History Main / SurprisinglyEliteCannonFodder

** Polish troops were ''theoretically'' cannonfodder for three of the combatants fighting UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, but in practice they were never actually used in this capacity due to their tendency to surrender to the enemy. The Polish-Russian dual monarchy (commonly called 'Russia'), Austro-Hungarian dual empire, and German kingdom ''all'' fielded combat units composed largely or even entirely of ethnic Poles during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI. However the German ''Polnische Wehrmacht'' (headed by the later military dictator of Poland, Joseph Piwsudski) and Austro-Hungarian ''Polnische Legion'' were only very small with the former never having more than 10,000 men and the no more than 60,000. While the Polish-Russian kingdom fielded as many as 200,000 Polish troops, including some with very good (in relative terms) training and morale, they were as unreliable as their German and Austro-Hungarian counterparts and were never used in combat if STAVKA could avoid it.

* This is the entire premise of ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefrontII'', where you play as the [[OpeningACanOfClones 501st Legion]], which "has a history of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat."

* The PlayerCharacter in ''VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar'' starts off as this - his first true famous action in the war is getting sent out over the "Round Table" without any support beyond his wingman, as nothing more than a distraction while the main attack commences elsewhere, and defeating an elite squad of Belkan aces ''anyway''.
* ''VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown'' has player character Trigger assigned to a penal squadron. Despite flying clapped-out rustbucket planes only barely flying in an attempt to confuse the enemy and act as decoys, Spare Squadron (read: mostly Trigger) deliver some of the most decisive blows of the war.

** Polish troops were ''kind of'' cannonfodder for three different combatants fighting UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, though in practice their treatment seems to have been little different to that of other forces - [[DudeWheresMyRespect save the egregious lack of publicity recognition given to their efforts]]. [[DudeWheresMyRespect This became particularly grating when other forces received greater thanks for their own efforts, sometimes despite them having actually contributed far less than the Poles]]. The French, British, and Soviets all fielded Polish veteran expats in combat units, in which many acquitted themselves very well. While the NKVD (predecessor to the KGB) ''did'' have those captured Polish Army Officers who refused to serve in the army of Communist Poland executed (in the 'Katyn' massacre of 1940, with as many as nine-tenths refusing and being killed), the volunteers seemed to have performed admirably against Nazi Germany. Indeed, it was a Polish Army force which finally liberated Warsaw in January 1945 (for a given value of 'liberation'). The British in particular were heavily reliant on their Poles' grit, guts, and experience to sway the outcome of several pitched trench-warfare battles including the Battles of Monte Cassino (Italian campaign, January-April 1944), the lack of recognition given for their part in that particular campaign being something of a sore point.

** The Watch are always a RagTagBunchOfMisfits, but they are also this trope in ''{{Literature/Guards Guards}}''. With the rise of the self-regulating Guilds as the new power players in Akkh-Morpork, Lord Vetinari has deliberately allowed the Watch to dwindle down in a few no-hopers commanded by a drunk, so they don't cause trouble. The arrival of [[TheAce Carrot]] kicks some life back into the squad, and by the end of the book they have saved the city from a rampaging dragon.

** The Watch are always a RagTagBunchOfMisfits, but they are also this trope in ''{{Discworld/Guards Guards}}''. With the rise of the self-regulating Guilds as the new power players in Akkh-Morpork, Lord Vetinari has deliberately allowed the Watch to dwindle down in a few no-hopers commanded by a drunk, so they don't cause trouble. The arrival of [[TheAce Carrot]] kicks some life back into the squad, and by the end of the book they have saved the city from a rampaging dragon.

** This is the purpose of the SPARTAN-[=IIIs=], or at least the Alpha and Beta companies of them. Unlike their predecessors, who were turned into {{Super Soldier}}s, the [=IIIs=] were turned into enhanced but disposable soldiers, meant to be spent on a single key mission. A number of them were later revealed to have survived their suicide missions, as well as there being a whole third company of which some three hundred SPARTAN-[=IIIs=] survived the war.

* This is the entire premise of ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefront II'', where you play as the [[OpeningACanOfClones 501st Legion]], which "has a history of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat."

-->'''Sweetwater:''' Don't they have specially trained guys in the Army for that?\\

* The Arbiter rank from ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' plays with this. Basically, a highly decorated Elite who nevertheless has somehow managed to disgrace himself ([[spoiler:or simply been unfortunate enough to be seen by the Prophets as a potential threat to their power]]) will sometimes be granted the title and sent on a highly important, if suicidal, mission, giving the Prophets a way to execute him for his crimes while making him do something useful in the meantime; if he lives, well, there are always more suicide missions that need to be done. Indeed, despite the nature of the rank, Arbiters are generally highly respected within the Covenant (given that they are usually selected from the best and brightest Elites), with the authority to command entire fleets if need be. However, in the case of Thel 'Vadam, the current Arbiter, he's just too badass to die, so [[spoiler:the Prophets finally order Tartarus to just murder him (as part of their greater plan to wipe out all the Elites). This still doesn't work.]]

** This is the purpose of SPARTAN-[=IIIs=]. Unlike their predecessors, who were turned into {{Super Soldier}}s, the [=IIIs=] were turned into enhanced but disposable soldiers, meant to be spent on a single key mission.

** [[FromBadToWorse It gets worse.]] In ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChroniclesIII'', The Nameless' missions are essentially one [[CannonFodder deliberately suicidal task]] after another, up to and including assassinating Emperor Maximillian in his fortress of Ghirlandaio.[[labelnote:spoiler]][[ForegoneConclusion That's about the only one time they fail.]][[/labelnote]] Have we mentioned that The Nameless [[ArmyOfThievesAndWhores is a penal legion]] and [[DysfunctionJunction the characters dysfunctional]]? Fortunately, Kurt and co. are a perseverant and crafty bunch.

* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': Rincewind gains this status in ''Discworld/InterestingTimes'', when Archchancellor Ridcully notes that while he is constantly getting into life-threatening situations, he has quite the knack for ''surviving'' them.

* In ''{{Manga/Berserk}}'', the Band of the Hawk fills this role for the Kingdom of Midland. When the nobles in the army object to Griffith's proposal to recapture Doldrey with only his own tiny band of misfits despite the number of elite troops Midland has already lost, Sir Laban points out that they have nothing to lose if Griffith bears the risk alone, and that the country will benefit if he pulls another miracle.

[[folder:Mythology and Religion]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* ''Webcomic/ExterminatusNow'' usually has the gang [[http://exterminatusnow.co.uk/2004-09-10/comic/orbital-arachnaphobia/previous-experience-not-required/ sent off]] to do some incredibly dangerous mission specifically because they're a bunch of frakkers whose backs no one would care to see. As a result, they frequently don't get the job done too well. However, their tenacity at surviving numerous operations where their command staff are explicitly ''trying'' to get them killed off means that Schaefer tends to go to them first if there is a genuine need for a group of inquisitors with a record for pulling off suicide missions.
-->'''[[http://exterminatusnow.comicgenesis.com/d/20040910.html Rogue]]''': Is there any reason this mission is code-named ''"Dead Men Walking"''?
** There's also the fact that they have a steadily increasing supply of blackmail images and videos they can use against their boss: they use this to extort an incredibly large base, some very impressive computers, and some very impressive hardware from their boss, but can't use it to keep from being forced to do their jobs. So, if they go out and get killed, Schaefer wins, and if they come back successful, the Inquisition wins. Perfect Win-Win scenario, as long as their failure doesn't doom the planet to dominion by the dark gods.
--->'''[[http://exterminatusnow.comicgenesis.com/d/20100605.html Schaefer]]''': You have a history of making it out of impossible situations, no matter how often we [[UriahGambit try to ki-]] no matter what assignment we deploy you on.
* Arachne from ''Webcomic/YetAnotherFantasyGamerComic'' was there, [[http://yafgc.net/comic/0070-a-quick-promotion/ done that]]. ReassignmentBackfire happened much later.

[[folder:Web Original]]
* The Red and Blue armies from ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' are culled from a collection of washouts, trainees, [[ShellShockedVeteran former soldiers]], and other undesirables to run mock battle simulations so the agents of Project Freelancer can test their skills and equipment before deployment. The two teams that get the most focus are even worse, yet through a combination of their own quirks and sheer dumb luck they manage to dismantle Project Freelancer, defeat and/or kill ''four'' Agents, and undo a massive FalseFlagOperation by Freelancer's rival, Charon Industries.

* ''Film/DownPeriscope'': The crew of the USS ''Stingray'' are assigned to be the aggressors in a naval exercise meant to determine if diesel submarines could be a threat to the US Navy, going up against modern nuclear attack subs. In addition to the entire crew up to Lt. Commander Dodge himself being a RagtagBunchOfMisfits, the ''Stingray'' herself is a WorldWarII era diesel submarine, rather than a modern (and much stealthier) Diesel-Electric boat. It is worth noting that at least one key admiral considers the exercise a waste of time, and stack the deck for the ''Stingray'' to fail. With a bit of assistance from another admiral taking the whole thing more seriously, and a ''lot'' of CrazyEnoughToWork shenanigans, they succeed in slipping past the nuke boats long enough to lay in their simulated attack.

* The 36th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, also known as the SS-Sturmbrigade Dirlewanger (1944), or simply the Dirlewanger Brigade, was a military unit of the Waffen-SS during World War II. Composed of criminals expected to die fighting in the front-line, the unit was led by Oskar Dirlewanger. Originally formed for anti-partisan duties against the Polish resistance; the unit eventually saw action in Slovakia, Hungary, and against the Soviet Red Army near the end of the war. During its operations it engaged in the rape, pillaging and mass murder of civilians.
** The unit participated in some of World War II's most notorious campaigns of terror in the east. During the organization's time in Russia, Dirlewanger burned women and children alive and let starved packs of dogs feed on them. He was known to hold large formations with the sole purpose of injecting Jews with strychnine[[note]][[EvenEvilHasStandards He got interrogated by the]] [=SS=] Judge Konrad Morgen and he admitted he used strychnine, reasoning [[PragmaticVillainy he had to recover their clothing intact]], which would be ruined by blood during shooting[[/note]]. Dirlewanger's unit took part in the occupation of Belarus, where it carved out a reputation within the Waffen-SS as an atrocious unit. Numerous Heer and SS commanders attempted to remove Dirlewanger from the SS and disband the unit, although he had patrons within the Nazi apparatus who intervened on his behalf. His unit was most notably credited with the destruction of Warsaw, and the massacre of ~100,000 of the city's population during the Warsaw Uprising; and participating in the brutal suppression of the Slovak National Uprising in 1944. Dirlewanger's Division of the Waffen SS generated fear throughout Waffen-SS Organizations including the SS-Führungshauptamt (SS Command Headquarters) and earned the notoriety as the most criminal and heinous SS unit in Hitler's war machine.
*** The Dirlewanger brigade/division does not really qualify as 'elite' while cannon fodder it might be. Himmler wanted its own penal unit and this really was a unit of criminals not of soldiers accused and convicted of minor or major offenses. The casualty rates reflected that which regularly caused the unit to drastically down-size when faced with anything more dangerous than women and children.

[[caption-width-right:350:That's a group of expendable {{Boxed Crook}}s going up against the heaviest hitters in TheDCU. And it ain't a CurbStompBattle!]]

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/SuicideSquad https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cannon_fodder.jpg]]]]

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII:'' Gael is an old undead who used to serve as a Slave Knight, an expendable servant sent to fight in countless wars. Most Slave Knights were driven to madness by their never-ending duty, but Gael kept his sanity and has outlived his masters by what is implied to be millennia. He can be summoned for two battles in which the [[PlayerCharacter Ashen One]] is outnumbered and can stand his ground rather well. He also guides the Ashen One through the Dreg Heap, leaving messages that point out places where you can survive the long falls throughout the area, and at the end of the Ringed City he [[spoiler:devours the blood of the Pygmy Lords for their Dark Souls, becoming the incarnation of the very Dark Soul itself]].

* Thorfinn serves as a one-man example in ''Manga/VinlandSaga''. Askeladd, the commander he serves under, doesn't really care whether Thorfinn lives or dies (Thorfinn's honour won't let him leave Askeladd's band [[YouKilledMyFather until he's killed the latter]] in a DuelToTheDeath) and thus he throws the younger man StraightAtTheCommander or uses him for other dangerous tasks like [[ShootTheMessenger message-delivery to an unreliable ally]] or retrieving a hostage from a forest fire, using the promise of a duel to motivate Thorfinn. Thorfinn, on his end, despises Askeladd and is only too happy to stay alive out of spite until he's killed him.

* ''Film/TheDirtyDozen'': The basic premise was taking a group of twelve prisoners, training them for a mission and sending them to certain death to infiltrate a Nazi hideout. Winning gives the Army a big war victory; losing just saves them execution costs.

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

* In the backstory to ''Film/StarTrekNemesis'', the Romulans create a clone of Picard for infiltration purposes, but abandon the project when a new government takes power. The clone is left to die amongst [[FantasticRacism Remans]], whom the Romulans used as cannon fodder during the Dominion War. This human clone led over a dozen ''successful'' engagements.
* In ''Film/MissionImpossibleFallout'', Lark [[spoiler: who was later revealed to be a decoy, not the real Lark, and thus ultimately a nobody]] put up one hell of a fight against Ethan and Walker in the bathroom fight scene and would have been able to kill Ethan if Ilsa had not stepped in.
* ''Film/DownPeriscope'': The crew of the USS ''Stingray'' are assigned to be the aggressors in a naval exercise meant to determine if diesel submarines could be a threat to the US Navy, going up against modern nuclear attack subs. In addition to the entire crew up to Lt. Commander Dodge himself being a RagtagBunchOfMisfits, the ''Stingray'' herself is a WorldWarII era diesel submarine, rather than a modern (and much stealthier) Diesel-Electric boat. It is worth noting that at least one key admiral considers the exercise a waste of time, and stack the deck for the ''Stingray'' to fail. With a bit of assistance from another admiral taking the whole thing more seriously, and a ''lot'' of CrazyEnoughToWork shenanigans, they succeed in slipping past the nuke boats long enough to lay in their simulated attack.

* In the ''Literature/TheShahnameh'', Rostam frequently becomes this. Despite outliving generations upon generations of royalty and proving himself the most powerful warrior in the East, he still carries out missions or new kings well into his four hundredth year, right up until the day of his death. Admittedly, he is more frequently tasked with mentoring kings' offspring after a few hundred years, but the fact remains that he dies in combat.
* [[Literature/{{Discworld}} Rincewind]] gains this status in ''Discworld/InterestingTimes'', when Archchancellor Ridcully notes that while he is constantly getting into life-threatening situations, he has quite the knack for ''surviving'' them.
* Klaus Hauptman knowingly invoked this trope in ''[[Literature/HonorHarrington Honor Among Enemies]]''. He convinced the Royal Manticoran Navy to offer Honor Harrington, a major thorn in his side, a return to RMN service as senior captain of a Q-ship squadron in Silesia fighting pirates (who happened to be threatening his shipping). He figured either she'd succeed and protect his interests, or she'd fail and likely be killed while doing it.
* At the end of ''Literature/HarryPotter'', Harry [[spoiler: begins to think of himself as this, after learning of Dumbledore's manipulative plans.]] Whether or not this was the truth is up in the air.
--> [[spoiler:''Of course there had been a bigger plan; Harry had simply been too foolish to see it, he realized that now. He had never questioned his own assumption that Dumbledore wanted him alive. Now he saw that his lifespan had always been determined by how long it took to eliminate all the Horcruxes. Dumbledore had passed off destroying them to him, and obediently he had continued to chip away at the bonds tying not only Voldemort, but himself, to life. How neat, how elegant, not to waste any more lives, but to give the dangerous task to the boy who had already been marked for slaughter, and whose death would not be a calamity, but another blow against Voldemort.'']]
** Dumbledore was not available for questioning during the climactic moment, but his behaviour both before and after suggests he hoped and intended for the individual in question to survive, but would have considered it an acceptable loss to defeat Voldemort.
* In ''Literature/BelisariusSeries'' Damadora's Rajput Army was assigned to a diversionary task. In the process it became the best army in the Malwa service and made Damadora TheEmperor.
* [[Literature/TheBible David himself]] (yes, the TropeNamer for the UriahGambit). He was sent by King Saul to bring back 100 Philistine foreskins (and therefore kill their previous owners) to prove himself worthy of marrying Saul's daughter. [[GreenEyedMonster Saul intended for him to die]], but David survived and brought back ''200'' foreskins.
* In AndreiLivadny's ''[[Literature/TheHistoryOfTheGalaxy Serv-Battalion]]'', an [[TheEmpire Earth Alliance]] admiral uses a unit of [[AMechByAnyOtherName serv-machines]] as an extremely expensive diversion to capture a powerful Colonial flagship and its WaveMotionGun. The rookie pilots' [[IKnowMortalKombat training in simulations]] gives them a surprising edge and they inflict great damage on the enemy, but [[SubvertedTrope die anyway]] when the flagship takes the bait and [[DeathFromAbove bombs them]]. The serv-machines' AI modules do take on fragments of the pilots' personalities and survive the battles, however.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* The basic premise for ''Series/GarrisonsGorillas''.

[[folder:Music]]
* Savoyard march song ''Gironfla'', where the King of Savoy musters himself an army of 80 halberd-armed peasants, 4 cast iron guns and baggage train of 20 donkeys, puts a twenty-year old EnsignNewbie Cristopho de Carignan to lead it - and wins the French army sent against it. [[spoiler:The song is based on RealLife historical events.]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

--> '''[[http://exterminatusnow.comicgenesis.com/d/20040910.html Rogue]]''': Is there any reason this mission is code-named ''"Dead Men Walking"''?

--> '''[[http://exterminatusnow.comicgenesis.com/d/20100605.html Schaefer]]''': You have a history of making it out of impossible situations, no matter how often we [[UriahGambit try to ki-]] no matter what assignment we deploy you on.

[[folder:WebOriginal]]

[[folder: Real Life]]

* The Tuskegee Airmen, also known as the Red Tails for their [[NoseArt distinctive paintjobs]] were a group of black airmen recruited and trained by the US Army Air Forces during WWII. The US armed forces were still racially segregated, so entire units were formed with black pilots, maintenance crews, and even medical staff. Once deployed overseas, they proved themselves highly capable, and the Red Tails would become famous for their bomber escort missions, with a reputation of never losing a bomber to enemy fighters (not true, but it proved to be a very successful bit of wartime propaganda), including one battle where they shot down three German jet fighters over Berlin. By the end of the war, they would accumulate 3 Distinguished Unit Citations and 96 Distinguished Flying Crosses.

** The unit participated in some of World War II's most notorious campaigns of terror in the east. During the organization's time in Russia, Dirlewanger burned women and children alive and let starved packs of dogs feed on them. He was known to hold large formations with the sole purpose of injecting Jews with strychnine. Dirlewanger's unit took part in the occupation of Belarus, where it carved out a reputation within the Waffen-SS as an atrocious unit. Numerous Heer and SS commanders attempted to remove Dirlewanger from the SS and disband the unit, although he had patrons within the Nazi apparatus who intervened on his behalf. His unit was most notably credited with the destruction of Warsaw, and the massacre of ~100,000 of the city's population during the Warsaw Uprising; and participating in the brutal suppression of the Slovak National Uprising in 1944. Dirlewanger's Division of the Waffen SS generated fear throughout Waffen-SS Organizations including the SS-Führungshauptamt (SS Command Headquarters) and earned the notoriety as the most criminal and heinous SS unit in Hitler's war machine.

* White blood cells are this for anybody not suffering from AIDS or some other immune disorder. As the body's first line of defense against harmful bacteria and other invaders, they are utterly disposable, only last about two days each even if they aren't wiped out fighting some germ and yet they'll still obliterate the vast majority of the pathogens your body comes in contact with before you even have a chance to feel the least but sick.

* The basic set-up for "Hunter's Hellcats" in ''Our Fighting Forces'' from Creator/DCComics. The Hellcats were a group of convicted felons sent on dangerous missions behind enemy lines during WWII.