The scope of testing also covers the type of testing one needs to do like load testing, stress testing, for load and stress how many users test one is going to simulate. also what hardware it is going to use. if requred one can also provide the schedule and what are elimiated in the testing, how many test cycle what is bug reporting and fixing work flow. etc.
Define and baseline build release plan to QA from dev. and so on Test plan should be what you are really addressing in the testing phase.
RTM as it is called is a important document which has trace from requirement to testing. The importance is that if during testing any bug is reported and thE developer needs to fix it and he makes certain changes to the code which leads to change in design then there should be a document which shows the dependencies clearly. RTM is used to trace requirements elements mapped to design elements which in turn are mapped to Code and their test cases. this gives complete coverage of the application.
Test plan is the one of the most important document that is required by testing team before actual testing begins. It is generally prepared by QA Manager/ Test Manager. This doc is prepared immediately after the requirement gathering phase is over. This doc includes various artifacts as: Testing Strategy Testing scope Testing environment Testing schedules QA Deliverables Out of scope testing Resource allocation Testing Task distribution Contact points for various modules etc....
