Jubal Troop is a cowboy who is found in a weakened condition, without a horse. He is given shelter at Shep Horgan's large ranch, where he quickly makes an enemy in foreman Pinky, a cattleman who accuses Jubal of carrying the smell of sheep.
Three trappers become scouts for a cavalry captain who loses his fort to a hated colonel.
In colonial Malaysia, British big game-hunter Otto Abbot and American trapper Harry Stanton clash over the ethics of catching versus killing animals and over Abbot's mistress, Anna.
