I'm using tla-buildpackage and maintaining my packages using it.

With one of them i got a star-merge with the branch containing original sources not workign correctly. This branch has got new patch when a new upstream version is released and the package branch then is upgraded using star-merge.

Here follows the problem :
[duck@Annael ircd-ptlink-6.18.0]$ tla star-merge ircd-ptlink--head--1.0

• build reference tree for duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-7
• from import revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--base-0
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-1
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-2
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-3
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-4
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-5
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-6
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-7
• star-merge by delta(duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-6,duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-7)[/usr/src/packaging/TBP/+packages/ircd-ptlink/ircd-ptlink-6.18.0]
• build reference tree for duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-6
• from import revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--base-0
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-1
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-2
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-3
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-4
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-5
• patching for revision: duck@duckcorp.org--debian/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0--patch-6
• applying changeset

D   src/.arch-ids/ssl.rnd.id
D   src/ssl.rnd
A   {arch}/ircd-ptlink/ircd-ptlink--head/ircd-ptlink--head--1.0/duck@duckcorp.org--debian/patch-log/patch-7
?M  include/s_conf.h
?M  src/m_rehash.c
?M  src/m_unkline.c

Then i tried this :
[duck@Annael ircd-ptlink-6.18.0]$ patch -p1 <++patches-missing-files.0/include/s_conf.h.patch
patching file include/s_conf.h
[duck@Annael ircd-ptlink-6.18.0]$ patch -p1 <++patches-missing-files.0/src/m_rehash.c.patch
patching file src/m_rehash.c
[duck@Annael ircd-ptlink-6.18.0]$ patch -p1 <++patches-missing-files.0/src/m_unkline.c.patch
patching file src/m_unkline.c

As u can see manual patching is working perfectly.
This bug now appears each time i'm upgrading with the branch with original sources.

Thx for ur work