History Main / WastelandElder

** In ''Film/BattleForThePlanetOfTheApes'', Mandemus is a rare non-human wasteland elder. He's the eldest, least-biased, and most philosophical co-leader of the Ape colony that survived the nuclear holocaust and is sharing their sanctuary with humans (with his younger co-leaders displaying varying degrees of FantasticRacism). After WastelandWarlord Kolp is defeated, his aide Mendez (a possible ancestor of Mendez XXVI) also becomes a wasteland elder, seeking to avoid confronting the apes and focusing on survival.

[[quoteright:350: [[Film/MadMaxFuryRoad https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mad_max_comic_2.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"When the world fell, they burned the books, leaving nothing but a random collection of wordburgers. We history men and women preserve these stories. Stories by which to navigate the future... and avoid a repetition of the past."]]

* There are numerous examples in the ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' series of computer games; Killian Darkwater, the shopkeeper/sheriff/mayor of Junktown, to name one. In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 2}}'' it's established that the PlayerCharacter of the first game eventually became one.
** The second game has two: The Elder (no name given) who is the de facto leader of your home village and fairly secular, and Hakunin, the old shaman who's invested in more spiritual matters.
* King Damas in ''VideoGame/Jak3Wastelander'' fits this trope to a T, except for the fact that, as a ProudWarriorRaceGuy, he and the citizens of Spargus City have taken up arms against the Marauders ''long'' before the main character arrives. [[spoiler:And the fact that he doesn't survive to see the rebuilding.]]

* One such elder runs the city in ''CrimsonTears'', asking you from time to time to donate money toward its renovation.

* ''Series/TheWalkingDead'': Several appear, with varying degrees of success, such as Hershel, Deanna, and King Ezekiel.

* ''Literature/MortalEngines:'' Chudleigh Pomeroy is the leader of the Guild of Historians onboard the mobile LayeredMetropolis of London, generations AfterTheEnd. Chudleigh is one of the oldest and most reasonable leaders of the city (which is destroyed in the first book's climax). He later becomes a more traditional wasteland elder in the fourth book when he turns up leading survivors of London in eking out a living in the desert and trying to build a new traction city.

* ''Series/{{Jericho}}:'' In the aftermath of a series of nuclear bombings, small-town Colorado mayor and retired Army Ranger Johnston Greene struggles to keep his town safe and stable amidst threats like nuclear fallout, the cessation of outside food shipments, and TriggerHappy looters. Even after he's voted out of office in favor of a more gung-ho rival, Johnston remains a force for wisdom and stability. Phil Constantino, the sheriff turned mayor of the neighboring town of New Bern, also starts out as such a character but quickly turns into a WastelandWarlord.

* The final ''VideoGame/DarkForcesSaga'' tie-in novel features Fort Nowhere, a smuggling settlement on an isolated desert planet. After Fort Nowhere is discovered and nearly wiped out by Imperial remnants, the survivors fall under the leadership of Griff Grawley, a gray-haired, alcoholic farmer who lives out in the desert and [[CassandraTruth unsuccessfully tried to warn them about what was coming after encountering an Imperial probe droid.]] Taking up the job gives him some good CharacterDevelopment.

* ''Literature/OutboundFlight:'' Forty-seven years after the people of Outbound Flight are largely slaughtered while trying to colonize uncharted space, Chas Uliar, Brace Trakosa, and Jobe Keely fill this role among the stranded survivors. They are the only remaining adult male survivors of the original tragedy who aren’t bedridden. The trio’s stubbornness and anti-Jedi biases cause some problems, but ultimately they never endanger the main characters.

* Ethan in ''Film/WorldGoneWild'' is this, with more than a bit of TricksterMentor thrown in.

** Played with a bit in that as time goes on, uncertainty in his leadership grows until several members of the group break off and head out with Locke to stay on the island.

* Tom Barnard from Creator/KimStanleyRobinson's ''The Wild Shore'' is the only member of the post-apocalyptic South Orange County community who remembers the Old Days before TheWar.

If the Wasteland Elder is not leading their community, chances are the actual mayor is either corrupt or has been forced to help the BigBad. Classic roles for the Elder include acting as a first point of contact, quest-giver, and MrExposition for TheHero in the beginning. Later they may rally the UntrustingCommunity to [[TrainingThePeacefulVillagers take up arms]] and become a {{Posse}} or on the other side inspire the protagonist to come out of their HeroicBSOD. With a little luck, their community won't be dying like animals any longer - but of course, the Elder themself runs the risk of MentorOccupationalHazard.

Once the BigBad is beat, the Wasteland Elder usually rallies their constituents to start working to improve their town, thanking TheHero for all they've done and offers them a more permanent home, mostly to set up a ButNowIMustGo.

The Wasteland Elder is the de facto leader of their small, rundown community. Maybe it's AfterTheEnd, it could be a {{Western}} frontier town fallen on hard times or even just a tent town for squatters in the middle of a city. No one elected them, they never put their name in a sorting hat, nor do they push their leadership on their people. They're simply an old survivor and respected enough that their word carries weight. And since pretty much everyone can theoretically grow old, wise, and respected enough to fill this trope, it is an [[UnisexTropes equal opportunity character.]]

* The Old Man in ''Film/TheSevenSamurai'' who probably inspired the ''Film/TheMagnicentSeven'' example above.

* ''Film/StakeLand:'' The sequel features a fortified compound run by an aging ManlyGay BattleCouple who come across as pretty good leaders.

** Pappagallow of the second film also counts.

* The Old Man in ''[[Film/TheMagnificentSeven1960 The Magnificent Seven]]'' is probably the ur-example for the Western.

* Jack in ''Series/{{Lost}}'' seems to have fallen into this position among the stranded plane crash survivors, although the degree to which he brought it on himself is debatable.