The Essential Guide to Warfare

The Essential Guide to Warfare is the title of a third-generation Essential Guide written by Jason Fry and Paul R. Urquhart, and published by Del Rey.

Publisher's summary
THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO THE ULTIMATE INTERGALACTIC BATTLEFIELD

Like many a great epic, Star Wars'' is rooted in a rich history of armed conflict. Now, for the first time, the facts, figures, and fascinating backstories of major clashes and combatants in the vast Star Wars universe have been documented in one fully illustrated volume. Extensively researched and inventively written, Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Warfare combines action-filled narrative with encyclopedic knowledge that''
 * EXPLORES NOTABLE MILITARY UNITS AND GROUPS
 * TRACES THE DEVELOPMENT OF SIGNIFICANT ARMAMENTS AND TECHNOLOGIES
 * PROFILES KEY WARSHIP CLASSES, GROUND UNITS, AND MANUFACTURERS
 * PROVIDES CAPSULE BIOGRAPHIES OF GREAT MILITARY LEADERS
 * PRESENTS EYEWITNESS TROOPERS' ACCOUNTS OF COMBAT
 * PLUS-ENOUGH ADDITIONAL PROFILES, INTEL, HISTORY, AND LORE TO SPAN THE COSMOS!

Encompassing all the Star Wars media, including the legendary films, the hit TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the bestselling books, comics, and videogames, and packed with original full-color artwork, Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Warfare is a conquering achievement.

Development
The book was first announced as The Essential Guide to the Star Wars Military by Karen Traviss on her website on August 5, 2008. Traviss later decided to end her Star Wars writing days with Imperial Commando: 501st. Sue Rostoni confirmed in August 2009 that The Essential Guide to the Star Wars Military was to be written by a different author. In May 2010, Rostoni released a publishing calendar that showed the newly retitled Essential Guide to Warfare with a June 2011 release date. In January 2011, Rostoni announced that the release date had been pushed back to March 20, 2012; however, in August 2011, the date was again pushed back to May 22, 2012. In December 2011, what would be the actual release date of April 3, 2012 was announced.

Back before the book was finished, author Jason Fry had mentioned details from the on-going drafts on TheForce.Net's Literature discussion boards. "All plans are subject to change, and I routinely append "as drafted" to anything I say about works in progress, but some of the recurring features envisioned for WARFARE include soldier's stories (which won't be all first-person—the one for the Zhell/Taungs conflict has a Gilgamesh feel); portraits of great war leaders; discussions of key technologies, ships, weapons and military units; and lessons/overviews of key battles."

Specific topics in preview drafts included: 13 new Ordnance/Regional Depots, working out warship classification systems. Additional references to the Militarists, the Iotran Guard, Corellian Engineering, the bounty hunter D'harhan, the Hutts, the Mandalorians, the Waymancy Storm, the Judicial Forces, the Planetary Security Forces, the Republic Navy, the Grand Army of the Republic, Coruscant, Anaxes, Irmenu and Rendili StarDrive. An encounter between Panaka and Leia at Hosk Station in 5 ABY. Info on war propagandists Ryloth Resa and the Byblos geneticist Ull Haber. The drafts also showed material being worked out for the Sector Rangers. Marvel-related material was to be included, like Cinda Tarheel and Barlon Hightower being added to a key battle roster, and Admiral Giel's flagship (with name and class). The drafts also had material related to the Dark Empire comic books, the Pius Dea crusades, Celestials vs. the Rakata and the war between the Taung and the Zhell on Coruscant.

At Celebration V, the book was also announced to contain a duty roster of Red Squadron at the time of the Battle of Yavin, a similar roster for Rogue Squadron at the Battle of Hoth, profiles of key conflicts and military leaders, more information on the Rishi Maze and the Unknown Regions hyperspace barrier, and 1st-person "Soldier's Stories" accounts by frontline troops.

Del Rey's preview gallery on Facebook included images depicting Dark troopers, a World Devastator, a battle between Rakata and Killiks, a Rebel fleet battling an Imperial fleet, a Clone Wars-era Galactic Republic weapons factory, Tionese spaceships, Hutt warship sketches, a Wookiee Owool Interceptor sketch, an Imperial recruiting poster featuring Shea Hublin, a battle featuring Taungs, several pictures of the Millennium Falcon, one set during the Battle of Kashyyyk in 40 ABY, the title page spread showing the Battle of Coruscant in 19 BBY and an Imperial Altor-class replenishment ship refueling a dreadnaught and battlecruiser.

In addition to the aforementioned ships, Lucasfilm Licensing also utilized some fanon artwork created by Ansel Hsiao when writing the guide. When approached by Lucasfilm Licensing to provide artwork for The Essential Guide to Warfare, Hsiao submitted his own designs in addition to new models, along with their names. These designs included the Assertor-class Star Dreadnought (as well as the specific ship within that class, Wrath), the Bellator-class dreadnought, the Allegiance-class battlecruiser, the Secutor-class Star Destroyer, the Procursator-class Star Destroyer, the Altor-class replenishment ship, the Vigil-class corvette, and the Naval Station Validusia. In addition to the ships and images made by Hsiao, at least one Tommy Lee Edwards artwork also incorporated artwork by Hsiao, more specifically the image of Captain Firmus Piett and Admiral Kendal Ozzel observing a gathering fleet incorporated into the background Hsiao's artwork "Strategic Reserves." The names were recorded in LFL's Holocron continuity database, according to the artist.

Beginning in September 2013, Fry and Del Rey editor Erich Schoeneweiss released a twelve-part series on the Star Wars Blog introducing sections that had been cut from the final publication.