Tactical Manual: From submission to release

Introduction

In the early years of the Emperor's Hammer, all submitted battles were immediately released by adding them to EH Newsletter. Mission creation was very poor and often the only way to do it was to use a hex editing tool. However, with the evolution of the EH and creation of the Mission Compendium, the Tactical Office had to develop better ways to check new submissions and eventually correct them. That's how the beta testing process was initiated. Unfortunately, many of the older battles still suffer from design flaws that would have not allowed them to be released today.

Beta Testing Procedure

When you submit your battle to the Tactical Officer, it will be initially reviewed to see that the basic standards have been met. This means all the required files and information must be present. If the battle is missing either, the Tactical Officer will notify you of the problems and require you to resubmit the battle again once the problems have been fixed. Make sure to follow the submission procedures or your submission will be simply rejected.

Battles are processed in the order they are submitted. When a battle's turn is up, and if the first check passes, the battle will be sent for testing. Different Tactical Surveyors (TCS) will be assigned to test-fly the battle and submit a report on problems experienced. Usually, a TCS is assigned for each of the three difficulty settings. Such an assignment can vary in length, but could usually goes between one and three weeks.

The first step though is initial testing that is performed either by the Tactical Officer or one of the Tactical Officer Assistants, normally as a part of the Medium Difficulty testing. If the battle does not have any fatal errors found in this initial test, it will then be assigned to two additional Tactical Surveyors to test the other difficulties.

After all three tests are completed, the Tactical Officer will compile the beta reports and send them back to the original mission creator for any needed corrections that have been identified.

Once the battle has been corrected, the Tactical Officer will perform a final check by flying the battle to make sure all the reported problems were fixed and that the battle plays properly. Finally, the completed battle will become official, added to the Mission Compendium, and the author will receive the appropriate award(s) for creating the battle by the Tactical Officer and the Tactical Staff will receive credits for playtesting (battle added to their combat profile).

TAC staff regulations

There are several regulations in place that serve as rules and guidelines for all testers and engineers.

Tactical Surveyor (TCS)

• When new battles are submitted, you will receive a battle to test. You are also provided with the difficulty level on which you are to test the battle. Unless noted otherwise , you will have two weeks to complete your testing. Once tested, you will submit your beta test report to the Tactical Officer.
• If for any reason you cannot test it for the deadline, you must notify the Tactical Officer or you will be marked with an unexcused miss. Several unexcused misses may get you removed from the TAC Office staff.
• Tactical Surveyors must have passed the Mission Creation and Beta Testing Standards (MCBS) course at the Imperial Academy.
• Tactical Surveyors are not required to pass the appropriate mission creation course, but it is strongly recommended, as it gives a better knowledge of the way a battle works, and will improve the quality and precision of your beta reports.
• Play on your assigned difficulty level. If needed, you are allowed to use "cheats" like invulnerability, unlimited ammunition or unlimited waves, but mention this in your report. If you are still unable to complete, switch to a lower difficulty. Be sure to mention this in your report. If you are still unable to complete a mission on the Easy setting, skip the mission. Again, make a note of this in your report.
• Make sure you also lose the mission (quit the game right after starting) to view the failed mission debriefings.
• In TIE Fighter, try to complete the secondary goals as well, so you can see the goals completed debriefing (when applicable).
• If you encounter problems that make the battle unplayable (corrupt archive, unreadable battle file or mission files, etc), inform the Tactical Officer immediately. In case of a corrupt battle file, you can create a battle file yourself and continue testing, but be sure to report it.
• If the battle you play is added to the Mission Compendium, you will earn FCHG credit for completing it, and the battle will be added to your Combat Record, but you may not use your Beta Testing pilot file to turn in a high score. You must play the official distribution version of the battle to achieve a high score.
• Make sure you are testflying the battle on an unmodified version of the game (with the exception of official LucasArts fixes, the EHSP and any battle specific EH patches).
• Do not play battles that have been rejected! If the Tactical Officer sends a notice saying a battle has been prematurely rejected for a reason, you may not continue testing it.
• Grammatical errors and misspellings should be noted on reports. The same goes for text running off the screen. Be sure to be specific when reporting these types of errors.
• Check for appropriate content. This includes checking for anything that might violate EH Bylaws or EH Articles of War, or if you feel in some way that the battle is not Emperor's Hammer related. Battles should be suitable for pilots of all ages. If you feel something is offensive or inappropriate, state it in your report as to why. The Tactical Officer will make a final judgment call on the appropriateness after viewing the reports. This includes to text where the author has self-censored his text by bleeping out letters. please note that racial slurs common in the Star Wars universe are allowed!
• Be sure your report comments to say something about the mission (and particularly, something specific you liked/disliked about it).
• Excessive wait times are classified as bugs and should be reported as such. You may choose to skip the mission if excessive waiting is involved.
• If you are accidentally assigned to test a battle that you made yourself, notify the Tactical Officer so it can be reassigned.

Note: in the past, the TAC Office also had Tacticians, Tactical Coordinators, and Tactical Head Coordinators. these positions are currently no longer in service. They can be brought back if need be.

Applications

When new openings are available for TAC Office positions, the Tactical Officer will announce open applications in TIE Corps News, the TAC Office reports, and Discord, including how to apply. Those who have some skills in mission creation and passed the appropriate mission creation courses have a significantly better chance of becoming testers, even if they apply for a Tactical Surveyor position. All Tacticians are required to pass the appropriate mission creation course from IWATS, Tactical Surveyors are strongly recommended to do so.

Beta Testing is a huge commitment, and the rewards of beta testing are great. Merit medals are awarded depending on how many battles pilots has tested or corrected, FCHG points are awarded for test-flying once the battles are officially released, and Medals of Tactics are handled for bug fixes.

At any point can you submit an open application to the Tactical Officer, but you are not guaranteed a position.