(Question) What mods do you recommend ?

[Jovzin]

Hello ,

So I am planning to start new career in KSP. As we have now new version of KSP 0.90

And I want to have some suggestions from you which mods should I use.

First some points I want to make:

1/ I do not want to use RSS now.

What graphic pack do you suggest ? Astronomer's or Proot's ? Or some other pack ?

I want to have some satelites and telescopes in my career. So I was thinking should I use ScanSAT and CactEye telescope ? Or do you suggest some different mod ?

I want to have some rover wehicle to race pretty hard on Mun and Minmus What do you suggest ?

To have some small colony on planets and moons do you suggest to use OKS/MKS ? Or some other mod ?

What else mods do you recommend ?

Btw it looks like I will have to use 32 bit version of KSP as the upgrade of your KSP base is not working in 64 :(

Thanks for your tips

[kerbiloid]

Rovers:

USI:

USI Exploration Pack

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/86695-0-90-USI-Exploration-Pack-Small-parts-big-adventure!-v-0-3-0-2014-12-16

Freight Transport Technologies  components for (primarily) flyer, but due to their octagonal shape also appropriate forrovers, spaceships and ground base.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/91706-0-90-Freight-Transport-Technologies-v0-3-0-2014-12-19

ASET:

Exploration Rover System

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/94947-Exploration-Rover-System-by-A-S-E-T-%2810-10-14%29

Portable Rover Components

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/86343-Portable-Rover-Components-New-project-from-ASET-%28up-29-07-14%29

Station:

MKS/OKS is probably the most promising one, especially due to very advanced USI procedural resources generation (Regolith).

Also a great advantage of USI is that using USI plugins you can copy MODULE definitions from MKS/OKS parts to any part from another mod which you prefer and define your own technological processes and modules.

Universal Storage also uses USI plugins.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/75129-Universal-Storage-1-0-0-%28For-KSP-0-90%29-18th-December-2014

Hangar mod looks very useful. It is like KAS containers for things, but it's for whole ships.

You can either park your 100-parts rover in a one-part hangar, and KSP will compute only one detail until you get the rover outdoors.

Also you can deliver one-part hangar part as a rocket's payload, then spread around as many complicated satellites as you want.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/88933

[madlemur]

I can't play pure stock any more. At the minimum, I suggest FAR for intuitive aerodynamics, Deadly Reentry to make the pretty reentry graphics meaningful, and Real Chutes to round out the set. You'll probably want Kerbal Joint Reinforcement too, to help prevent unfortunate accidents on the launchpad and elsewhere.

On general principles, I usually install anything RoverDude makes (USI suite, Karbonite, Regolith), Procedural Fairings (a must have with FAR), Docking alignment by Navyfish, and Kerbal Engineer (mostly to see the delta-V stats).

For performance reasons, I also run ATM and Texture Replacer (OK, I really run TR to vary my Kerbals and get a much nicer galaxy background).

For ease of managing all this, I also use CKAN to install and update mods. I believe the only non-CKAN mods I'm using right now are the LackLusterLabs mods...

[Jovzin]

Thanks for the info.

And for visual packs what do you prefer guys ? Proot's renesaince or Astronomer's pack ?

Thanks

[madlemur]

I run on a Linux laptop with an Intel GPU. Therefore, I gave up on EVE and even HotRockets a while ago; I need more than 5FPS.

OK, I haven't tried EVE and other prettifying mods since 0.90 came out, but I find I'm doing quite well with just Texture Replacer's updated galaxy image. Someday, I'll get a desktop with a more state-of-the-art GPU, and then I'll crank up the eye-squee to 11...

[MinimumSky5]

eve is good, but better atmospheres is, well, better! It corrects many issues with how planets appear (sharp terminators, no white atmosphere layers on horizons, multiple cloud layers), but it extremely(for a mod) intensive for computers, and will not run at all on laptops. Hotrockets looks nice, but it even more intensive than better atmospheres. Keep in mind that better atmospheres has not been updated and is in hiatus, so may be incompatible with 0.25.

[madlemur]

Well, yeah. That's because Better Atmospheres is a graphics and configuration set that uses a combination of EVE, Texture Replacer, Custom Asteroids and Kittopia Terraforming. And if you use all the bits and bobs, it'll melt your GPU (unless you have a very beefy GPU)...

[FishInferno]

I don't do much mods, but RCS Build Aid is an essential if you want to save yourself a headache when you are building a space station.

[Ruedii]

ScanSAT is one of the best plugins out there. I highly recommend it.

I highly recommend FAR. I also recommend B9 (once it's updated for 0.90 if you don't want to go through the hassle of the upgrade.)

If you like autopilots, I recommend Mechjeb. If you don't I recommend Kerbal Engineer and Precise Node. Of course, you can always customize your Mechjeb installation to work like Kerbal Engineer and Precise Node if you like the MechJeb interface.

I recommend tweakable everything if you like fine-tuning things.

For fairings I recommend Procedural Fairings.

For parts packs I recommend RLA Stockalike, KSPX, Near Future Solar, and the batteries from Near Future Electrical. (And of course B9, once it's working with 0.90)

If you want something fun to mess with, and very advanced, I recommend trying out Procedural Parts.

Some people like KW Rocketry, but I don't like how it's balanced.

[Jovzin]

Hello

Thx for the info.

So you suggest to use FAR and DR. Well somehow I will have to install them. But I must say I like stock aerodynamics.

But for the new shuttle I will need to isntall that FAR.