Life isn't what it was 20 years ago, and at Woodworth, they know that. Woodworth Homestead is one of the last central New England homesteads on the disputed territory of the British Empire, the New England territories and several nomadic groups. The homestead's owner Ben took over the land after his father died during the great plague of the late 2010s, and has spent the past 20 years defending the land, dealing with hostiles and the reality of foreign powers vying for his land. Ben meets a valley diplomat named Colt who is sent as a last hope for an alliance, using him as a right-hand man in preparing for the winter season as he considers the offer. As tensions rise between the states around the homestead and general unrest sweeps the territories, Ben must fight for the future of his great-grandfather's land and the lives entrusted to him after the collapse of a greater society.