It was called "Able Archer 83," and it ended the world. It wasn't supposed to, of course: beginning on 2 November 1983, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) held a large-scale war-game, meant to train the alliance's militaries in the finer points of modern warfare and in cooperation in the face of the joint-Soviet Union/Warsaw Pact threat. It was just more Cold War positioning, a show of force by the Eagle to the Bear. What no one expected was the Russian reaction.

Panicked by such a large-scale deployment of NATO forces, Soviet military analysts came to the same conclusion: NATO was in the beginning stages of a pre-emptive strike into East Germany, a scenario that could only end in the defeat of the Soviet Union and her allies. With little time to waste, a somber message was dispatched, and the keys were turned.

In less than an hour, the entire world died in nuclear fire. Panic and paranoia had led to the downfall of civilization. And yet, there were survivors. Those lucky enough to live too far away from a nuclear target or found refuge in one of the few actually useful fallout shelters realized the morning of 4 November that their world had ended, ripped away from them with all the savagery that the splitting of an atom could provide.

In what had once been United States, the survivors had to deal with harsh realities. First, the Federal and State governments were gone, leaving only small communities of survivors to try to pick up the pieces. Second, all major cities and military bases in the country had been reduced to radioactive ruins, meaning that access to most survival gear, high technology, and communication was now impossible. Third, and by far the most important, while Russia had used plenty of high-yield weapons during their nuclear assault, plenty of low-megaton weapons had also been thrown at the United States. While a hydrogen bomb has more explosive force, the majority of its fallout is dispersed in the upper atmosphere, and by the time it reaches the ground it is more or less inert. However, a low-yield weapon doesn't have the capability to blow its fallout into the stratosphere, meaning that clouds of radiation were now a reality. Clouds of radiation blow in storms across the countryside, and vast swathes of land are pocked with radioactive material, hazards that can lead to death in minutes.

In sum, those fortunate enough to survive World War III were now without coordination, without communication, and isolated from the few areas not irradiated. Many of those who lived through the opening hours of the apocalypse would die, tumors in every corner of their body, trying to find a place where a Geiger counter wouldn't make it's damning ticks. However, the few that made it through the first months of post-apocalyptic life would begin the lengthy process of rebuilding.

For those living in what was once the Great Plains, the heartland of the United States, "rebuilding" meant agriculture. Farmland began to reappear in areas safe from radiation, and small villages began to appear around them, becoming larger and more complex as a new generation of survivors entered the world. A tenuous status quo formed over the first ten years: farming from spring through fall ending in a harvest, with the produce carefully screened for radiation. Then would come winter, with deadly radioactive storms blowing through the region with a ferociousness beyond any tornado. When the storms end, thus begins spring, and the cycle continues. Survivors lived, died, and reproduced. Mankind was returned to a life only so far removed from Mesopotamia.

However, that would change when an enterprising soul discovered the secret to ethanol. With a gasoline-of-sorts now available, the many surviving communities began to dream of ways to look for anyone else who had made it through the apocalypse. Early attempts with lead-lined vehicles, farm trucks converted to grey boxes with wheels, were only so fruitful. It was the realization of how much radiation was in the air that changed things. While radioactive clouds were a threat to any flier, it was realized that the aging crop-dusters that had been the staple of life on pre-war farms were more than sufficient to survive in this new world.

The first Barnstormers, as these pioneers were called, were either brave, stupid, or both. But they would chart the many surviving communities in the Great Plains. From their actions came trade and communication, and within five years it brought about something that hadn't been seen since 1983: government. The Plainslands Republic, often referred to as the "Plainslands," came into being after years of debate ending with a simple constitution being signed on 25 December 1998. The new government quickly attempted to standardize methods and rates of trade, attempting to stabilize the fledgling economy and ensure that the precious food and water was accessible to all. The crop-dusters that had been so crucial to the beginning of the Plainslands were slowly phased out, replaced by hand-crafted wooden creations, all thinly lined with lead to protect the pilot from radiation while in the air. Bigger planes were produced to carry supplies, while smaller ones were created to act as vital couriers to keep the settlements in touch with the government. With frugal decision making, and individual bravery on the behalf of the growing population of Barnstormers, the Plainsland Republic continued to grow.

That ended on 7 March 2008, when a settlement on the eastern border of the Republic, James' Run, spotted a series of dots in the sky, and heard the low echo of turboprop engines. Thirty minutes later, those dots revealed themselves to be a flight of three large aircraft with unknown markings on their tails. The aircraft landed at the town's small airstrip, and out from them emerged squads of men armed with rifles. The settlers of James' Run surrendered within minutes, and those who had attempted to fight for their home had been gunned down. It took a month for the Plainslands to learn the name of their enemy, and another month for them to realize that no diplomatic resolution could be found. On 15 May 2008, the Plainslands Republic declared war on the Settler's Confederacy.

The Barnstormer's War had begun.