“If you want to live in a galaxy where bandits reign supreme, a galaxy where the Federation flounders, where Klingons cower, and Romulans run in fear, then join me. Join the Venari Ral.”
The U.S.S. Athena continues its search for a way back to the 32nd century as tensions rise with Deidamia and her Independent allies. The crew undertakes a dangerous mission to steal critical ship parts that may be their only hope. Meanwhile, the Venari Ral invade Academy Space, forcing the Athena into battle and expanding Duo Wave Defense training as cadets prepare for the growing conflict.
Watch the full video here.
What’s in Update 91: Starfleet Academy Part 2
- A New Ship: The U.S.S. Athena
- A New Expansion to Duo Wave Defense and Academy Space
- New Additions to the Academy Refinery
- New Officers
- A New Research Tree
- An Extension to the Independent Archive and a New Ship: the NX-01
- A New Battle Pass and Mid-Ops Battle Pass
- And more!
Academy Drone Adjustments
Following player feedback, the team is making adjustments to the Academy Training Drone experience in Update 91, significantly reducing their shields and hull health and increasing the impact that Critical Mitigation has at lower levels. These changes are aimed at improving accessibility and progression for G6 players while making Academy Space and Duo Wave Defense more manageable overall.
The goal of these adjustments is to make Academy content more approachable without removing the strategic gameplay tied to hostile abilities, Critical Mitigation, and Duo Wave Defense coordination. These adjustments protect any existing Critical Mitigation investments.
Players who invested into upgrading the Remote Campus should see better performance when dealing with the Academy Training Drones relative to Update 90. The update will also increase the value of Critical Mitigation investments, giving players who upgraded their Remote Campus stronger benefits during Academy Space encounters.
Missions (Ops61+)
Week 1:
Principles of Starship Engineering Parts 1-3
A daring rescue, a heist in the heart of enemy territory, ship-parts that might mean the difference between being stuck in this time and making it back to the 32nd century. The cadets are in for their most unorthodox lesson yet.
Week 2:
Combat Strategy 102 Parts 1-3
It’s time to build on the cadet’s combat training – with the Venari Ral encroaching on Academy space, they’re going to need all the experience they can get. The cadets rise to the occasion, applying everything they learned in Combat Strategy 101. A distress signal interrupts their training and sets in motion events that will truly test their ability to work together.
Week 3:
Independent Study Parts 1-3
The Commander receives a mysterious transmission from an Independent who seems to know about the Athena crew’s predicament. While wary of a trap, Chancellor Ake also has to admit that things are looking dire on the find-a-way-home front. Leaving the cadets to study independently for an upcoming exam, the Chancellor and the Commander head off to do some Independent study of their own.
Week 4:
Advanced Temporal Mechanics Parts 1-3
After countless hours running simulations, the Doctor has finally figured out a way to get back to the 32nd century – and it might even work. All that remains is to recreate the conditions of their arrival, test the theory, and hope they end up back where they belong. And figure out what to do about Deidamia, of course.
Academy Space & Duo Wave Expansion
Academy Space
The Venari Ral have officially invaded Academy Space, and have been added to Duo Wave Defense to prepare the cadets for battle.
Half of Academy Space is now occupied by the Venari Ral, with all occupied systems marked by a Red Skull icon. These systems feature powerful new hostile mechanics designed to challenge Commanders throughout Academy Space progression.
Venari Ral Hostile Abilities
The Venari Ral introduce several dangerous hostile abilities:
- Programmable Matter
Reduces player Weapon Damage by 99%, drains Shields for 1 round, and applies Hyperthermic Decay to the Hull at combat start. - Isolytic Dampeners
Increases Isolytic Defense by 1000%. - Critical Training
Greatly increases Critical Hit Chance, Critical Hit Damage, and Critical Damage Floor. - Gravitational Blast Immunity
Grants immunity to Gravitational Blast effects.
Defeating Venari Ral hostiles rewards players with Pledges of the Venari, which can be exchanged for large amounts of Science Credits in the Academy Refinery. Science Credits can then be used acquire:
- U.S.S. Athena Parts
- U.S.S. Athena Data Modules
- Adaptive Repair Alloy
- G6 and G7 Materials
- Enhanced Independent Archive Schematics
Players may also encounter Deidamia’s Battleship roaming occupied Academy Space systems as a rare “loot-goblin” style hostile encounter that offers a bigger loot reward.
Duo Wave Defense
Update 91 expands Duo Wave Defense from 4 total waves to 8.
Waves 5–8 introduce increasing numbers of Venari Ral enemies equipped with the same dangerous hostile abilities found throughout occupied Academy Space. The final challenge arrives in Wave 8 with Deidamia’s Battleship, an enhanced Venari Ral enemy equipped with:
- Programmable Matter
- Isolytic Dampeners
- Critical Draining
- Immunity to Gravitational Blast and Borg Cutting Beam effects
Deidamia’s Battleship also deals 65 damage directly to the Central Entity, making it the most dangerous encounter introduced to Duo Wave Defense so far.
With the Duo Wave expansion, the Duo Wave Defense experience evolves into a far more challenging and strategic encounter focused heavily on maximizing player Critical Mitigation and utilizing the U.S.S. Athena to its fullest potential.
U.S.S. Athena
The U.S.S. Athena is more than a starship, it is a working campus, a diplomatic powerhouse, and a symbol of the Federation’s future. For the first time since the Burn, that future is beginning to look hopeful once again.
Designed for Ops 61+ Commanders, the U.S.S. Athena introduces powerful combat support tools, Academy Space progression systems, and major long-term value tied to Duo Wave Defense and the Venari Ral conflict.
U.S.S. Athena Features
- Unlocks an exclusive U.S.S. Athena Research Tree featuring Academy Space bonuses, combat boosts, and officer cost reductions
- Improves Refinery rewards tied to resources, materials, and Academy progression
- Counters the Venari Ral hostile ability “Programmable Matter” in Duo Wave Defense Waves 5–8 and throughout Academy Space
- Designed to perform strongly against Academy Drones in Duo Wave Defense
- Can self-heal and buff allied ships during Wave Defense encounters
- Unlocks Science Credit rewards from the Venari Ral Refinery
- Allows players to earn additional Science, Engineering, and Command Credits from Duo Waves 5–8
- Increases the number of Duo Wave Defense runs players can complete each week
- Allows players to eventually complete one Duo Wave Defense run per day
Tier Benefits
- Tier 1: Can start a Duo Wave Defense every 2 days
- Tier 4: Can start a Duo Wave Defense every day
Active Abilities
Amplify
Amplify increases Apex Barrier for all player ships in Wave Defense and unlocks additional Simulation Hack bonuses through the Athena Research Tree, including:
- Critical Damage
- Isolytic Damage
- Apex Shred
- Hull Repair
- Apex Barrier
Regenerate
Regenerate restores a percentage of the Athena’s Hull Health and becomes stronger through research upgrades.
Passive Abilities
The Athena also features several powerful passive abilities designed specifically for combat against Venari Ral enemies:
- Greatly increases Weapon Damage
- Increases Critical Mitigation
- Increases Apex Barrier
- Negates the effects of Programmable Matter
- Gains additional Apex Barrier bonuses against Academy Drones during Wave Defense
U.S.S. Athena Progression
As players progress through the Athena’s 15 tiers, they unlock:
- Stronger refinery rewards
- Increased Athena Parts and Data Module gains
- Improved Science Credit exchanges
- Faster Simulation Code generation
- Additional Duo Wave Defense progression
- Exclusive Tier-Up bundles and player titles
By Tier 4, the Athena allows players to complete one Duo Wave Defense run every day.
For more information about the U.S.S. Athena check out the Blog and Video we posted earlier this week.
The U.S.S. Athena Research Tree
Once the U.S.S. Athena is unlocked, Commanders gain access to an exclusive Research Tree focused on Academy Space progression, Duo Wave Defense support, ship performance, and long-term G6 efficiencies.
U.S.S. Athena Research Upgrades
The Research Tree includes several upgrades that directly improve the Athena itself, including:
- Athena Warp Range
Increases the U.S.S. Athena’s Warp Range - Athena Impulse Speed
Increases the U.S.S. Athena’s Impulse Speed by up to 15 (Max Value) - Athena Cooldown Efficiency
Increases the Cooldown Efficiency of the Amplify ability by 50% (Max Value) - Regeneration Boost
Increases the amount of Hull Health restored by Regenerate in Wave Defense 25% (Max Value) - Remote Campus Upgrade Boost
Increases Class Honors gained from refining Engineering Credits by 100% (Max Value)
These upgrades help transform the Athena into one of the strongest support ships available for Academy Space and Duo Wave Defense.
Simulation Hack Research
The Athena Research Tree also includes Simulation Hack nodes tied directly to the Amplify ability.
When ships are affected by Amplify during Wave Defense, these Research Nodes grant powerful bonuses including:
- Simulation Hack – Critical Damage
250% increased Critical Damage (Max Value) - Simulation Hack – Hull Repair
25% increased Hull Repair (Max Value) - Simulation Hack – Isolytic Damage
200% increased Isolytic Damage (Max Value) - Simulation Hack – Apex Shred
50% increased Apex Shred (Max Value) - Simulation Hack – Apex Barrier
3,500 increased Apex Barrier( Max Value)
Progression & Efficiency Research
Beyond Wave Defense support, the Athena Research Tree introduces several progression-focused Research Nodes designed to improve long-term account growth.
These include:
- Cost reductions for Symbiosis Officers
- Cost reductions for Retaliation Squad Officers
- Cost reductions for Mirror Universe Officers
- Cost reductions for Galaxy Quest Officers
- Cost reductions for Strange New Worlds Officers
G6+ Progression Research
Additional Research Nodes provide long-term progression benefits for G6+ gameplay:
- G6+ Isolytic Defense
300% increased Isolytic Defense against Hostiles (Max Value) - G6+ Isolytic Damage
180% increased Isolytic Damage against Hostiles (Max Value) - Construction Speed Boost
350% increased Construction Speed for Station Modules (Max Value) - Research Speed Boost
700% increased Research Speed (Max Value)
Starfleet Academy Refinery Additions
Update 91 also expands the Academy Refinery with new progression bundles and U.S.S. Athena support systems.
Constructing the U.S.S. Athena unlocks additional Academy Refinery benefits, including:
- The ability to claim up to 3 daily chests containing G6/G7 Materials
- Improved Command Credit exchanges for Academy Officers by guaranteeing at least 1 officer shard in every pull
- Expanded officer shard pools, adding Chancellor Ake and Deidamia as potential rewards in Academy Officer pulls
Venari Ral hostiles have invaded Academy Space and now drop Pledges of the Venari, which players can exchange for Science Credits in the Academy Refinery.
Science Credits can then be used to acquire:
- U.S.S. Athena Parts
- U.S.S. Athena Data Modules
- Adaptive Repair Alloy
- Enhanced Independent Archive Schematics
Update 91 also introduces bundles to the Academy Refinery:
- U.S.S. Athena Blueprint sourcing through Engineering Credits
- Improved refinery rewards as the U.S.S. Athena tiers up
- Free Tier-Up reward bundles
- Exclusive player titles
New Officers
Epic Officer Chancellor Ake
Chancellor Ake has lived long enough to watch the Federation rise, fracture, and begin to heal again. With centuries of experience behind her, she carries the weight of history with quiet grace and an irreverent streak that often leaves cadets struggling to decide whether they are being disciplined or inspired.
Officer Ability: Lanthanite Wisdom
- Increases Isolytic Cascade Damage against hostile Interceptors at the start of combat in Wave Defense.
- 200% / 260% / 330% / 400% / 500%
Below Deck Ability: Chancellor’s Guidance
- 40% / 50% / 60% / 80% / 100%
- Increases Explorer Critical Chance against players at the start of combat for 8 rounds.
Epic Officer Deidamia
Deidamia descends from a clan that became nomads after the Burn. They traveled aboard a generational ship in search of a safer place to rebuild their colony. Over time, the clan embraced life among the stars and became a fleet of humble traders serving both major hubs and remote regions of the galaxy. A job gone wrong led to Deidamia meeting a man who would change her life irrevocably: Nus Braka.
Officer Ability: Pirate Queen
- Increases Isolytic Cascade Damage against Interceptor Hostiles at the start of combat while in
- Wave Defense 200% / 260% / 330% / 400% / 500%
Below Deck Ability: No Holds Barred
- Increases Battleship Critical Chance against players at the start of combat for 8 rounds.
- 40% / 50% / 60% / 80% / 100%
Independent Archives Expansion
The Independent Archives is expanding in Update 91, increasing its level range from Ops 71–80 and raising the maximum building level to 80. Originally introduced in December 2024, the Independent Archives focused heavily on long-term cost efficiencies and progression support through archived ship systems. With this expansion, the building will continue scaling several of its most valuable progression bonuses while also creating room for additional archived ships in the future.
Continuing Buffs & Benefits
Several key Independent Archives bonuses will continue scaling throughout the new Ops 71–80 progression range, including:
- Station Module Sigma Resource Cost Efficiency
- Station Module Materials Cost Efficiency
- Enhanced Archive Shard Free Claims
Some older bonuses tied to non-Sigma resource costs and Chaos Tech efficiencies will no longer continue scaling, as those systems have already reached their intended maximum efficiency values.
Station Module Sigma Resource Cost Efficiency
This existing bonus continues scaling aggressively through the new Independent Archives levels.
Scaling Breakdown
- Previous Max at Level 70: 500%
- New Max at Level 80: 1100%
- Level 71: 700%
- Level 72: 700%
- Level 73: 750%
- Level 74: 800%
- Level 75: 850%
- Level 76: 900%
- Level 77: 950%
- Level 78: 1000%
- Level 79: 1050%
- Level 80: 1100%
Enhanced Archive Shard Free Claims
At Independent Archives level 70, the Enhanced Archive Shard Free Claim is introduced, replacing the previous Archive Shard Free Claim in Daily Gifts.
For players with excessive Archive Shards, a Conversion Bundle is available, allowing them to exchange the old currency for the new.
Enhanced Archive Shards
Enhanced Archive Shards are the new currency used to upgrade the Independent Archives beyond Level 70.
Players can acquire Enhanced Archive Shards through:
- Academy Refinery exchanges using Science Credits
- Daily Gifts
- Store bundles
As the Independent Archives continues expanding into the G7 era, these upgrades provide substantial long-term progression value for players continuing to invest in Academy Space and archived ship systems.
Enterprise NX-01 Addition to the Independent Archives
The Enterprise NX-01 is officially being added to the Independent Archives with Update 91, introducing new Pre-Mastery buffs and a full Mastery system for the ship.
These upgrades are designed to improve NX-01 progression, increase Xindi-related rewards, and streamline the NX-01 refinery loop through the Independent Archives system.
NX-01 Pre-Mastery Buffs
Before reaching Mastery, players can unlock several powerful upgrades for the NX-01, including:
NX-01 Efficient Components
- Increases Ceramic Composite Cost Efficiency for NX-01 ship components by up to 10%.
Xindi Scraps Loot Boost
- Increases loot dropped by Xindi-Aquatic hostiles by up to 60%.
NX-01 Max Cargo Expansion
- Increases the NX-01’s base Max Cargo by up to 400%.
Hostile Piercing
- Increases all Piercing stats against non-Armada hostiles for all ships by up to 300%.
Enterprise NX-01 Mastery
At Ops 71, players can unlock Enterprise NX-01 Mastery through the Independent Archives.
NX-01 Mastery consolidates multiple daily refinery claims into a single free daily claim within the Independent Archives system.
The Mastery Claim combines rewards from:
- Xindi-Aquatic Exchange
- Scrap Trade
- Picard Hugh Claim
- Picard Refit Reward Claim
- NX-Isolinear Array Claim
Once Mastery is unlocked, these rewards will no longer appear separately within the NX-01 refinery.
Additionally, unlocking Refits, Prime Nodes, or Ex-Borg Favor Levels that affect the NX-01 refinery will also improve the rewards granted through the Mastery Claim.
Why Ops 71?
We understand that some players may have expected the Enterprise NX-01 Archive to become available for Mastery at an earlier Ops level, and we want to clearly explain why this decision was made.
Independent Archives were originally created to help players close out older gameplay loops that had become low-value chores, eliminating ongoing daily maintenance and allowing players to focus on new content additions. The purpose of the feature was not to eliminate active progression loops while they remain economically and strategically relevant for progressing players, nor was it designed to retire active progression systems while they still matter.
While the NX-01 can be maxed out relatively early in G5, it does not fall into the category of a low-impact or redundant loop within that level range. Even in late G6, the NX-01 continues to provide meaningful value through materials, ship parts, and associated progression outputs, with bundles scaling all the way up to Operations level 70.
We understand that this decision may generate disagreement within the community. Feedback regarding the NX-01 Mastery being locked at Operations level 71 was seen and raised internally. The decision was made after extensive discussions reviewing the economic impact, the intended role of Independent Archives, and how these factors connect to NX-01 Mastery.
We are aware that some earlier Archive additions have softer Ops-level restrictions, and we have seen that these often work against the original intent of the Archives by making them feel like a “max your ship as soon as you can” feature. We remain committed to future additions to the Independent Archives and to ensuring that future ships are included in a way that better reflects progression relevance, required player effort, and long-term game balance.
Additional Content
New Projectile
High Payload Beam
- Increases loot gained from Academy Drones and Venari Ral hostiles by 50%.
New Refit
Programmable Matter U.S.S. Athena
- Increases the U.S.S. Athena’s Isolytic Damage against Venari Ral hostiles by 25% at the start of the combat.
- Adds an Extra Pull of U.S.S. Athena Parts and Data Modules in the Academy Refinery.
Battle Passes and Events Updates
Updated Vengeance & Aphelion Event Cadence
Aphelion Upgrade Events
Aphelion Advancement (Heroic) – SMS
- Mondays at 9:00 AM PT
- 2-day event
No changes are being made to this event cadence.
Vengeance Events
- Vengeance Is Mine (Heroic) – SMS
(Blueprint and Ship Parts versions)
Schematics Salvage – RLB
- Mondays/Tuesdays at 9:00 AM PT
- Thursdays/Fridays at 9:00 AM PT
- 2-day events
Vengeance Refit Events
Project Dreadnought – RLB
- Saturdays/Sundays at 9:00 AM PT
- 2-day event
Aphelion Acquisition Events
Aphelion Engineering (Heroic) – SMS
Aphelion Archive Extraction – RLB
- Saturdays/Sundays at 9:00 AM PT
- 2-day events
Battle Pass Reward Improvements
The Starfleet Academy Battle Pass and Mid-Ops Battle Pass are receiving major reward improvements across all Ops levels in Update 91.
All players will see increased Resources and Materials added to the Mythic Track. In addition, players who purchase both the Elite and Mythic Tracks will be able to earn a full unlock of an Epic Officer of their choice within a set selection.
Updated Rewards by Ops Level
Ops 20–70
- Increased Specialty Ship Parts in the Elite Track
Ops 40+
- Rare FKR Ship Parts in the Mythic Track
G6 and G7 Battle Pass Updates
Additional G7 focused progression rewards include:
- Sigma Speedups
- Sigma FKR Faction Credits
As a new addition to the G6 Starfleet Academy Battle Pass, Commanders will also receive:
- Dauntless Ship Parts
- Serene Squall Ship Parts
These Battle Pass updates are designed to provide stronger progression value across multiple gameplay systems while helping support long-term Academy Space and G6 progression.
Starfleet Academy Part 2 Battle Pass (Ops 61+)
The G7 Battle Pass rewards include Sigma FKR Faction Credits, Exotic Spirits Shipments for upgrading the Warp Dive Bar, Uncommon and Rare Ship Parts, Maverick Exclusive Periphery Intel, and more!
The G6 Battle Pass rewards include Uncommon and Rare Ship Parts, FKR Faction Credits, U.S.S. Dauntless and Serene Squall Ship Parts, Premium Mirror Dust, and more!
Mid-Ops Events (Ops 20-60)
Along with the new reward updates in the Mid-Ops Battle Pass, we are continuing to offer specific specialty ship parts for designated Ops levels. This month’s Mid-Ops Battle Pass is the Simulation Battle Pass.
- Ops 20–22 will have Botany Bay and U.S.S. Franklin Parts.
- Ops 23–25 will have U.S.S. Franklin and Discovery Parts.
- Ops 26–34 will have Vi’dar and U.S.S. Franklin Parts.
- Ops 35–39 will have Vi’dar Talios and U.S.S. Franklin-A Parts.
- Ops 40–50 will have NX-01 and U.S.S. Reliant Parts.
- Ops 51–60 will have Dauntless and GS31 Parts.
Known Issue
Battle Pass Visibility
A very small percentage of players may not see the Battle Pass appear in-game. We are aware of the issue and are actively investigating it. Several improvements were implemented with Update 91 to reduce Battle Pass-related errors, but a limited number of cases may still occur.
If you do not see the Battle Pass, please contact Customer Support with your player ID so the team can investigate further.
Login Calendar Visibility
A small percentage of players may temporarily not see the Login Calendar immediately following the update. This can occur during the transition between event campaigns and should resolve automatically within 1–2 days.
Players affected by this issue will still receive the full amount of time needed to complete their login milestones once the calendar becomes available.
Improvements & Bug Fixes
Improvements
Daily Goals
- Daily Goals GO Button improvements implemented for players Ops 1-19 that will take the player to the correct System of the game instead of falling back and directing to the players current system. These improvements apply to the following Daily Goals:
- Hostile Hunter
- Hostile Harbinger
- Spelunker
- Swarm Guard
- Swarm Watcher
- Swarm Eradicator
- Q’s Challenge
- Q’s Gauntlet
Faction Store
- Increased maximum purchase quantity with Faction Credits in the Faction Store from 50 to 200.
Search Functionality
- Players can now search the ship management screen and search their inventory for specific items or resources. Players can also search research projects based on the type of resources they use.
Bulk Faction Claim
- New 7-day login streak rewards have been added. As long as players maintain their 7-day streak, they will gain access to Bulk Claim functionality in the Faction Stores, and the Alliance, Consumables, and Away Teams sections of the Gifts tab. If the streak expires, players will need to log in consistently for 7 days again to reactivate the benefits.
Research
- Timers are reduced in following G4 Research trees: Combat, Station, Galaxy, ExBorg.
Refinery
- G3 refinery update: The materials refinery for G3 mats (3* Gas/Ore/Crystal) have been revised with improved value.
- There are now expanded daily bundle claims for the Botany Bay, allowing multiple claims within the normal cooldown period at an increased cost for additional claims.
Ships
- Latinum can now be used to exchange for unique ship parts for the Amalgam, Sarcophagus, and D’Vor.
For more information about the progression improvements arriving with Update 91 and the 91.1 Mid-Month Patch check out the blog we posted earlier this week.
Bug Fixes
Chests
- Addressed an issue where the Rewards screen showed twice with all chests when a user is claiming all rewards at once.
Missions
- Fixed an issue where an error message, “mission_active_error_title_200,” would appear when attempting to accept more than 56 General missions.
Wave Defense
- Fixed an issue where the Defend button could remain active after a ship was destroyed during Wave Defense if the player switched to Galaxy View, allowing a new Wave Defense to start without any ships available in the system.
Alliance
- Fixed an issue where Alliance help requests from members who left or were removed could persist indefinitely, causing the Alliance Help button to remain stuck on screen.
Event Store
- Addressed an issue that caused unnecessary loading) when opening buckets and/or bundles in the events store which should improve the claim time.
Field Training
- Addressed an issue where mobile devices could load an incorrect background in Field Training, preventing the feature from processing correctly.
Missions
- Fixed an issue on Android and iOS where the mission “Fog of War” where the mission would appear and disappear, preventing players from progressing through it.
Artifacts
- Fixed an issue where a player enters a system and starts queueing multiple hostiles using multiple ships with the Kir’Shara, the error “This action isn’t allowed in the ship’s current state” is intermittently triggered.
Research
- Resolved an issue that caused the Ex-Borg Research button to redirect players to Maverick Research.
Translations
- Addressed an issue where some parts of the game are missing Korean and Japanese text translation.
Performance
- Fixed an issue that caused sections of the game can break when low device memory warning is triggered.
LLAP
The STFC Team
