So I'm building stats and profiles for the campaign I'll be running shortly, and I have a practical question. I've got a couple of High-Level villains here, an Arch Enemy and his Lieutenant. They have similar stats and abilities (though obviously the arch enemy is better), but here is my question. Is there any reason to make the Lieutenant a Nemesis? Is there any reason NOT to? Is the only practical difference whether or not strain can be inflicted upon him?

I came up with a similar question statting advanced battle droids. I've got a Destroyer Droid as a Rival, and an Assasin Droid as a nemesis. Both are top tier threats that should make my payers tremble. Is there a reason to give one the rank of Nemesis over another?

I've got a small pirate crew that I intend to be a direct rival to the player party. I want it's captain to be a Nemesis, as well as one or two of his heavies. Is there any reason not to make the rest of his crew Nemesis as well, so they can also have strain inflicted on them?

And then I glanced through Beyond the Rim, and was surprised to see Yi Yar was a Rival, not a Nemesis. And now I'm REALLY confused.

So, seriously, what's the difference?

Other than the noted absence of a Strain track, there's not really much difference. A Rival can pretty much have everything that a Nemesis can - and can pay Wounds for talents that normally require Strain - so the difference is pretty minimal. Thematically, if the baddie is going to be run with the same attention that a player gives to a PC, then go ahead and make them a Nemesis even if there are Rivals that are comparable in ability.

The rules also say you can give a Strain Threshold to a Rival equal to his/her Wound Threshold. That way you can have exactly what you describe: a Rival that can stand on more equal footing with the PCs, but not quite as equal as a Nemesis.

Another possibility (though it requires far more bookkeeping on your end) is to award XP to the Rival as well, allowing him or her to grow stronger, albeit probably at a slower pace than the PCs.

I usually give all Rivals a Strain Threshhold. Nemesis just indicates the Adversary talent in my games.

Thanks for the input!

Something to keep in mind is that even a minion can have Adversary.

I guess what it really comes down to is if you want them to have a Strain Threshold or not. But if they're well trained in skills and have a bunch of talents, you're looking at a Nemesis.

I usually give all Rivals a Strain Threshhold. Nemesis just indicates the Adversary talent in my games.

There are Rivals that have Adversary too - the Journeyman (Bounty) Hunter for one and the Stormtrooper Sergeant for another - so Adversary isn't a hard dividing line between Nemesis and Adversary.

I don't think there's a hard line between them. It just seems to be a power level thing: Rivals are challenging for a PC, but not difficult to overcome with teamwork, while Nemeses represent an actual, physical threat from which not everyone might walk away.

Nemesis are there to be the big named bads of your plot arcs. They are typically the biggest threats facing the party be that through personal abilities and talents or through the resources they control. Rivals are designed to be "one on one" match up challenges for a character, or otherwise named characters who are not The Named characters. Basically it comes down to dramatic usage. Nemesis also are designed as a recoccuring influence on the party (even if that's used through cut scenes and sending minions after the party etc). Rivals who show up a lot as antagonists will typically become nemesis.

In the example given do you want the destroyer to foul the characters actions in several sessions across a story arc or just be a tough obstacle in the adventure? What about the Assassin Droid? If its the former then nemesis is what you're after, if is the latter then they are rivals.