I just had YouTube recommend this video:
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efnorujXoYg&ab_channel=Zer0%27sLegion
Hype levels increasing...
Hype levels increasing...
Empyrion Galactic Survival vs. Space Engineers - Practical Rockets Edition - Now with more Kerbals!!!
- Thread starter Darkfyre99
- Start date
Practical Rockets
Round Twelve
Session Three
Space Engineers - Engineer Needs Silicon
While it was two days later than I'd originally intended, getting back into Space Engineers with the new update was about as great as I'd hoped... though not without its minor issues. Nor did I get as far as I'd like.
First thing I did was make sure that the grid was roughly aligned with the path of the sun. Which made me realize that my future Earth Space Station was situated far enough over the one of the poles that I didn't have to worry about the sun setting behind the planet.
Next thing I did was truss out my future Solar Array.
Once I installed a turret controller, roughly where I want the Space Station's "bridge" to be, set it to track the sun, and watched the array turn slightly towards the sun.
There is just one teeny, tiny problem with this function IMO. The movement of the array isn't smooth at the default settings. It moved in fits and starts and much wobbling back and forth. Thankfully, this was ultimately fixable. I ended up turning the torque of the rotor down to about 50 kilo-Newton-meters before the array's tracking was smooth enough to not be distracting if I was looking in its general direction.
That accomplished, I started to work on my oxygen farms. If I want to use any ice I discover to produce hydrogen, I need to keep the oxygen tanks full with oxygen produced by other sources. And that's when I ran into another problem: I'd used up all my silicon on the solar panels. I didn't have enough silicon to even complete construction on one, let alone the six I wanted to build.
There was an easy solution, though. Jet pack down to the surface, and bring up any silicon that remained below.
There wasn't that much left below, about two tons worth. I still had enough space left over in my backpack to bring up what little nickel remained, as well as a smidge of iron. And it didn't even allow me to finish half of the Oxygen Farms I need to help keep things managed.
At this point, I'm seriously considering doing a second trip down to the surface with my rocket, just to collect more silicon, as well as bring up more iron while I'm at it. The alternative is to do a lot more prospecting of asteroids, which is my least favorite activity in this game.
Round Twelve
Session Three
Space Engineers - Engineer Needs Silicon
While it was two days later than I'd originally intended, getting back into Space Engineers with the new update was about as great as I'd hoped... though not without its minor issues. Nor did I get as far as I'd like.
First thing I did was make sure that the grid was roughly aligned with the path of the sun. Which made me realize that my future Earth Space Station was situated far enough over the one of the poles that I didn't have to worry about the sun setting behind the planet.
Next thing I did was truss out my future Solar Array.
Once I installed a turret controller, roughly where I want the Space Station's "bridge" to be, set it to track the sun, and watched the array turn slightly towards the sun.
There is just one teeny, tiny problem with this function IMO. The movement of the array isn't smooth at the default settings. It moved in fits and starts and much wobbling back and forth. Thankfully, this was ultimately fixable. I ended up turning the torque of the rotor down to about 50 kilo-Newton-meters before the array's tracking was smooth enough to not be distracting if I was looking in its general direction.
That accomplished, I started to work on my oxygen farms. If I want to use any ice I discover to produce hydrogen, I need to keep the oxygen tanks full with oxygen produced by other sources. And that's when I ran into another problem: I'd used up all my silicon on the solar panels. I didn't have enough silicon to even complete construction on one, let alone the six I wanted to build.
There was an easy solution, though. Jet pack down to the surface, and bring up any silicon that remained below.
There wasn't that much left below, about two tons worth. I still had enough space left over in my backpack to bring up what little nickel remained, as well as a smidge of iron. And it didn't even allow me to finish half of the Oxygen Farms I need to help keep things managed.
At this point, I'm seriously considering doing a second trip down to the surface with my rocket, just to collect more silicon, as well as bring up more iron while I'm at it. The alternative is to do a lot more prospecting of asteroids, which is my least favorite activity in this game.
Practical Rockets
Round Twelve
Session Four
Space Engineers - Engineer Needs A Lot of Stuff
Unsurprisingly, the sheer thought of doing asteroid prospecting had me launching my rocket back towards my base. Ten minutes with nothing to do but twiddle my thumbs as I descend towards the surface, occasionally correcting my course in order to land where I need to be? Bad. Using my rocket as it's currently designed to prospect for ores among the nearby asteroids? Even Worse. At least on the way back up, I have to adjust the rocket's thrust most of the way… assuming I don’t want to waste hydrogen, of course.
At about the halfway point, I suddenly realized I forgot to pack a chute. Oops!
As the rocket plummeted towards my base, I could make out the numerous craters surrounding it.
At the right moment, I ignited the main engine, bringing the rocket to a soft landing, consuming only a puff of fuel.
Sadly, I forgot to document getting the rocket attached to the base, nor mining the silicon ore with the Termite. I also forgot about taking screenshots of the ascent, with 10 tons of refined silicon on board.
At any rate, I safely returned to my fledgling space station, my armored glass panels resumed assembly as soon as I’d docked.
It didn’t take too long for the oxygen farms to be assembled fully, which should be sufficient to supply my modest requirements.
Once my ability to breathe indefinitely was assured, I turned my attention to building the jump drive, including the necessary attachment point.
Soon enough, it became obvious that producing the 1000 superconductors was going to take a long time, and much of my steel. That it would also consume most of my gold goes without saying.
Next up, it's finally time to see what goodies Empyrion Galactic Survival's latest update contained. And then, it's another trip back to the surface to retrieve some more iron, so I can further flesh out this space station. Hopefully, by the time I return, all the superconductors will have been built, so I can start charging that jump drive.
Round Twelve
Session Four
Space Engineers - Engineer Needs A Lot of Stuff
Unsurprisingly, the sheer thought of doing asteroid prospecting had me launching my rocket back towards my base. Ten minutes with nothing to do but twiddle my thumbs as I descend towards the surface, occasionally correcting my course in order to land where I need to be? Bad. Using my rocket as it's currently designed to prospect for ores among the nearby asteroids? Even Worse. At least on the way back up, I have to adjust the rocket's thrust most of the way… assuming I don’t want to waste hydrogen, of course.
At about the halfway point, I suddenly realized I forgot to pack a chute. Oops!
As the rocket plummeted towards my base, I could make out the numerous craters surrounding it.
At the right moment, I ignited the main engine, bringing the rocket to a soft landing, consuming only a puff of fuel.
Sadly, I forgot to document getting the rocket attached to the base, nor mining the silicon ore with the Termite. I also forgot about taking screenshots of the ascent, with 10 tons of refined silicon on board.
At any rate, I safely returned to my fledgling space station, my armored glass panels resumed assembly as soon as I’d docked.It didn’t take too long for the oxygen farms to be assembled fully, which should be sufficient to supply my modest requirements.
Once my ability to breathe indefinitely was assured, I turned my attention to building the jump drive, including the necessary attachment point.
Soon enough, it became obvious that producing the 1000 superconductors was going to take a long time, and much of my steel. That it would also consume most of my gold goes without saying.
Next up, it's finally time to see what goodies Empyrion Galactic Survival's latest update contained. And then, it's another trip back to the surface to retrieve some more iron, so I can further flesh out this space station. Hopefully, by the time I return, all the superconductors will have been built, so I can start charging that jump drive.
Practical Rockets
Round Twelve
An Idle Session
Space Engineers - Background Activity
The last couple of nights have been what I call "Idle" gaming nights. Way too much to pay attention to at home recently, but not so much I can't keep game running in the background as I take care of things. Rather than boot up the usual suspects, I decided to just leave Space Engineers up and running in the background, so I can at least get that jump drive charged. I knew it was a power hog, but really.
Since I was going to be leaving SE unattended, I decided that I should first set up pair of event controller blocks to deal with power management. I didn't want my Engineer to die due to lack of power for life support because that jump drive was hogging it all. Between that and doubling the number of solar panels, I used up the last of the iron I'd brought up from the surface.
Not much else to report. I'm leaving SE running one more evening to get the Space Station's batteries charged as well, and then it's time to get back into the swing of things. I'm kind of wishing Keen's servers were more reliable. That solar array could've easily charged everything while I was offline.
Round Twelve
An Idle Session
Space Engineers - Background Activity
The last couple of nights have been what I call "Idle" gaming nights. Way too much to pay attention to at home recently, but not so much I can't keep game running in the background as I take care of things. Rather than boot up the usual suspects, I decided to just leave Space Engineers up and running in the background, so I can at least get that jump drive charged. I knew it was a power hog, but really.
Since I was going to be leaving SE unattended, I decided that I should first set up pair of event controller blocks to deal with power management. I didn't want my Engineer to die due to lack of power for life support because that jump drive was hogging it all. Between that and doubling the number of solar panels, I used up the last of the iron I'd brought up from the surface.
Not much else to report. I'm leaving SE running one more evening to get the Space Station's batteries charged as well, and then it's time to get back into the swing of things. I'm kind of wishing Keen's servers were more reliable. That solar array could've easily charged everything while I was offline.
Practical Rockets
Round Thirteen
Session One
Empyrion Galactic Survival - Leveling Up the Hover Vehicle
Finally got a chance to sit down and play EGS for a while. After a brief moment to take stock of supplies, I started working on converting my Hoverscout into a Hovertruck for salvage work. Sadly, I forgot to take a “before” shot of the HS, so here’s an old screenshot.
I started by removing all the proverbial “armor” that gave it most of its shape.
After removing all of its oxygen and fuel, I stripped it down to the core, then added both the basic Hoverpods for basic maneuvering, T2 Hoverpods for heavy lifting, and most of the other critical components. I could’ve sworn I took screen shots of this phase, but they’re not there.
During the reassembly, I found myself running short once again on electronics. Rather than searching the increasingly picked over wrecks for non-critical equipment, or scrapping the more critical stuff, I decided to once again teleport over to the forested moon of Not-Endor.
I really miss the procedurally generated starting areas from earlier iterations from this game. I knew exactly where to look for the ‘crash site’ biome, despite the fact that it shouldn’t have a crash site biome, since I crashed on another world.
With fresh supplies of starting ores, I soon got the rest of the critical components in place, and filled in the gaps with modular storage.
Unlike Space Engineers, where even a completely utilitarian build looks good enough, I couldn’t simply leave it as is. I’m pretty sure I spent more time than strictly necessary blinging it out.
As I was harvesting my latest crop, I got a welcome notification:
I haven’t spent any unlock points yet, though I was sorely tempted. I’m not sure at this moment about what I need, what I want, and what would be nice to have. I do know one thing, though…
There was quire a bit of good stuff at the crashed capital ship midsection, and it didn’t take too long to fill the truck’s cargo hold. I did end up using two doses of anti-radiation medicine, as well as a few breaks by my portable cooler, since I arrived at the salvage site during the tail end of a heat wave.
I’d estimated my maximum load quite well. I was able to make decent time on the way back. As I crossed over the terminator again, I saw a rare opportunity…
These guys are endangered (by me) because their corpses yield valuable (and not so valuable) ores.
Next up in EGS, I’m going to be building a landing pad upon which I can build my first proverbial “capital ship,” as well as doing a lot more large-scale salvage.
But first, in SE, I’ve got a lot of work to do before I can even think of moving on to the next phase of my adventure.
Round Thirteen
Session One
Empyrion Galactic Survival - Leveling Up the Hover Vehicle
Finally got a chance to sit down and play EGS for a while. After a brief moment to take stock of supplies, I started working on converting my Hoverscout into a Hovertruck for salvage work. Sadly, I forgot to take a “before” shot of the HS, so here’s an old screenshot.
I started by removing all the proverbial “armor” that gave it most of its shape.
After removing all of its oxygen and fuel, I stripped it down to the core, then added both the basic Hoverpods for basic maneuvering, T2 Hoverpods for heavy lifting, and most of the other critical components. I could’ve sworn I took screen shots of this phase, but they’re not there.
During the reassembly, I found myself running short once again on electronics. Rather than searching the increasingly picked over wrecks for non-critical equipment, or scrapping the more critical stuff, I decided to once again teleport over to the forested moon of Not-Endor.
I really miss the procedurally generated starting areas from earlier iterations from this game. I knew exactly where to look for the ‘crash site’ biome, despite the fact that it shouldn’t have a crash site biome, since I crashed on another world.
With fresh supplies of starting ores, I soon got the rest of the critical components in place, and filled in the gaps with modular storage.
Unlike Space Engineers, where even a completely utilitarian build looks good enough, I couldn’t simply leave it as is. I’m pretty sure I spent more time than strictly necessary blinging it out.
As I was harvesting my latest crop, I got a welcome notification:
I haven’t spent any unlock points yet, though I was sorely tempted. I’m not sure at this moment about what I need, what I want, and what would be nice to have. I do know one thing, though…
There was quire a bit of good stuff at the crashed capital ship midsection, and it didn’t take too long to fill the truck’s cargo hold. I did end up using two doses of anti-radiation medicine, as well as a few breaks by my portable cooler, since I arrived at the salvage site during the tail end of a heat wave.
I’d estimated my maximum load quite well. I was able to make decent time on the way back. As I crossed over the terminator again, I saw a rare opportunity…
These guys are endangered (by me) because their corpses yield valuable (and not so valuable) ores.
Next up in EGS, I’m going to be building a landing pad upon which I can build my first proverbial “capital ship,” as well as doing a lot more large-scale salvage.
But first, in SE, I’ve got a lot of work to do before I can even think of moving on to the next phase of my adventure.
Practical Rockets
Round Thirteen
Session Two
Space Engineers - Retrieval
Not really much to report from last night's session. A good chunk of it was spent in transit: down to the planet and back up from it. I did take the time to install an event controller on the rocket, which will turn on the main thruster as it nears the ground. This should, in theory, allow for a proverbial "suicide burn," which would waste minimal fuel. Being a Kerbal Space Program veteran, though, I included a safety margin.
The trip back to the surface was old hat by now. There's not much to do until the last minute or so, aside from the occasional course correction, so I spent the time reading the forums. Space travel is definitely my least favorite aspect of SE, that and the inability to "sleep" while allowing time to progress in the game. The "midgame" in single-player can be frustratingly "leave it running in the background while you do something else" for long periods of time.
I didn’t even need to move it! Once down on the surface, I decided to avail myself of the easily accessed ice, and fill up the tank on the rocket. Waste not, want not!
This turned out to be a good thing. I'd started the trip down with my tanks at 31% full. I burned up 6% while landing. After the single trip to the ice sheet, that tank was up to 84%. While I waited for the ice to process, I filled up the cargo hold with just shy of 40 tons of raw ingots. In Kerbal Space Program, I aim for a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.4. This one had a TWR of about 1.05... after transferring as much iron as I could into my suit's "pockets of holding."
Now that I'm back at the station, it's time to do some construction!
Round Thirteen
Session Two
Space Engineers - Retrieval
Not really much to report from last night's session. A good chunk of it was spent in transit: down to the planet and back up from it. I did take the time to install an event controller on the rocket, which will turn on the main thruster as it nears the ground. This should, in theory, allow for a proverbial "suicide burn," which would waste minimal fuel. Being a Kerbal Space Program veteran, though, I included a safety margin.
The trip back to the surface was old hat by now. There's not much to do until the last minute or so, aside from the occasional course correction, so I spent the time reading the forums. Space travel is definitely my least favorite aspect of SE, that and the inability to "sleep" while allowing time to progress in the game. The "midgame" in single-player can be frustratingly "leave it running in the background while you do something else" for long periods of time.
I didn’t even need to move it! Once down on the surface, I decided to avail myself of the easily accessed ice, and fill up the tank on the rocket. Waste not, want not!
This turned out to be a good thing. I'd started the trip down with my tanks at 31% full. I burned up 6% while landing. After the single trip to the ice sheet, that tank was up to 84%. While I waited for the ice to process, I filled up the cargo hold with just shy of 40 tons of raw ingots. In Kerbal Space Program, I aim for a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.4. This one had a TWR of about 1.05... after transferring as much iron as I could into my suit's "pockets of holding."
Now that I'm back at the station, it's time to do some construction!
OK, so how do you know the parameters for suicide burn?
You just need to use Newton's equations for linear motion, and solve for distance, using your known parameter's. In Space Engineer's, it's fairly easy, since you know your maximum velocity (110 m/s), your ship's mass (on the HUD), your ship's thrust (480kN), planetary gravity (Earth = 9.81 m/s2). That’ll tell you your minimum braking distance.
Kerbal Space Program is even easier in the base game, no MechJeb mod (an autopilot mod) required. Just create a maneuver node right before your impact point, one where the eccentricity is as close to one as possible, and the apoapsis touches the maneuver node, and you’re good.
"just"
I'm not a rocket scientist. The KSP nodes I did. To have an indication when to initiate break. Eccentricity of one is a parabola - how does it all make a suicide burn?
Close to one, not equal to one. An orbit with an eccentricity of 0.999 is about as close to vertical as an orbit can get."just"
I'm not a rocket scientist. The KSP nodes I did. To have an indication when to initiate break. Eccentricity of one is a parabola - how does it all make a suicide burn?
So when I reach that point I would have turned retrograde and reversed the momentum - that is handy.
Practical Rockets
Round Thirteen
Sessions Three, Four, and Five
Space Engineers - JUMP!
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwYN7mTi6HM&ab_channel=VanHalen
The last couple of mornings I've been rather distracted, and kept forgetting to upload the previous night's screenshots. I also couldn't resist finishing up the project I was working on in SE, because I've been building my very first Jumpship for Space Engineers!
Once I'd completed the Jumpship, I next needed to work on the survey pod. Since I had just enough platinum for small sized ion drives, I naturally went with that. Not having to worry about "plumbing" made the design much easier.
It was only after I'd completed everything that I realized I'd forgotten one critical detail: how to recharge it. It needed a small connector somewhere, and as I searched for a good place to put it, an obvious solution suddenly came to me. All it took was a couple of tweaks to the ship.
All that remained was to cut the pod loose, and dock with the Jumpship... and then cut it loose.
It was at that point that I realized I'd need some way of controlling the Jumpship while docked, so I can point it towards my destination during a blind jump. At first, I wanted to use the new top camera. I was expecting it to be large, so I was pleasantly surprised by how small it was.
Then I realized I'd need to install a remote control block, so I settled on a cockpit instead. With that done, I was ready for my first jump.
My first jump was to the previously surveyed asteroid. I was curious to know if there were any hidden treasures I'd missed, thanks to the annoyingly short-range of the small grid ore detector. As I began my survey, the shadow of the Jumpship swept over the asteroid.
As it turned out, I hadn't missed a thing. I'd originally planned to rely on oxygen bottles while surveying, but I was already getting low on O2 by the time I was done with one. I jumped back to my Space Station, refilled my oxygen supply, and returned to the Jumpship to survey another asteroid.
I have to admit, being able to jump between asteroids, even though it's just five kilometers, really helps take a large chunk of the tedium out of space travel in Space Engineers. Now, if only the ascent from a planetary surface was as fast.
Anyhoo, it didn't take long before I registered my first mineral deposit on this asteroid.
I also found two deposits of iron on that asteroid, but for some reason the screenshots I thought I took weren't there. After that, I returned to the Jumpship, and then jumped the ship back to my Space Station, where I docked the Survey Pod at a quickly build docking station. I need to make some tweaks to the drop pod because my original plan for its operation was to rely on the character O2 tanks for life support, and that isn't cutting it. There's some other tweaks I need to do as well.
I also need to install a station-keeping drive on the Jumpship, which at this stage means hydrogen thrusters. I've got quite a bit of work to do before I can even think about exploring the rest of the solar system!
Space Resources found so far:
But first, I'll be taking another hiatus to prepare for the upcoming Buckyball Race. Everyone's welcome to participate. I've been delaying an exploration trip because I've been waiting for ages for Frontier to add the obviously missing on-foot Thargoid and Guardian Odyssey content. This race has us going to some Thargoid structures, and I'd like to find some on my own, rather than relying on what other people have found.
Round Thirteen
Sessions Three, Four, and Five
Space Engineers - JUMP!
The last couple of mornings I've been rather distracted, and kept forgetting to upload the previous night's screenshots. I also couldn't resist finishing up the project I was working on in SE, because I've been building my very first Jumpship for Space Engineers!
Once I'd completed the Jumpship, I next needed to work on the survey pod. Since I had just enough platinum for small sized ion drives, I naturally went with that. Not having to worry about "plumbing" made the design much easier.
It was only after I'd completed everything that I realized I'd forgotten one critical detail: how to recharge it. It needed a small connector somewhere, and as I searched for a good place to put it, an obvious solution suddenly came to me. All it took was a couple of tweaks to the ship.
All that remained was to cut the pod loose, and dock with the Jumpship... and then cut it loose.
It was at that point that I realized I'd need some way of controlling the Jumpship while docked, so I can point it towards my destination during a blind jump. At first, I wanted to use the new top camera. I was expecting it to be large, so I was pleasantly surprised by how small it was.
Then I realized I'd need to install a remote control block, so I settled on a cockpit instead. With that done, I was ready for my first jump.
My first jump was to the previously surveyed asteroid. I was curious to know if there were any hidden treasures I'd missed, thanks to the annoyingly short-range of the small grid ore detector. As I began my survey, the shadow of the Jumpship swept over the asteroid.
As it turned out, I hadn't missed a thing. I'd originally planned to rely on oxygen bottles while surveying, but I was already getting low on O2 by the time I was done with one. I jumped back to my Space Station, refilled my oxygen supply, and returned to the Jumpship to survey another asteroid.
I have to admit, being able to jump between asteroids, even though it's just five kilometers, really helps take a large chunk of the tedium out of space travel in Space Engineers. Now, if only the ascent from a planetary surface was as fast.
Anyhoo, it didn't take long before I registered my first mineral deposit on this asteroid.
I also found two deposits of iron on that asteroid, but for some reason the screenshots I thought I took weren't there. After that, I returned to the Jumpship, and then jumped the ship back to my Space Station, where I docked the Survey Pod at a quickly build docking station. I need to make some tweaks to the drop pod because my original plan for its operation was to rely on the character O2 tanks for life support, and that isn't cutting it. There's some other tweaks I need to do as well.
I also need to install a station-keeping drive on the Jumpship, which at this stage means hydrogen thrusters. I've got quite a bit of work to do before I can even think about exploring the rest of the solar system!
Space Resources found so far:
Iron Ore (Fe)- Nickel Ore (Ni)
Cobalt Ore (Co)- Magnesium Ore (Mg)
- Silicon Ore (Si)
- Silver Ore (Ag)
- Gold Ore (Au)
- Platinum Ore (Pt)
- Uranium Ore (U)
- Ice
But first, I'll be taking another hiatus to prepare for the upcoming Buckyball Race. Everyone's welcome to participate. I've been delaying an exploration trip because I've been waiting for ages for Frontier to add the obviously missing on-foot Thargoid and Guardian Odyssey content. This race has us going to some Thargoid structures, and I'd like to find some on my own, rather than relying on what other people have found.
To all those who are breathlessly awaiting the next installment of this saga (you really should see a doctor about that!), my tendinitis has been flaring up, and since real life has been pleasantly busy with offline activities at the moment, I'm going to give it another week before I go back into the swing of things gaming wise.
Practical Rockets
Round Fourteen
Sessions One, Two, and Three
Empyrion Galactic Survival - Picking up where I left off...
… And apparently, where I left off was in the middle of a fire rain, with scorching precipitation and temperatures that can boil water. Not an environment suitable for salvage work. So I harvested my crops and hit the hay.
After getting up, I checked my map for the wreck I was salvaging, and drove my new and improved Hovertruck to the wreck site. A heat wave had replaced the fire rain, so at least the heat was manageable. Along the way, I did a bit of hunting. I came for the desert golems, good sources of useful ores and promethium, and ended up fighting a pack of desert worms.
At the salvage site, I was trying to remember what I needed to get, when I remembered that I could highlight useful salvage on my hud. It was at that point I realized that there was more to this wreck than I thought. There's another floor buried beneath the sand, it seems.
Eventually, my Hovertruck was full of useful, though rather bulky, salvage. I headed back to base, where I installed everything. Having another method of healing, especially some of the more dangerous diseases, could be useful.
Of course, the original structure is getting rather cramped these days. More importantly, my new improved Hovertruck had a few issues getting back into its garage. It had very little overhead clearance. So I fixed that issue: moved the garage door to the outside, resized it to a 5x3 shutter, and then removed larger blocks.
Naturally, enlarging the shutter door required a few comprises of the external aesthetics.
When I returned to the salvage site, I began excavating the lower deck of the wreck. I found a few treasures, but mostly stuff I didn't have much of a use for. I needed capital class thrusters the most, if I wanted to leave this system while following the self-imposed rules I'd set. For review: all space ships need to have their main thrusters at the "bottom" of the ship.
I gathered up everything I could use, and returned to base. The Hovertank still had some room in it, but it was sluggish due to the weight.
The desert golems were out in force, so I did a bit of hunting on the way back.
One of the major aspects of Empyrion Galactic Survival, vs Space Engineers, is the need to actually level up. You don't start with many technologies unlocked, and you only get a certain number of unlock points at each level. Furthermore, many of the technologies also has level requirements.
This encourages a certain degree of risk taking in EGS, of which there are plenty to take. SE, on the other hand, has very few risks, and nearly every block can be unlocked through the starting pod. Which is why I was thrilled to level up thanks to one of those golems!
When I got back to base, I realized I'd need to expand my base's storage capacity, well beyond what a single cargo container could hold. That meant modular storage, which in turn meant I'll need to start worrying about computer-based resources.
It's also amusing to see how various construction materials cost, CPU wise. Concrete requires 18 CPU/block, Steel 12, and Carbon Steel 5. At any rate, I needed to expand my base, and I didn't want to expand it out, and I didn't want to expand it up... so that left down. I added an access hatch in the hangar, and started my basement level. And promptly ran into my least favorite aspect of EGS: the need to "dig out" space for a block before it can be placed. Which tends to disrupt natural terrain I'd rather not disrupt.
And the worst thing is, it tends to be rather fickle. I probably should've been using the "fine drill" setting, but I made quite a few holes into the terrain surrounding my base.
Next up will be getting reacquainted with my Space Engineers save, and expanding the Jumpship. And after that, it's time to start seriously thinking about how I'm going to make my first ever capital class ship in EGS. Unlike Space Engineers, I have to start with something that would make more sense in the middle of the ship, rather than at the back.
Round Fourteen
Sessions One, Two, and Three
Empyrion Galactic Survival - Picking up where I left off...
… And apparently, where I left off was in the middle of a fire rain, with scorching precipitation and temperatures that can boil water. Not an environment suitable for salvage work. So I harvested my crops and hit the hay.
After getting up, I checked my map for the wreck I was salvaging, and drove my new and improved Hovertruck to the wreck site. A heat wave had replaced the fire rain, so at least the heat was manageable. Along the way, I did a bit of hunting. I came for the desert golems, good sources of useful ores and promethium, and ended up fighting a pack of desert worms.
At the salvage site, I was trying to remember what I needed to get, when I remembered that I could highlight useful salvage on my hud. It was at that point I realized that there was more to this wreck than I thought. There's another floor buried beneath the sand, it seems.
Eventually, my Hovertruck was full of useful, though rather bulky, salvage. I headed back to base, where I installed everything. Having another method of healing, especially some of the more dangerous diseases, could be useful.
Of course, the original structure is getting rather cramped these days. More importantly, my new improved Hovertruck had a few issues getting back into its garage. It had very little overhead clearance. So I fixed that issue: moved the garage door to the outside, resized it to a 5x3 shutter, and then removed larger blocks.
Naturally, enlarging the shutter door required a few comprises of the external aesthetics.
When I returned to the salvage site, I began excavating the lower deck of the wreck. I found a few treasures, but mostly stuff I didn't have much of a use for. I needed capital class thrusters the most, if I wanted to leave this system while following the self-imposed rules I'd set. For review: all space ships need to have their main thrusters at the "bottom" of the ship.
I gathered up everything I could use, and returned to base. The Hovertank still had some room in it, but it was sluggish due to the weight.
The desert golems were out in force, so I did a bit of hunting on the way back.
One of the major aspects of Empyrion Galactic Survival, vs Space Engineers, is the need to actually level up. You don't start with many technologies unlocked, and you only get a certain number of unlock points at each level. Furthermore, many of the technologies also has level requirements.
This encourages a certain degree of risk taking in EGS, of which there are plenty to take. SE, on the other hand, has very few risks, and nearly every block can be unlocked through the starting pod. Which is why I was thrilled to level up thanks to one of those golems!
When I got back to base, I realized I'd need to expand my base's storage capacity, well beyond what a single cargo container could hold. That meant modular storage, which in turn meant I'll need to start worrying about computer-based resources.
It's also amusing to see how various construction materials cost, CPU wise. Concrete requires 18 CPU/block, Steel 12, and Carbon Steel 5. At any rate, I needed to expand my base, and I didn't want to expand it out, and I didn't want to expand it up... so that left down. I added an access hatch in the hangar, and started my basement level. And promptly ran into my least favorite aspect of EGS: the need to "dig out" space for a block before it can be placed. Which tends to disrupt natural terrain I'd rather not disrupt.
And the worst thing is, it tends to be rather fickle. I probably should've been using the "fine drill" setting, but I made quite a few holes into the terrain surrounding my base.
Next up will be getting reacquainted with my Space Engineers save, and expanding the Jumpship. And after that, it's time to start seriously thinking about how I'm going to make my first ever capital class ship in EGS. Unlike Space Engineers, I have to start with something that would make more sense in the middle of the ship, rather than at the back.
Practical Rockets
Round Fourteen
Session Four and Five
Space Engineers - Picking up where I also left off...
When I last left Space Engineers, I needed to add an oxygen supply to my Surveyor, because bottled O2 didn't last as long as I'd hoped it would. I’d originally hoped to insert the thing between the back battery and the cockpit. Sadly, the small grid O2 tank is 3x3x3, so I couldn’t save one of the batteries. Thankfully, I thought to add some scaffolding to keep the thruster clusters attached to the ship.
Sadly, it turned out the same couldn’t be said of the little Surveyor’s gyros.
With the tank filled, and battery at least half charged, it was time to go surveying for resources!
First off, it was time to return to the jump ship. I really need to reconsider its design. At the very least, it needs maneuvering thrusters, which at the moment it lacks. Which is fine for the moment, I can “lock” it down by converting it to a station, but I foresee a time when I’ll want to move it from its “Jump Point.” If I don’t find a good source of platinum, that’ll mean refining ice for hydrogen thrusters.
The “Solar Sail” isn’t working as well as I’l like, either. The solar tracking function doesn’t work well with a mobile platform, even if it’s movements are restricted to rotational axis.
Once I was safely docked, I turned the JS towards a nearby asteroid…
And made the jump!
I found a couple of deposits of silicon. Useful, but not what I had hoped…
I found another nearby asteroid, and made another jump.
The good news is that I had found ice!
The better news was that I had found more than one deposit!
Still wanting to find something better, I set course for what appeared to be several small asteroids.
It turned out to be further than I thought it was. After three jumps, I emerged between three large asteroids. I chose the largest to explore first. This asteroid was surprisingly scenic, especially for Space Engineers. This was a good thing, considering its size.
I floated slowly over its longest axis, growing a bit disappointed at not finding anything. As my Jumpship came into view, my ore scanner finally detected something. I moved towards it, and was even more disappointed at the find: it was something I’d found previously. Granted, it would definitely come in handy later, but still…
I explored this asteroid for the rest of the session, hoping to find something new. I found several more deposits of both ice and nickel on this asteroid, but it was surprisingly barren for it’s size. Here’s hoping I simply missed something!
Still there were two more large asteroids nearby. Maybe they’ll yield better results.
Space Resources found so far:
But first, there's another Buckyball Race coming up. Everyone's welcome to participate. This race's theme? Flying fast through tight spaces!
Round Fourteen
Session Four and Five
Space Engineers - Picking up where I also left off...
When I last left Space Engineers, I needed to add an oxygen supply to my Surveyor, because bottled O2 didn't last as long as I'd hoped it would. I’d originally hoped to insert the thing between the back battery and the cockpit. Sadly, the small grid O2 tank is 3x3x3, so I couldn’t save one of the batteries. Thankfully, I thought to add some scaffolding to keep the thruster clusters attached to the ship.
Sadly, it turned out the same couldn’t be said of the little Surveyor’s gyros.
With the tank filled, and battery at least half charged, it was time to go surveying for resources!
First off, it was time to return to the jump ship. I really need to reconsider its design. At the very least, it needs maneuvering thrusters, which at the moment it lacks. Which is fine for the moment, I can “lock” it down by converting it to a station, but I foresee a time when I’ll want to move it from its “Jump Point.” If I don’t find a good source of platinum, that’ll mean refining ice for hydrogen thrusters.
The “Solar Sail” isn’t working as well as I’l like, either. The solar tracking function doesn’t work well with a mobile platform, even if it’s movements are restricted to rotational axis.
Once I was safely docked, I turned the JS towards a nearby asteroid…
And made the jump!
I found a couple of deposits of silicon. Useful, but not what I had hoped…
I found another nearby asteroid, and made another jump.
The good news is that I had found ice!
The better news was that I had found more than one deposit!
Still wanting to find something better, I set course for what appeared to be several small asteroids.
It turned out to be further than I thought it was. After three jumps, I emerged between three large asteroids. I chose the largest to explore first. This asteroid was surprisingly scenic, especially for Space Engineers. This was a good thing, considering its size.
I floated slowly over its longest axis, growing a bit disappointed at not finding anything. As my Jumpship came into view, my ore scanner finally detected something. I moved towards it, and was even more disappointed at the find: it was something I’d found previously. Granted, it would definitely come in handy later, but still…
I explored this asteroid for the rest of the session, hoping to find something new. I found several more deposits of both ice and nickel on this asteroid, but it was surprisingly barren for it’s size. Here’s hoping I simply missed something!
Still there were two more large asteroids nearby. Maybe they’ll yield better results.
- Iron Ore (Fe)
- Nickel Ore (Ni)
- Cobalt Ore (Co)
- Magnesium Ore (Mg)
- Silicon Ore (Si)
- Silver Ore (Ag)
- Gold Ore (Au)
- Platinum Ore (Pt)
- Uranium Ore (U)
- Ice
But first, there's another Buckyball Race coming up. Everyone's welcome to participate. This race's theme? Flying fast through tight spaces!
Practical Rockets
Round Fifteen
Sessions One to Three
Creatively Prototyping
I’ve been spending the last few nights, as time permits, prototyping vehicular bays, especially ground vehicle bays, in anticipation of doing a large grid landing craft. My conclusions?
Round Fifteen
Sessions One to Three
Creatively Prototyping
I’ve been spending the last few nights, as time permits, prototyping vehicular bays, especially ground vehicle bays, in anticipation of doing a large grid landing craft. My conclusions?
- Space Engineers doesn’t really have any ground vehicle boarding ramp options.
- Empyrion Galactic Survival does have boarding ramps
- Large Grid landing craft doesn’t really feel like me, so I’m going to restrict Large Grids primarily to space and bases.
- Kerbal Space Program (the original one) has been knocking at my door, sweetly signing “Do you want to launch some rockets?” to the tune of “Do you want to build a snowman?”
- I have too many interests to pack into too little time.
- Yes, I want to launch some rockets.
Practical Rockets
Round Fifteen
Sessions Four and Five
Now with More Kerbals!
The original Kerbal Space Program, much like Minecraft, is a game I can't help returning to, starting a new game each time. I don't think I've ever actually completed the tech tree, despite (checks) nearly 2000 hours spent in the game. It also has the distinction of being one of the few games I've ever installed mods for, most of which upped the difficulty.
Over the years, Squad (and later Take Two) have added most of the features I wanted, with the sole exception of the need to consider life support requirements, and "Kerbal Construction Time". As I result, I pretty much install the visual enhancement mod EVE these days, just so I can get some clouds in Kerbin's sky, alongside the Navball Alignment Indicator mod and the Waypoint Manager mod.
I spent more time than was strictly necessary debating on what my base difficulty level should be for a career game. My instincts say I should set it hard, and then add back in the quick-loading options so I can "simulate" rockets without having to install the simulation companion mod of Kerbal Construction Time. My experience tells me that this ends up being extremely grindy, so in the end, I went with Medium difficulty with all the optional bells and whistles turned on.
If I want to use probes, I'd need to set up a communications network first... or send a Kerbal pilot.
The first rocket launched in campaign mode is always the same, extremely basic one.
With that mission under my belt, and some mire science unlocked, I decided to see how many "low altitude" missions were available... after I cleared up the "on landing pad" test missions. Easy money is easy money, after all, and each completed mission generates a new one.
As always, I made sure that the waypoints I needed to visit are near the Kerbal Space Center.
While KSP doesn't have the most realistic flight sim in existence, it's still pretty good, so I like to build, and then fly, "space" planes from time to time. I don't have unlimited time, unfortunately, so I can only indulge in this if they're close enough to home.
After cleaning up a few more, I saw two test missions that hopefully had good synergy, and would give me enough cash to improve one of the following:
I managed to complete the first mission, but sadly I didn't have enough drogue chutes to slow the capsule down to fulfil the second one. Luckily, the new mission that unlocked was an engine test at the launch site, so I ended up upgrading the astronaut complex first, so I could do EVAs for the Science!
Speaking of which, by nabbing as much science as I could from the two runways I have access to, I unlocked the fourth tier science node, which in turn produced even more science!
I designed a rocket that should, on paper at least, get me up to the right altitude for the test.
Atmospheric drag left me a few hundred meters short of the target altitude, so I bumped up the fuel a notch.
This got me to the correct altitude for the test. There was much applause at mission control!
I now had enough science to finish unlocking the second and most of the third, so I accepted the “Leave Kerbin’s” atmosphere mission, and designed a rocket that should get Jeb into space, if not into orbit.
Out in space, Jeb gathered as much science as he could…
… before gravity pulled the capsule back down. This yielded enough science to unlock the “orbital” liquid fuel engine,the basic plane parts, plus one other.
The upper node gives a wealth of construction parts, including a passenger cabin which is useful for tourist missions. The lower node provides some control options, plus the two-seater “Pea” Pod.
I also have two high altitude observation missions I can use to pay for low and upper atmosphere tests.
Decisions, decisions…
Round Fifteen
Sessions Four and Five
Now with More Kerbals!
The original Kerbal Space Program, much like Minecraft, is a game I can't help returning to, starting a new game each time. I don't think I've ever actually completed the tech tree, despite (checks) nearly 2000 hours spent in the game. It also has the distinction of being one of the few games I've ever installed mods for, most of which upped the difficulty.
Over the years, Squad (and later Take Two) have added most of the features I wanted, with the sole exception of the need to consider life support requirements, and "Kerbal Construction Time". As I result, I pretty much install the visual enhancement mod EVE these days, just so I can get some clouds in Kerbin's sky, alongside the Navball Alignment Indicator mod and the Waypoint Manager mod.
I spent more time than was strictly necessary debating on what my base difficulty level should be for a career game. My instincts say I should set it hard, and then add back in the quick-loading options so I can "simulate" rockets without having to install the simulation companion mod of Kerbal Construction Time. My experience tells me that this ends up being extremely grindy, so in the end, I went with Medium difficulty with all the optional bells and whistles turned on.
If I want to use probes, I'd need to set up a communications network first... or send a Kerbal pilot.
The first rocket launched in campaign mode is always the same, extremely basic one.
With that mission under my belt, and some mire science unlocked, I decided to see how many "low altitude" missions were available... after I cleared up the "on landing pad" test missions. Easy money is easy money, after all, and each completed mission generates a new one.
As always, I made sure that the waypoints I needed to visit are near the Kerbal Space Center.
While KSP doesn't have the most realistic flight sim in existence, it's still pretty good, so I like to build, and then fly, "space" planes from time to time. I don't have unlimited time, unfortunately, so I can only indulge in this if they're close enough to home.
After cleaning up a few more, I saw two test missions that hopefully had good synergy, and would give me enough cash to improve one of the following:
- the Astronaut Training Complex - which is needed for space walks and other EVA activities
- Mission Control - to be able to take up to seven contracts, and needed to unlock maneuver nodes
- the Tracking Station - which is also needed to unlock maneuver nodes, plus additional flight information
I managed to complete the first mission, but sadly I didn't have enough drogue chutes to slow the capsule down to fulfil the second one. Luckily, the new mission that unlocked was an engine test at the launch site, so I ended up upgrading the astronaut complex first, so I could do EVAs for the Science!
Speaking of which, by nabbing as much science as I could from the two runways I have access to, I unlocked the fourth tier science node, which in turn produced even more science!
I designed a rocket that should, on paper at least, get me up to the right altitude for the test.
Atmospheric drag left me a few hundred meters short of the target altitude, so I bumped up the fuel a notch.
This got me to the correct altitude for the test. There was much applause at mission control!
I now had enough science to finish unlocking the second and most of the third, so I accepted the “Leave Kerbin’s” atmosphere mission, and designed a rocket that should get Jeb into space, if not into orbit.
Out in space, Jeb gathered as much science as he could…
… before gravity pulled the capsule back down. This yielded enough science to unlock the “orbital” liquid fuel engine,the basic plane parts, plus one other.
The upper node gives a wealth of construction parts, including a passenger cabin which is useful for tourist missions. The lower node provides some control options, plus the two-seater “Pea” Pod.
I also have two high altitude observation missions I can use to pay for low and upper atmosphere tests.
Decisions, decisions…
Practical Rockets
Round Fifteen
Sessions Six
Now with More Kerbals!
Sometimes, life gives you just enough play time to build and launch a single rocket...
At any rate, having had time to reflect on what I wanted to do, I elected for the general construction node. I would be running those two nearby high altitude observation missions, so I should get enough science to unlock the other node as well. Those launch clamps in particular are too dang useful to ignore for long. An unsteady rocket on the launch pad could cost hundreds of meters of delta-V when you're aiming for an equatorial orbit!
Next, I accepted the mission which would send Jeb over the water.
Over the years, I’ve developed several templates for “low tech” launches. Adding a utility bay and heat shield to the single-seat capsule allows me to recover their contents while keeping the reentry vehicle stable during descent. Frequently, it’s the capsule and the bay's contents that’s the most expensive part of a rocket, frequently accounting for at least half the cost, and recovering it helps keep costs down.
In this case, the only payload is the science container. But you can cram a lot of stuff into that tiny space, like solar panels, antenna, and other science instruments.
The rocket itself is a two stage one: the lower a solid fuel rocket to get it above the densest air, and the upper to push the entire thing over the observation site. Two material science bays will get the lower and upper atmospheric science that's available. Sadly, there's no way to recover them at this time, so I'll just have to absorb the cost.
After everything was set up to my liking, all that remained was to launch the rocket.
Once I'd unlocked the Flight Control tech node, it was time to see what new mission was available...
This mission should be possible to do using a plane, but I might be able fulfil it during the second observational mission.
Next up... completing the observation missions, and hopefully getting a rocket into orbit. After that, it's time to start rebuilding my jump ship in Space Engineers!
Round Fifteen
Sessions Six
Now with More Kerbals!
Sometimes, life gives you just enough play time to build and launch a single rocket...
At any rate, having had time to reflect on what I wanted to do, I elected for the general construction node. I would be running those two nearby high altitude observation missions, so I should get enough science to unlock the other node as well. Those launch clamps in particular are too dang useful to ignore for long. An unsteady rocket on the launch pad could cost hundreds of meters of delta-V when you're aiming for an equatorial orbit!
Next, I accepted the mission which would send Jeb over the water.
Over the years, I’ve developed several templates for “low tech” launches. Adding a utility bay and heat shield to the single-seat capsule allows me to recover their contents while keeping the reentry vehicle stable during descent. Frequently, it’s the capsule and the bay's contents that’s the most expensive part of a rocket, frequently accounting for at least half the cost, and recovering it helps keep costs down.
In this case, the only payload is the science container. But you can cram a lot of stuff into that tiny space, like solar panels, antenna, and other science instruments.
The rocket itself is a two stage one: the lower a solid fuel rocket to get it above the densest air, and the upper to push the entire thing over the observation site. Two material science bays will get the lower and upper atmospheric science that's available. Sadly, there's no way to recover them at this time, so I'll just have to absorb the cost.
After everything was set up to my liking, all that remained was to launch the rocket.
Just raw footage of the mission, no time add text commentary...
Source: https://youtu.be/tY30lgyyY3M
Once I'd unlocked the Flight Control tech node, it was time to see what new mission was available...
This mission should be possible to do using a plane, but I might be able fulfil it during the second observational mission.
Next up... completing the observation missions, and hopefully getting a rocket into orbit. After that, it's time to start rebuilding my jump ship in Space Engineers!
Do you know a good sattellite mod? It's years now but I had one that mapped the surface and features. It taught me why a polar orbit is useful. It kinda got discontinued and the idea was so good it got basic feature in KSP but it is crude and janky imo. I want higher resolution - especially now that you taught me the secret to the perfect landing burn.Practical Rockets
Round Fifteen
Sessions Six
Now with More Kerbals!
Sometimes, life gives you just enough play time to build and launch a single rocket...
At any rate, having had time to reflect on what I wanted to do, I elected for the general construction node. I would be running those two nearby high altitude observation missions, so I should get enough science to unlock the other node as well. Those launch clamps in particular are too dang useful to ignore for long. An unsteady rocket on the launch pad could cost hundreds of meters of delta-V when you're aiming for an equatorial orbit!
Next, I accepted the mission which would send Jeb over the water.
Over the years, I’ve developed several templates for “low tech” launches. Adding a utility bay and heat shield to the single-seat capsule allows me to recover their contents while keeping the reentry vehicle stable during descent. Frequently, it’s the capsule and the bay's contents that’s the most expensive part of a rocket, frequently accounting for at least half the cost, and recovering it helps keep costs down.
In this case, the only payload is the science container. But you can cram a lot of stuff into that tiny space, like solar panels, antenna, and other science instruments.
The rocket itself is a two stage one: the lower a solid fuel rocket to get it above the densest air, and the upper to push the entire thing over the observation site. Two material science bays will get the lower and upper atmospheric science that's available. Sadly, there's no way to recover them at this time, so I'll just have to absorb the cost.
After everything was set up to my liking, all that remained was to launch the rocket.
Just raw footage of the mission, no time add text commentary...
Source: https://youtu.be/tY30lgyyY3M
Once I'd unlocked the Flight Control tech node, it was time to see what new mission was available...
This mission should be possible to do using a plane, but I might be able fulfil it during the second observational mission.
Next up... completing the observation missions, and hopefully getting a rocket into orbit. After that, it's time to start rebuilding my jump ship in Space Engineers!
The only one I can think of is SCANsat, which hadn’t been updated in years, near as I can tell…