BATTLEGROUP III REPORT #15

April 2, 2025
AD Locke Setzer

Introduction

Imperial Storm VII is complete! I'm quite pleased with how battlegroup did for this fleetwide competition, so let's take one last victory lap on that event before we move on to other happenings throughout this battlegroup and the fleet!

Battlegroup News and Competitions

Imperial Storm VII Retrospective - Battlegroup III

Another Imperial Storm is in the books! This past Imperial Storm was definitely a change, both from a story perspective (introducing the First Order) and in how it was run (our fleets vs. a game master as opposed to another player opponent). There will likely be further announcements and discussions from the Warfare Office and elsewhere... but I'd like to take a little time in this space to recap Battlegroup III's performance, and give a shout-out to a few of our pilots in particular.

Most notably, Battlegroup III...

• First Order Maxima Class Heavy Cruiser (proposed name WyldeFyre)
• First Order Frigate (proposed name Natth)
• First Order Light Cruiser (proposed name Cloudburst)
• First Order Light Cruiser (proposed name Monastery)
• Resurgent Class Star Destroyer (proposed name pending)

• Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast*
• Typhoon Squadron's MAJ Jagged Fell III*
• Firebird Squadron's GN Master*
• Typhoon Squadron's CPT Anthony Starr
• Firebird Squadron's Hector Von Ricmore
• Eagle Squadron's CM Armon Ferro

* indicates pilot also flew every SP mission

Ultimately, thanks to every pilot that participated in this year's Imperial Storm and helped contribute to our performance as a battlegroup! Your effort was greatly appreciated, and the impact of your contributions in this conflict will be felt for years to come...

Applications Open for Scorpion Squadron Commander

After nine months of service as Squadron Commander of Scorpion, GN Jarek La'an has decided to step aside. As a result, applications are now open for Scorpion Squadron Commander!

Applicants are expected to have completed Squadron Management 6 (or any of its earlier versions), achieved at minimum the rank of Lieutenant Commander, and be willing and ready to take up the administrative work of running a squadron - including completing Monthly Squadron Evaluations, submitting medal recommendations, promotion recommendations, and more.

Interested applications should reach out to myself via Discord (LockeSetzer) or email (locke.f.setzer@gmail.com). Please include current Scorpion commander GN Jarek La'an in these initial communications as well (rlaan on Discord, thisisquitealongaddress@yahoo.com for email).

On a personal note, I'd like to extend my thanks and gratitude to GN Jarek La'an, who stepped up to help out at a time when it was desperately needed, and has gone on to serve longer than he initially promised. I've enjoyed seeing this new iteration of Scorpion grow under its first commander, and look forward to seeing what it does under it's next leader!

Competition Status - 2025 Trivia for the Challenged - Season 1

Now that Imperial Storm is done, Trivia for the Challenged is back! We'll wrap up this season with a final month of trivia. As a quick recap, every Monday, a new set of four trivia questions will be posted on the #bg3-competitions-announcements channel on the Discord server, with topics ranging from anything from Star Wars proper to people and places in the Emperor's Hammer! Questions remain open for one week.

This week's trivia can be found here and will run through end of day (EH/UTC time), April 6th, 2025.

For more information about this competition, please view the competition listing for this season here.

Battlegroup III Monthly Awards for March 2025

For the Battlegroup III monthly awards in March, congrats to the following:

• For Battlegroup III Squadron of the Month for March 2025, congrats to Typhoon Squadron! Typhoon was both the Battlegroup III squadron with the most points earned during Imperial Storm as well as the most participation, making this an easy choice! Congrats!
• For Battlegroup III Pilot of the Month for March 2025, congrats to Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast! LCM JKast had the most points overall for any pilot in Battlegroup III for Imperial Storm, and was our highest scorer for most battles! Congrats!
• For Battlegroup III Leader of the Month for March 2025, congrats to Typhoon Squadron's MAJ Jagged Fell III! Considering the above, MAJ Jagged Fell III has a lot to be proud of, but he always was a driving force behind-the-scenes towards making the Imperial Storm custom missions a reality, and I'd like to acknowledge that leadership performance here as well. Congrats!

TIE Corps News and Competitions

Competition Reminder - TIE Corps in Battle Season 8 Continues!

Season 8 of TIE Corps in Battle draws to a close! For the last three months, the Warfare Office has selected one battle for TIE, XvT, XWA and TFTC, with each member of the TIE Corps challenged to fly those battles and earn the best score possible for your squadron! We now come to the final month of TIE Corps in Battle for Season 8!

As a quick overview on the rules - the pilot with the highest score each month in each platform will earn 9 points. The next highest score will earn 8, then 7, and so on. All submissions will earn at least 2 points (participation matters!!). Any mission high scores will earn 1 bonus point and any battle high scores will earn 2 bonus points.

The points earned by each pilot will add to their squadron's total and their battlegroup's total. At the end of the season, the participants from top three squadrons and the top battlegroup earn awards. Additionally the top overall pilot will receive the title TIE Corps Battlemaster.

For the month of April, the battles selected are...

• TIE-TC #38: Deepspace Syndicate
• XvT-TC #59: Cosmetic Wars!
• XWA-TC #70: Anti-Rogue Squadron: Battle for Borleias
• TFTC-TC #4: Typhoon Squadron's Day-Off: Part 2

I'll be sharing tricks and tips for each battle this season over in #bg3-tcib-season-8 channel on the Discord server. Feel free to jump in and join the discussion!

For more information, please review the competition listing. Good luck!

Competition Reminder - Fly Straight Down the Middle

Our own MAJ Jagged Fell III is running a competition that seeks to find the most middle-of-the-road pilot in the TIE Corps! What does that mean? Well, it's all about being average!

Every week, a free mission will be selected, and all pilots will be challenged to perform as average as possible. All submissions in a given week will be averaged. The pilot with the score closest to the mean will be the winner for that week. You can use whatever difficulty you want, whatever cheats you want... just remember you're shooting to be middle of the pack, based on all of your other competitors...

Free missions will rotate between TIE, XvT, XWA, and a random selection (which includes TFTC). All missions selected will be patch-free.

Awards will be handed out weekly for the best (average-est?) performer. Monthly awards will also be given, based on total average for the entire month. Finally, the most average pilot for the entire competition will be awarded an IS-PW and the title of "Most Average TIE Corps Pilot".

Competition has been running for a month now, but it's not too late to join in! This week's mission is TIE-FREE #186: Another Day Another Dogfight.

Each week runs from Friday through Thursday, meaning a screenshot of your completed BSF must be turned into MAJ Jagged Fell III by end of day each Thursday (23:59 EH time, or 7:59 EDF).

Competition continues to run through June 27th, 2025. For more information, please view the competition listing

Good luck!

Competition Announcement - TIE Corps needs YOU!

The Reconnaissance Office has launched a competition for the next month looking for propaganda posters intended to "glorify our cause and intimidate our enemies".

You may use whatever methods you deem best to create your propaganda posters, with the exception of AI generated images.

Pilots may submit up to two submissions. Images should be in PNG or JPEG format and may not exceed dimensions of 3000 x 3000 pixels.

Iron Stars will be awarded to the top four finalists. Additionally, an ORA will be awarded to any pilot who submits two entries.

Submissions should be sent to RA Jai Thorne via Discord (fanta_zero) or email (ehjaithorne@gmail.com). For more information, please view the competition listing.

Competition Results - Battlegroup III Highlights

Let's take a moment to highlight members of Battlegroup III that placed in various fleet competitions this past month!

• For the Stratagem Hero Online competition, congrats to Eagle Squadron's CPT Xylo Pethtel (2nd) and Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast (6th) on placing in the top eight!
• For the IU Banner Competition Results, congrats to Tempest Squadron's COL Mordred on scoring fifth and tenth place!
• For the Fly Straight Down the Middle Competition, congrats to Typhoon Squadron's MAJ Jagged Fell III and CPT Anthony Starr on being the top two most "average" pilots for the month of March!
• For SP Ace of the TIE Corps...
  • Congrats to Typhoon Squadron's CPT Anthony Starr (2nd), LCM JKast (7th), and MAJ Jagged Fell III (9th), as well as myself (6th) on placing in the top ten for the month of February 2025!
  • Congrats to Typhoon Squadron's CPT Anthony Starr (2nd), LCM JKast (4th), and MAJ Jagged Fell III (tied for 6th), as well as myself (tied for 6th) on placing in the top ten for the month of March 2025!
• For PvP Ace of the TIE Corps...
  • Congrats to Firebird Squadron's LT Yuria Vanagandr (3rd) and Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast (4th) for placing in the top ten for the month of February 2025!
  • Congrats to Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast (6th) and Scorpion Squadron's GN Jarek La'an (8th) for placing in the top ten for the month of March 2025!
• For PvE Ace of the TIE Corps...
  • Congrats to Eagle Squadron's CM Armon Ferro (4th) on placing in the top ten for the month of February 2025!
  • Congrats to Typhoon Squadron's LCM JKast (6th), Eagle Squadron's CM Armon Ferro (7th), Firebird Squadron's CM Hector Von Ricmore (8th), and myself (10th) on placing in the top ten for the month of March 2025!

Competition Reminder - SWTOR Conquest 2: The Search for More Conquest, Season 6

A new season of SWTOR Conquest 2: The Search for More Conquest has begun!

As a quick reminder, this competition is all about SWTOR players earning conquest points while being a member of one of the Emperor's Hammers guilds! The official guilds are on the Star Forge server ("Emperor's Hammer" for the Sith Empire and "Infiltrator Wing" for the Republic). Each week, the top three pilots in each faction that earn the most conquest points are awarded Iron Stars and "placement points", with placement points being used to determine monthly awards, as well as final standings for season awards and the title of Legacy Conquest Champion! Additionally, an ORA is given (up to two, one for each guild) for every pilot that earns over 100,000 conquest points.

This season runs from now through April 29, 2025. If you're a SWTOR player, I recommend reviewing the competition details for more information! Please reach out if you have any questions!

Competition Reminder - Ace of the TIE Corps 2025: Season 1

The first season of this year's Ace of the TIE Corps event is coming to a close!

As a quick reminder, for Ace of the TIE Corps, Iron Stars are awarded to the top fifteen pilots who earn the most points in each category (SP, PvP, and PvE). Points are determined by platform used for completing missions (SP) or winning matches (PvE,PvP).

For more information on points per platform and awards, please view the following competition listings:

• SP Ace of the TIE Corps 2025 - Season One
• PvP Ace of the TIE Corps 2025 - Season One
• PvE Ace of the TIE Corps 2025 - Season One

Season 1 will end this month, on April 30th, 2025. Best of luck to all our pilots this season!

Battlegroup III Awards and Stats for March 2025

Battlegroup III Monthly Stats for March 2025

Stats of the Month:

• PvE was again the most popular activity type by both number of participants and total matches submitted.
• Helldivers 2, TIE Fighter, X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter, and X-Wing Alliance were all tied for most popular platform by participants.
• Star Wars Hunters (followed closely by Helldivers 2) had the most submitted matches.
• Platforms used this month (from most unique pilots to least) included TIE Fighter, Helldivers 2, X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter, X-Wing Alliance, TIE Fighter Total Conversion, Star Wars Hunters, Star Conflict, EA Battlefront II, Star Wars Squadrons, TIE FIghter, EA Battlefront II, Balance of Power, and The Old Republic.

Battlegroup III Promotions in March 2025

Congrats to the following officers!

	CM Hector Von Ricmore - Promotion to Commander
	LCM Thalios - Promotion to Lieutenant Commander
	LT Alerius - Promotion to Lieutenant
	LT Ferris Madine - Promotion to Lieutenant
	LT Superpak - Promotion to Lieutenant

Battlegroup III Awards in March 2025

AD Locke Setzer	(36) (89)
MAJ Jagged Fell III	(2) (4) (3) (2) (8)
CPT Anthony Starr	(2)
LCM Alun Tringad
LT Artanno Lach'Beria
GN Triji Boliv
MAJ Prost Varsis	(2)
CM Kieran Yoyo
LCM JKast	(3) (2) (77) (157)
LCM Marlore Julren
LCM ScottyTheGeo
COL Mordred
LT Ferris Madine	(5) (3)
CM Therj'en'nuruodo
GN Jarek La'an	(35) (8)
GN Stryker	(2)
LT Superpak
LCM Thalios	(10) (25)
LCM Evil_Edgar	(2)
GN Master	(4)
CPT Turel	(4)
LT Yuria Vanagandr
CM Hector Von Ricmore	(101)
COL Miles Prower
LT digitalviking	(20)
CM Armon Ferro	(130)
CPT Xylo Pethtel	(15)

Conclusion

As always, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions about things going on in Battlegroup III, the TIE Corps, or anything else. My email is locke.f.setzer@gmail.com and my Discord name is LockeSetzer. My door is always open!

In Service,

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