Kerbal Space Program

So I recently decided to replay the career mode, mostly vanilla (besides MechJeb for boring launches & some orbital stuff). Lots has changed since I last played.
I still really enjoy building fantastic creations - I'm messing a lot more with space planes now and really enjoyed some of the science missions on Kerbin - they can get quite tough early on, before I just tried to get to other bodies as quickly as possible.

Here is my grandest undertaking so far:


It has taken me:

• one week of doing shitty space tourism contracts for cash
• one week of launching ~10t modules into Munar orbit & docking
  
• a couple of days of mining / refining & refueling

But now, after a cheeky assist from the mun & even minmus (though I think I probably only saved like.. 10dV) I'm on my way to the Jool system.
I massively overbuilt this so that I could (en-route) fulfil a contract for a x15 kerbal space station in Kerbol orbit (which paid back about half the cost of building this).

I plan to keep 1 pilot, 1 engineer & 2 scientists in high Jool orbit. The station's science lab will be used to process stuff retreived from the bodies with no atmosphere for maximum profit - there is a lander can - but it's really just on there as an escape pod - I don't think it will have the necessary Delta-V to go to more than one of the moons.

Down by the four (thats right, Four) Nuclear engines there is a Science lab & a Hab module (complete with 2.5M servcie bay, concealing a small 2 person rover) for landing on Laythe, if I can find any some land with resources!

I also sent a smaller but similar barge to high orbit over Eve. The plan is to maintain both of these stations and keep them crewed - but also to cycle the staffing. I don't want any one way trips!
As soon as I get a return (grant money / donations for achievements) I'll be sending another barge with relief crews to both Eve & Jool stations.
Both relief barges will have more utility so I'll have fully self sustaining outposts in the inner & outer solar system-

• A space plane that should be capable of landing on bodies with & without atmosphere. Essentially a Taxi for the local system - around Jool I hope that the space plane will be able to land at Laythe & return to the Jool space station for refueling & then make it back to Home. Should seat 6 people & carry a small payload.
  
• A smaller version of my Munar Drilling rig. I need to investigate Delta-V requirements and scan for resources in each system to get the numbers right but I'm hoping 3 - 4 visits should deliver enough Ore to the station to fully refuel it.
• 6xMini-satellites for orbital experiments & signal relay (not actually using the mod but just for the sake of it)
• 2xResource scout satellite with enough Delta-V to get into orbit and back to the station where they can be docked with an interplanetary stage & pushed further out in the solar system (Moho & Eloo beckon)

The end game for me is to have about 50 people out in space at any one time, but also to have multiple redundancy in facilities and be to launch return missions at any time.
The final mission will be returning my Eve lander crew - from what I have read Eve's gravity well is almost impossible to escape - requiring in the region of 8000dV. Obviously that means I won't be cycling the crew there - I'll be sending them a space plane and extra Hab modules, science labs, rovers & a space plane BUT I do want to return them to home. If I can do that I feel I've basically completed the game as thats about the hardest thing you can do.

It is basically a dry run for me to do something similar with the difficulty turned up and using life support mod, realistic satellite communications, etc to really make it hard to plan the missions.

 

In ksp... there are no dry runs.

 

It took me all of 5 minutes to kill Jeb! he never even made orbit!

 

Yeah absolutely. Also with rover wheels just flat out not working because they think they are clipping.
When building rovers I just test, a lot. Mostly just try to keep the wheels as far away from everything as possible - it is worse with the bigger sets I've found

 

I use ablative landing skids these days, more reliable.