History Main / EvilCounterpartRace

** Way back in ''Warcraft II'' trolls served as the Evil Counterpart Race for the elves (before the high elf/blood elf split and before we knew of the night elves), both races providing the main ranged unit and light naval craft for their respective factions.

* A rare intentional sci-fi example happens in ''Literature/{{Seveneves}}'': [[spoiler:Aida intentionally [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke engineers]] her descendant races to counter those of the other Eves with the exception of Julia who is her ally and whose descendants are a natural counter to Moira's.]]

** There are two factions of geth: "true" geth and "heretic" geth. While the true geth are far from good, the heretic geth are an OmnicidalManiac faction that decided to join the [[AbusivePrecursors Reapers]] to advance themselves, and have integrated Reaper technology into their own as a result. ''Mass Effect 3'' reveals that geth controlled by Reaper code and those without it are also quite different at the software level, meaning they could be considered different [[MechanicalLifeforms "races"]] at that point.

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

* Green Martians like the ComicBook/MartianManhunter J'onn J'onnz are wise, peaceful, and obscenely powerful (with one exception: OmnicidalManiac and EvilCripple Malefic). White Martians have all the powers of their green cousins, but are monstrously evil (also with, to date, a single exception). No, the respective exceptions are not in any meaningful way counterparts. However this depends on the incarnation; in some versions, the White Martians are simply subject to a prejudice.

** There are two factions of geth: "true" geth and "heretic" geth. While the true geth are far from good, the heretic geth are an OmnicidialManiac faction that decided to join the [[AbusivePrecursors Reapers]] to advance themselves, and have integrated Reaper technology into their own as a result. ''Mass Effect 3'' reveals that geth controlled by Reaper code and those without it are also quite different at the software level, meaning they could be considered different [[MechanicalLifeforms "races"]] at that point.

* Dark Eldar in ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000''. [[BlackAndGreyMorality Although the Craftworld Eldar aren't exactly nice guys either]]. Humans sometimes have trouble telling them apart -- they ''are'' the same race after all.

* Green Martians like the ComicBook/MartianManhunter J'onn J'onnz are wise, peaceful, and obscenely powerful (with one exception: OmnicidalManiac and EvilCripple Malefic). White Martians have all the powers of their green cousins, but are monstrously evil (also with, to date, a single exception). No, the respective exceptions are not in any meaningful way counterparts. However this depends on the incarnation, in some versions the white martians are simply subject to a prejudice.

** The season 8 episode ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E23SoundsOfSilence Sounds of Silence]]'' introduces the peace-loving kirin, and another race that lives in their region called the nirik, which Twilight Sparkle describes as "creatures of pure rage and fire". [[spoiler:Subverted when it's revealed that the nirik is just another form taken by the kirin when they get angry.]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

[[folder:Fanfic]]

[[folder: Film ]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

[[folder: Religion ]]

[[folder: Tabletop Games ]]

[[folder: Toys ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

** Goombas to Toads. Both mushroom folk, but with the Goombas being the quintessential ''Mario'' {{Mook|s}} and... well... TheGoomba. There are games however where friendly Goombas show up, such as the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series.

* Dark Eldar in ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000''. [[BlackAndGreyMorality Although the Craftworld Eldar aren't exactly nice guys either]].

* The urRu (the "Mystics")_ and the Skeksis of ''Film/TheDarkCrystal.'' They're actually the good and evil halves of the same species, brought about by the species's attempt to purify themselves through use of the Dark Crystal.

* Daxamites are descended from [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Kryptonian]] colonists, and gain the same powers at the same levels when exposed to the light of a yellow sun (though they're vulnerable to lead instead of [[KryptoniteFactor kryptonite]]). Unlike Superman, Supergirl, Power Girl and other Kryptonian heroes, though, Daxamites are rabidly xenophobic, to the point of murdering an alien who accidentally crashed on their planet. When a Korugarian Green Lantern helped liberate them from an alien conqueror, they merely demanded she leave the planet rather than killing her, as a show of gratitude. This really bit them in their collective asses when the Sinestro Corps invaded.

** "The Book of Vile Darkness" gives us Jerren for Halflings and Vashar, who are a race of purely evil humans.

* Subverted in the ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' series. The humanoid-squid Inklings and humanoid-octopus Octarians ''are'' counterparts, with the former being more self-indulgent and fun-loving and the latter being more hard-working and serious. But the latter's antagonist role in the main campaigns of the first two games is the result of desperation rather than evil; the Octarians lost a territory war with the Inklings a century prior, forcing them to live underground where all their infrastructure is implied to now be collapsing on top of them. When talking about the second game's "Octo Expansion" {{DLC}}, which features an Octoling protagonist, the producer made a point to note that the Inklings aren't "defenders of justice" or "good guys" whatsoever.

* Goombas to Toads in ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' Both mushroom folk, but with the goombas being the quitessential ''Mario'' {{Mook|s}} and... well... TheGoomba. There are games however where friendly goombas show up, such as the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series.

* Daxamites are descended from [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Kryptonian]] colonists, and gain the same powers at the same levels when exposed to the light of a yellow sun (though they're vulnerable to lead instead of [[KryptoniteFactor kryptonite]]). Unlike Superman, Supergirl, Power Girl and other Kryptonian heroes, though, Daxamites are rabidly xenophobic, to the point of murdering an alien who accidentally crashed on their planet. When a Korugarian Green Lantern helped liberate them from an alien conqueror, they merely demanded she leave the planet rather than killing her, as a show of gratitude. This really bites them in their collective asses when the Sinestro Corps invaded.

* Subverted in the ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' series. The humanoid-squid Inklings and humanoid-octopus Octarians ''are'' counterparts, with the former being more self-indulgent and fun-loving and the latter being more hard-working and serious. But the latter's antagonist role in the main campaigns of the first two games is the result desperation rather than evil; the Octarians lost a territory war with the Inklings a century prior, forcing them to live underground where all their infrastructure is implied to now be collapsing on top of them. When talking about the second game's "Octo Expansion" {{DLC}}, which features an Octoling protagonist, the producer made a point to note that the Inklings aren't "defenders of justice" or "good guys" whatsoever.

* Subverted in the ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}} series. The humanoid-squid Inklings and humanoid-octopus Octarians ''are'' counterparts, with the former being more self-indulgent and fun-loving and the latter being more hard-working and serious. But the latter's antagonist role in the main campaigns of the first two games is the result desperation rather than evil; the Octarians lost a territory war with the Inklings a century prior, forcing them to live underground where all their infrastructure is implied to now be collapsing on top of them. When talking about the second game's "Octo Expansion" {{DLC}}, which features an Octoling protagonist, the producer made a point to note that the Inklings aren't "defenders of justice" or "good guys" whatsoever.

* The Inklings in ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' have the antagonistic Octarians, who are to octopi like the Inklings are to squids. While most of them show up as {{Gonk}}ish anthropomorphic tentacles, the Octolings exemplify the counterpart better, being female-only troops capable of VoluntaryShapeshifting between octopus and humanoid form, just like the Inklings can between squid and humanoid. ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'' features a friendly Octling and an expansion that has playable Octolings of both genders. [[spoiler: The Octarians aren't actually evil, they're just desperate after they were forced underground and their infrastructure is collapsing]].

** In the later series, the Cardassians to Humans. Cardassian history matches Earth's pretty well- they were both poverty stricken and war torn but dragged themselves up into an ordered and unified society at the center of a galactic superpower. The parallels are even closer when you consider that TheFederation and especially Earth have a clear socialist philosophy, and the Cardassians are Orwellian space communists.

[[caption-width-right:293:Pictured: The general Drow (Dark Elf) greeting reserved for Surface Elves.]]

** Elves vs. Drow.
** Dwarves vs. Derro and Duergar.
** Aasimar and Tieflings from ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}'' onwards.
** The Githzerai and Githyanki - though that's more like "paranoid neutral isolationists" and their evil counterpart.

** Subverted with the Svirfneblin, the Deep Gnomes from the Underdark, the home of the drow. [[DarkIsNotEvil They aren't evil]] (generally neutral, actually), but certainly can be considered 'dark gnomes'.
*** But played straight with the Gnomes and Kobolds due to the fact that their gods hate each other.

* Dark Eldar in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''. [[BlackAndGreyMorality Although the Craftworld Eldar aren't exactly nice guys either]].
** The Eldar and the Necrons.

* The Inklings in ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' have the antagonistic Octarians, who are to octopi like the Inklings are to squids. While most of them show up as {{Gonk}}ish anthropomorphic tentacles, the Octolings exemplify the counterpart better, being female-only troops capable of VoluntaryShapeshifting between octopus and humanoid form, just like the Inklings can between squid and humanoid.