Cetain Planes don't seem to have any native Outsider races on them, like the others do. The Abyss has the Tannari, Baator has the Baatezu, Elysium the Guardinals, etc... But Planes such as Bytopia, Acheron, Pandemoneum, and such don't have any native Outsider races that I know of. Sure, they're INHABITED (Bytopia has Gnomes, for example), but that's not quite the same thing... and I don't count the Bladelings and the Asuras because they each have only one form, whereas Archons and Yugoloths each have several different "breeds" within the race (Mezzoloth, Arcanoloth, Yagnoloth, etc...) Why the disparity?
Missing races on the Planes?
Thu, 2007-11-15 12:50
#1
Missing races on the Planes?
Thu, 2007-11-15 15:01
#3
Missing races on the Planes?
Yeah, that's the canon of it. Just because something lives on the planes or has the "Outsider" type does not mean it is an exemplar or anything close. Night Hags, Hordelings, Gehreleths, Valkyries, Lilendi, Aasimon, bladelings, Formians, and many other "Outsider" races that live on the outer planes may not be mortal, but are also not directly linked to the plane. Only the nine "exemplar" races that Hymneth mentioned are inherently tied to their planes. The others can and do travel and settle where they like without regard for their plane and have connection to their home plane that is more cultural than spiritual.
Thu, 2007-11-15 17:35
#4
Missing races on the Planes?
Keep in mind that there is some debate as to whether Yugoloths are 'natural' exemplars, since they have been known to artificially tie themselves to a plane, such as they did with Gehenna and are trying to do with Carceri. They might have done it to the Waste as well. Hordlings, on the other hand, have been known to appear both directly out of the Waste and from larval stocks, both pointing to them being the original exemplars of Hades.
Thu, 2007-11-15 19:47
#5
Missing races on the Planes?
True, true but that still leaves one exemplar race for each alignment, be it Yuggoloth or Hordeling. It would just mean that the Yuggs are another resident race from somewhere
Thu, 2007-11-15 19:51
#6
Missing races on the Planes?
I see the 'loths are one of the old exemplar races--more like the aincient baatorians, obryths (if you use them) etc than hordelings, baatezu, tanar'ri, archons, etc.
Fri, 2007-11-16 03:28
#7
Missing races on the Planes?
Well, Formians could be treated as native race of Arcadia, after all in their set aligment was LNG (lawful neutral with good tendencies) in Planes of Law box set.
Later they were converted into militaristic bug invaders who only think about is how to expand their teritories.
Fri, 2007-11-16 16:39
#8
Missing races on the Planes?
That was because the Accordion (Err..) knocked a layer of Arcadia into Mechanus, and the resident formians adapted to the new, less benevolent Order.
Now, if a cog or two dropped into Acheron or Arcadia on accident, any modrons coming along might act differently, or even go rogue, but the change would manifest as an illness, a dis-Order. They wouldn't just be fitting in to their new home.
Sat, 2007-11-17 08:58
#9
Missing races on the Planes?
@ astralsahu:
Umm... Don´t you think it was vice versa. I mean: as I know, parts of plane slide towards new plane when aligment of its denizens change. So I think that Harmonium changed aligment of Nemasus Formians from LN(G) to militaristic LN. Nemasus slides to Mehanus and formians just continue to follow Harmonium plan to bring all planes under their flag, they just do that in their unique way (of conquering all they see).
In thet case formians are most zealous Harmonium members on the planes.
This gives me idea for picture: Harmonium Formians with their carapaces painted red or having red marks on their heads (red ants look) wich marks them as folovers of harmonium philosophy. They would probably harras modron or black (LNG) formian. 
Sat, 2007-11-17 12:13
#10
Formians
Yeah, I thinks WOTC was trying to position Formians as a replacement for Modrons, but I LIKE Modrons, so I'm glad they posted stats for 'em on the Manual of the Planes web enhancement... Formians are cool too, but why choose when you don't HAVE to? There's no reason why Formians leaning towards Good couldn't still be on the other layers of Arcadia, though, since only one layer shifted... and even the LN ones aren't inherently vicious per se, just relentlessly Lawful (If they can take over without using violence, they do...)
Sat, 2007-11-17 14:53
#11
Missing races on the Planes?
Yeah, that's the canon of it. Just because something lives on the planes or has the "Outsider" type does not mean it is an exemplar or anything close. Night Hags, Hordelings, Gehreleths, Valkyries, Lilendi, Aasimon, bladelings, Formians, and many other "Outsider" races that live on the outer planes may not be mortal, but are also not directly linked to the plane. Only the nine "exemplar" races that Hymneth mentioned are inherently tied to their planes. The others can and do travel and settle where they like without regard for their plane and have connection to their home plane that is more cultural than spiritual.
Well, the word "exemplar" doesn't have any canonical meaning. It only appears in one official source (the Monster Manual, which says that death slaadi are not true exemplars of Chaos).
If we're talking about the "canon" of it, there's nothing that says yugoloths have a closer tie to the Gray Waste than hordlings do, for example. There's no canonical distinction between "exemplars" and "residents." Faces of Evil comes the closest when it defines fiends as "an evil creature formed from the essence of a petitioner or the raw material of their home planes"; it lists baatezu, tanar'ri, yugoloths, gehreleths, and hordlings as true fiends in this sense.
If "exemplar" has any meaning at all, it has a similar definition: a Outer Planar creature formed from the essence of a petitioner or the raw material of their home planes. The complete list would be something like: baatezu, tanar'ri, obyriths, loumaras, yugoloths, gehreleths, hordlings, modrons, archons, guardinals, eladrins, and slaadi all certainly fit the definitions, while other creatures, like aasimon, visilights, quesars and lillendi, might be open for debate.
There's no reason to think there are only nine.
Sat, 2007-11-17 15:05
#12
Missing races on the Planes?
Anime Fan wrote:
There's no reason why Formians leaning towards Good couldn't still be on the other layers of Arcadia, though, since only one layer shifted...
So that means taht race had split in two "factions" one industrious LNG and other more militant LN, that even mean the posibilty that there was several civil wars betwen formians. (Black ants vs. Red ants) 
In any way fact that Harmonium have converted that much (entire layer) of formians is probably their gratest sucsess, and its gratest failure...
I mean not even they have anticipated that formians would take such extremistic view on faction philosophy: one that all multiverse must follow lead of Harmonium to live happy.
I guess that formians figured that this can be achived only trough military campain, and they probably belive that they are doing the right thing and that denizens of Mehanus will benefit from this in the end...
Another idea for missing planar races:
Hint what original native race of Gehena is given in Mezzoloth entry in first planescape monster manual: firstly they are listed as common monster, secondly it says that they were probably adopted (and altered) by yugoloths to be soilders from another race.
Mezzoloth is sterotypical bully: selfish, greedy, powerhungy, harrases enything in arms reach and even cappable of some cunning if need arises, and that sounds to me pretty much like basic representative denizen would do...
Also Arcanaloths seem too sophisticated to be created even by baraenoloths, so I guess they were also original Gehenian race (Mezzoloths masters) who were adopted into yugoloth race.
Prehaps things happpened in this way: when Ultroloths and Baraenoloths came to Great Ring they saw interesting qalites in races that would bacame Mezzoloths and Arcanaloths, so they won over Mezzoloths with promise of more power (that what you do to won typical bully: first you show you are stronger than him, than you promise him reward if he will be your cronnie), than Arcanaloths fond that their servants abandoned them they quickly surendered, ofering their services to they'r new masters.
That is my theory anyways...
I think exemplars only exist on 'pure' planes. IE, planes that perfectly reflect one of the nine alignments. Thus, you have:
CE: Tanar'ri
NE: Yuggoloths
LE: Baatezu
CN: Slaadi
N: Rilmani
LN: Modrons
CG: Eladrin
NG: Guardinals
LG: Archons
The other, muddled planes don't get exemplars, just residents. Pandemonium, for example, is more of a CCE than a CE plane.
That make sense? That's how I've always seen it anyway