M90 is here, cadets, and Talking Trek is rolling straight into Starfleet Academy with a full Talking in Carz breakdown of the new patch. DJz, Griffin, Tarpy, Jules Verne, and the crew unpack the new Academy loop, Duo Wave Defense, critical damage mitigation, Academy drones, the new building, refinery currencies, laurels, and the first wave of new officers.

We also dig into the bigger M90 economy changes, including battle pass updates, the 27-day arc format, Boldly Go rewards, desolate rod sourcing, officer depot token changes, Paragon and Cadre bundles, alliance tournament updates, new artifacts, ship refits, and the long-awaited arrival of G5 scrapping. There’s a lot in this patch, some of it exciting, some of it suspiciously spreadsheet-shaped, and some of it wearing a cadet uniform while stealing your lunch money.

Topics include:
Starfleet Academy loop, Duo Wave Defense, critical damage mitigation, Academy drones, STFC.phd battle log parsing, engineering credits, science credits, command credits, laurels, new Academy officers, Genesis outpost loot, battle pass changes, Boldly Go, officer depot tokens, Paragon and Cadre bundles, Emerald Chain progression, alliance tournaments, simulacrum refits, and G5 scrapping timers.

00:51 Show open and welcome to Talking in Carz
02:23 Welcome to Starfleet Academy, cadets
03:12 The new Starfleet Academy loop begins
04:37 Academy drones, crit chance, and crit damage explained
05:24 Critical damage mitigation enters the game
07:45 Battle logs, STFC.phd, and tracking the new mechanic
08:52 Why the Academy building matters early
10:03 Training merits, engineering credits, and the refinery loop
11:34 The 60-second currency recap
12:27 Laurels become the new officer promotion currency
13:17 Duo Wave Defense strategy and why waiting may be smart
15:39 New Academy officers: Doctor, Jahl of Myr, and Genesis
17:04 Genesis and the big outpost plunder loot boost
20:46 The early concern: is the new loop too siloed?
23:00 Battle pass and live ops changes for the 27-day arc
24:03 Desolate rods, Boldly Go, and flash pass replacement sourcing
26:58 Community data needed for battle pass reward comparisons
28:49 Officer depot token store changes and 30-day warning
31:03 Paragon and Cadre officer sourcing bundles
32:30 New artifacts: Emerald Chain helm and G7 parts efficiency
34:24 Emerald Chain progression and alliance tournament XP
36:23 Surprise: two alliance tournament runs this month
39:18 Titles, cosmetics, and the fun side of the arc
40:15 Choice token concerns and alliance tournament task changes
42:18 New simulacrum refits and Academy drone mitigation
43:42 G5 scrapping timers, exocomp boost, and realistic expectations
47:36 When to use the G5 scrapping exocomp
48:35 Wrap-up and tonight’s Talking Trek lab preview