Hello everyone, I have a question. So, I'm fairly new to the ffg star wars rpg system and this is my first time ever running a rpg. I've been playing with a small group of friends for roughly 6-7 months now (I have 3 other players). I know about the 3 "classes" of enemies, the minion, rival, and nemesis. The problem I'm running into is that my players tend to go through nemesis like their nothing. I upgrade their dice to red (based on adversary talent) and give the setback when appropriate, but they still churn though them like in 3-4 rounds. I don't want the nemesis going twice due to overpowering the group. One one hand, if I "buff" them up, the pc's can't win. On the other, if I keep them the same, I feel like they get mulled over quickly. Is there something I'm missing in the rules or is the game design that way (for nemesis to be defeated on the quicker side) and I need to get better at role playing out what my nemesis are doing?

Also, my group doesn't roleplay good. What I mean by that is that a player will say that they are, for example, trying to take down an enemy, they just say, I'm going to attack instead of saying, I pull out my heavy repeating blaster and shoot at him. I've been trying to get more animated in what npcs are doing and describing there actions to give the pc's something to go off of, but I'm not the best at it yet. Any suggestions on how to improve this part of the experience right now would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance for all the feedback.

For the Nemeses, I have a couple okay, few questions:
First, how much support are you giving them? If you send one Nemesis against a group of 4 PCs, they ain't gonna last long. Also, escape should be an option for the Nemeses where possible.
Second, how powerful combat-wise are your PCs? If they are all advanced and combat dedicated and using weapons like heavy repeating blasters, that Nemesis ain't gonna last long.
Third, what sort of Nemeses are you using? If you send them up against an Imperial Moff, that Nemesis ain't gonna last long. If you send them up against the General Grievous statblock, he may last a bit longer. The flip side of this is damage. What's the damage output of your nemeses like?
Fourth, are you using custom Nemeses at all? I have found that it is useful to adjust existing statblocks or even start from scratch to build a party-tailored Nemesis built to play to or against their strengths, depending on the situation.

General suggestion, manipulate the surroundings to the Nemesis's advantage. Allies, escape routes, temporary bouts of untouchableness (Imperial Valor, ran inside an armored vehicle, locked the blast doors, etc.), all of these can extend the life span of your Nemesis.

Now for the roleplaying.
Some people just aren't wired that way. It is something I struggle with when I play in-person, and I will often gloss over things, especially what NPCs say because I'm just not good at it and I don't find it fun (and if I were to try , it would probably detract from the experience for others). If you think it is a matter of them learning to do it, then don't require them to say it every time, but set an example and then periodically say "Okay, describe how that happens" hopefully, this will get them more comfortable with the roleplay aspect and they will be able to do it more frequently and of their own accord. Do bear in mind, some people just aren't wired that way and won't really be able to do it.

1) the Nemesis are usually backed up by a rival or two. I also usually try to have a backup option for retreat, but I feel like that it gets triggered way too soon than what I want it too.

2)They have about a cumulative xp of 130-140 past starting. The group in general is stat out to be really good in combat. (Probably where some of this frustration is coming from. (Flamethrower, Dc 15 (long ranged, 10 d, 3 crit, and pierce 1) are the standouts) (Flamethrower got destroyed in game)

3) I been using alot of nemesis from the card packs. Alot of the combat heavy ones (fallen master, virago, forsaken jedi, ect)

4) tried to create 2 Nemesis characters of my own and it hasn't put up the fight I wanted from it.

Game balance against pc's have not been the easiest to figure out.

14 minutes ago, 97Starvipper said:

1) the Nemesis are usually backed up by a rival or two. I also usually try to have a backup option for retreat, but I feel like that it gets triggered way too soon than what I want it too.

Perhaps you should throw in a couple Minion groups as well. That'll help drag out the combat a bit. Large groups of Minions (6=5 skill ranks) are very dangerous. They have good dice pools and lots of health (cumulatively).

16 minutes ago, 97Starvipper said:

2)They have about a cumulative xp of 130-140 past starting. The group in general is stat out to be really good in combat. (Probably where some of this frustration is coming from. (Flamethrower, Dc 15 (long ranged, 10 d, 3 crit, and pierce 1) are the standouts) (Flamethrower got destroyed in game)

Okay, here's your problem.

I am in a similar situation because I have very combat-capable PCs in my Mandalorian bounty hunters campaign (~200 earned XP). I think you are wanting combats to last for longer than they are really designed to.

In this system, attacks hit hard and stack up quickly. I rarely have an encounter that lasts more than 4 rounds.* 3 seems to be a pretty common number.

*With exceptions for continued reinforcement or advancing through a battle or whatever. I'm referring to straight-up fights, group-to-group.

For a "solution," I say include more Minions. Be careful not to overwhelm your PCs unnecessarily, but you aren't particularly likely to find a Nemesis style character who isn't backed up by some Minions, and they can help you make your combat last a bit longer.

Here's how I design a combat encounter:
Step 1: Throw balance out the window.
Step 2: Figure out where, why, how, and when the combat is taking place. This includes terrain, obstacles, potentially checks on the side (Athletics, Coordination, Perception, what have you), vehicles, escape routes, etc.
Step 3a: Decide what sort of outcome I/the opposition/the PCs are looking for, and plan to fit. If the Adversaries want to absolutely murderize the party, they'll bring more people and gear.
Step 3b: Figure out what Adversaries makes sense for the situation (including strategic decisions by the opposition, but being careful about meta-knowledge)
Step 4: Then I go dig through the bushes looking for balance and see if I need to adjust the situation.

2 through 3b are very fluid and end up pretty inter-mixed much of the time, but I keep 1 and 4 in the same place most of the time.

Here's a post I made in a previous thread on a similar subject. The entire thread is probably worth reading, but it's pretty short:

Three words of advice for a good Nemesis: Never fight fair.

Now, that doesn't mean cheat or fudge your rolls. It means use every single dirty trick you can.
Give the Nemesis about 3 or 4 minion groups of about 4 minions each because, lets face it, what Nemesis doesn't send his flunkys to do his fighting? Two or three Rivals make good 'bodyguards' for the Nemesis, and **** Yes let the Nemesis go twice during a round. But ONLY the Nemesis...the rest of his goons go once and only once per round.
Use terrain to your advantage. Lots of cover (trees, buildings, rubble, etc.) means endless fun with snipers. Do your players have a tendency to kick in the front door, guns blazing? Imagine the look on their faces when they kick in the door and are greeted by the warm embrace of some AP mines wired to the door. Ditto if they like to slip in through windows...tripwires are so hard to see in the dark.

Don't be afraid to give the Nemesis an escape route or two. Recurring villains add a layer of uncertainty to the game, as your players develop a healthy paranoia wondering when and how the Nemesis will try to get revenge on the group. And should the players take down a Nemesis that has gotten away from them a few times, it will give them that much more satisfaction that they finally got him/her.

A Nemesis shouldn't be a walk in the park for the players. They are, by definition, just a bit better than the characters, and the characters should really have to work to bring one down. I don't mean that they should be planning a military campaign to beat your Nemesis, but if they do manage to defeat him, it should be at best a Pyrrhic victory.