Hi all. I'm new to Salesforce but I'm picking it up very quickly and want to get started by building my first app. I want to use the challenge I have at work right now as a basis for my project. I could use your input as to what I'm going to need. I'd prefer to use Lightning builder only for start and leave Apex for later until I have a better grasp on what is and isn't possible with Lightning. This project will be for practice only and will not be used in real-world (my company doesn't even use Salesforce). 

Here's the real-world issue I'm facing at work.
My company is going through a major system upgrade and my job is to test test test to ensure operations will be able to do their job after we go live. To keep track of my tests, I created a test plan in Excel and that's been my only tool. There are certain limitations I've found with Excel though which get on my nerves. Specifically, 
1. I repeat tests. It's difficult to count how many tests are done and not done.
2. I skip tests. I don't do them all in the order they're written. This results in chaotic sheets.
3. It's extremely difficult to measure big picture results/performance. I thought to use formulas and VBA but once I understood the complexity it would involve, I decided it wasn't worth the time - it's easier to count it all manually (we're talking about 15 sheets, 50-200 rows each, not a simple task).

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Here's what I have as a starting point to building an app that would replace my Excel test plan and allow tracking performance building reports, etc.

Objects needed:
CASE, TEST, ISSUE, TESTED ON (I'm unsure if I'll need this object or somehow make it part of TEST), maybe VERSION

CASE fields:

• CaseName
• Category (picklist)
• CaseNumber
• Steps to reproduce (rich text area)
• Expected result (rich text area)
• CaseStatus (picklist)
• Existing issues: Related to ISSUE - link.
• Tests performed: Related to TEST - link.

Needed: I need logic here to what test values are appropriate for each case - this would be multiple fields. Which fields are needed depends on what type of case this is. Do I have to create a separate CASE object for the type of fields needed or is there a different way?

TESTED ON fields (not sure if object or part of TEST)

• Version
• Environment
• Date (prefill to today’s date - ok to modify)

Needed: I'd love some logic which would make this semi-automated (that's why I'm considering if it should be a separate object). I'd like to fill out these fields once and have them stay filled in as is for each TEST until I change them. 

TEST fields:

• Inherit from CASE - all info - read only.
• Inherit from TESTED ON - all info - ok to modify.
• TestNumber
• Test Values (multiple fields - if I can build logic into CASE, it would be ideal)
• ActualResult (rich text area)
• TestResult (picklist)
• Notes (rich text area)
• IssueReported: related to ISSUE - link

ISSUE fields:

• Name 
• Priority (picklist)
• IssueStatus (picklist)
• IssueNumber 
• ConfluenceNumber (text)
• Impact (rich text area)
• Notes (rich text area)
• Related to: CASE #s and TEST #s - links

Inherit from CASE (read only):

• CaseName
• Category
• StepsToReproduce
• ExpectedResult

Inherit from TEST (read only):

• ActualResult
• Version
• Date

Desired App Logic:

1. Maintaining Cases - add/edit and clone functionalities. Not allowed to delete if it’s related to an Issue.
2. App for performing Tests - Make it easy to pick a case to test. Have some logic to suggest what case should be tested next. Also, need logic for starting tests over (when there's a new version out). Do I need a separate object for this? VERSION object? Need to think this over further - I could use your input. Basically, when a new version comes out, I have to start tests over. I need to track which cases are done and which are left to do and when there's a new version, I have to start with a clean slate. 
3. Reports and dashboards. Testing progress - % of cases tested, % of failure. Issue status tracking.