wastelanders
Post-apocalyptic scavenger folk
People who inhabit a wasteland—a desolate, ruined, or post-apocalyptic region.
The term gained currency through video games and fiction depicting survivors in devastated landscapes: The wastelanders scavenged for supplies among the ruins.
It suggests hardscrabble existence, resourcefulness, and adaptation to harsh conditions.
Unsettled, roving people
- tribesAncestral social groups
- scavengersCreatures consuming dead matter
- driftersAimless travelers, homeless rovers
- settlersThose who establish homes
refugees · exiles · wanderers · outcasts · clans · factions · caravans · encampments
Decayed structural remains
- abandonedLeft behind completely
- forsakenCompletely abandoned or discarded
- desertedLeft behind, uninhabited
- barrenUnable to produce
bleak · ravaged · decimated · apocalyptic · post-apocalyptic · scorched · irradiated · crumbling
Rejected, excluded people
- dispossessedDeprived of home or land
- disenfranchisedDeprived of voting rights
- exiledForced from one's country
- alienatedMade distant or hostile
forgotten · abandoned · peripheral · underclass · feral · pariahs · untouchables · shunned
Gathering discarded or dead material
- foragingSeeking wild food sources
- rationingLimiting distribution during scarcity
- resourcefulnessAbility to solve problems creatively
- huntingPursuing wild game
trapping · firecraft · toolmaking · salvaging · hoarding · bartering · makeshift · improvised
Those still alive after
- hardyAble to endure difficulty
- tenaciousStubbornly determined to continue
- enduranceSustained effort capacity
- resourcefulSkilled at solving problems
adaptable · tough · rugged · weathered · battle-scarred · grizzled · hardened · iron-willed
nomads
Unsettled, roving people
- tribesAncestral social groups
- scavengersCreatures consuming dead matter
- driftersAimless travelers, homeless rovers
settlers · refugees · exiles · wanderers · outcasts · clans · factions · caravans · encampments · raiders
ruins
Decayed structural remains
- abandonedLeft behind completely
- forsakenCompletely abandoned or discarded
- desertedLeft behind, uninhabited
barren · bleak · ravaged · decimated · apocalyptic · post-apocalyptic · scorched · irradiated · crumbling · derelict
outcasts
Rejected, excluded people
- dispossessedDeprived of home or land
- disenfranchisedDeprived of voting rights
- exiledForced from one's country
alienated · forgotten · abandoned · peripheral · underclass · feral · pariahs · untouchables · shunned · banished
scavenging
Gathering discarded or dead material
- foragingSeeking wild food sources
- rationingLimiting distribution during scarcity
- resourcefulnessAbility to solve problems creatively
hunting · trapping · firecraft · toolmaking · salvaging · hoarding · bartering · makeshift · improvised · scrounging
survivors
Those still alive after
- hardyAble to endure difficulty
- tenaciousStubbornly determined to continue
- enduranceSustained effort capacity
resourceful · adaptable · tough · rugged · weathered · battle-scarred · grizzled · hardened · iron-willed · unflinching
wastelanderscity dwellers
People living in metropolises
urbanites · metropolitans · suburbanites · villagers · forest dwellers