from life support.

The better question is why these missions appear to be available before you have any 2-man parts, mandating the use of silly rocket configs.

[ArmchairGravy]

Squad is in yer game breakin yer immerzion!

[Alshain]

I'm more concerned about other mod issues. TAC and ECLSS will be updated in some creative way I'm certain. I have more concerns about parts packs that may need adjustments to their prices (based on the fact Squad changed some stock prices) but are not being actively maintained by the author, like B9. It will be up to the community to do.

Edited July 15, 2014 by Alshain

[Alewx]

I really have faith in the modders, they made many awesome and impressing things for the game. Currently all the videos had rescue missions in orbits around Kerbin/Mun, so maybe the stranded kerbonauts will be in capsules when they are at destinations that are further away.

What really worries me is the funds. I only get them from contracts, meaning I have to do contracts over and over again just to raise my funds, while i just want to have sattelites for communication or building a station.

Upkeep costs and revenues for having installed stations/stattelites would be quite good. like selling frequencies of the sattelite communication for regular funds income.

[Matrix Aran]

Six hours is not enough. If the stranded kerbal's orbital inclination is anything other than 0* then the chances of an intercept within 6 hours is practically nill. Unless they are always going to be in convenient orbits ... ick. The mods could come up with some way to ignore these targets but I agree with the OP in being disappointed that Squad is turning away from life support.

The better question is why these missions appear to be available before you have any 2-man parts, mandating the use of silly rocket configs.

My guess is because the procedural mission system is designed to throw you some challenges that are outside your current capabilities, but with some ingenuity, you could accomplish. The rescue mission seems to be just that.

I would be very careful with the words 'mandate' and 'require' and so on. As far as everything that has been shown in the preview videos, I haven't seen anything that forces a player to take a certain contract. It's very possible that you can chose to not help the corporation with their stranded kerbal problem, and suffer no penalty for it.

Furthermore, as others have said, the contracts system is intended to be modded, and I foresee the life support modders will probably tweak it to better suit their mods.

Above all, I think with the plethora of mods that Squad have encouraged (and heck the ones they themselves have developed!), it would be very wrong to suggest that Squad only intend us to play KSP one way.

[Dielos]

I'm sure that mods like RemoteTech and others will add contracts specific to their mods, so launching satellites might be a viable form of getting funds with those mods installed.

[cpast]

I would be very careful with the words 'mandate' and 'require' and so on. As far as everything that has been shown in the preview videos, I haven't seen anything that forces a player to take a certain contract. It's very possible that you can chose to not help the corporation with their stranded kerbal problem, and suffer no penalty for it.

Indeed, I can't think of anything else "decline contract" would mean.

[Sky_walker]

How does it show a lack of knowledge? Just curious, I don't want to get into an argument or anything.

You don't read carefully. See my previous post, the one you quoted yourself, second paragraph.

[adge]

I don't mean to come across as ignorant or rude, so please correct me if I'm wrong, but are people seriously complaining about realism with regards to life support, in a game where you run an alien space program in a physically impossible solar system?

[FleetAdmiralJ]

I don't mean to come across as ignorant or rude, so please correct me if I'm wrong, but are people seriously complaining about realism with regards to life support, in a game where you run an alien space program in a physically impossible solar system?

Eh, I understand people worrying about the feasibility of doing contracts with mods. I think the way the stranded kerbals spawn will make them running out of life support not really an issue.

The bigger problem for TAC users may be whether they can make affordable ships to go anywhere while also using TAC...

[RoboRay]

It really comes down to this... if a mod creates problems for an aspect of the stock game, it's the mod-maker's responsibility to adapt, not the game-maker's.

Edited July 15, 2014 by RoboRay

[air805ronin]

Six hours is not enough. If the stranded kerbal's orbital inclination is anything other than 0* then the chances of an intercept within 6 hours is practically nill. Unless they are always going to be in convenient orbits ... ick. The mods could come up with some way to ignore these targets but I agree with the OP in being disappointed that Squad is turning away from life support.

The better question is why these missions appear to be available before you have any 2-man parts, mandating the use of silly rocket configs.

If you know the inclination ahead of time thanks to the tracking station, I'm sure you can take off and be pretty close to the right inclination and then adjust. Especially if you set them as a target before take off.

They said early missions are scripted, so they're trying to get you to master some different concepts early it would seem.

[adge]

Eh, I understand people worrying about the feasibility of doing contracts with mods. I think the way the stranded kerbals spawn will make them running out of life support not really an issue.

The bigger problem for TAC users may be whether they can make affordable ships to go anywhere while also using TAC...

Alright, thanks for clearing that up!

I think it would be unfair to pass judgement before the update has been released, and before the modders have had chance to adapt their mods to suit the new contract system, and had chance to ensure they blend as seamlessly as possible.

[cantab]

If the life support clock does tick from when you accept the contract, then the short-term solution is to not accept those contracts. The longer-term solution is for mods to hook into the contract system and allocate a suitable amount of life support to the Kerbal. (No ship strictly required but that'd be nicer.)

Oh, and to launch into a specific orbital plane takes a maximum of three hours waiting, since KSC will pass through that plane twice a day. So it's really not an issue.

[Alshain]

Eh, I understand people worrying about the feasibility of doing contracts with mods. I think the way the stranded kerbals spawn will make them running out of life support not really an issue.

The bigger problem for TAC users may be whether they can make affordable ships to go anywhere while also using TAC...

I'm not concerned about that either. Contracts themselves are modable so TAC/ECLSS just has to add "Life Support related" contracts to offset the cost.

[malkuth]

Only thing I'm worried about is that its a common mission. If it happens once ok, but every two days or so you have to rescue a new kebal because he is stuck in space? How he get into space? LOL.

[Russoft]

You want life support for realism, then you want to accomplish an unrealistic task like rescuing an Kerbal who only has a space suit as life support? I'm glad KSP doesn't have life support, personally. If I ever want to have an added challenge, then I'll install a mod.

[No one]

Someone brought up the WNTS list as evidence that we won't get stock life support, but that isn't really evidence either way. Another list, the Already Suggested List, has "Physical/Mental Health" labeled as "Not planned ever". So Squad's current plan is that we won't be getting stock life support ever.