Generating static particles on a mesh and instancing to them?

I’m trying to get more familiar with blender - my usual tool is modo. I’d love to know how to accomplish something like this :

  • a static distribution of particles across a mesh’s surface. The particles should be instantaneously generated and survive the length of the scene (i.e. no kill event)
  • I’d really like to then be able to instance a mesh item at the location of each particle.

Ideally, for the second part, it would be possible to instance one member of a number of items (e.g. mixed foliage / whatever).

In modo, this is a particle generator feeding a replicator and the replicator can take a ‘group’ of items from which it picks one for each ‘instance’.

I’m hoping this is the right subforum for this (as it is particle related). Apologies if this is in the wrong place.