Eletään levottomia aikoja 1920-luvun Europassa. Ensimmäisen suuren sodan tuhka mustaa lumen tänäkin päivänä. Sotaa raskaasti panssaroiduilla mecheillään ruokkinut kapitalistinen kaupunkivaltio, jota kutsuttiin yksinkertaisesti Tehtaaksi, on nyt sulkenut ovensa. Tämä on herättänyt usean naapurimaan kiinnostuksen.

Scythe is an engine-building game set in an alternate-history 1920s period. It is a time of farming and war, broken hearts and rusted gears, innovation and valor. In Scythe, each player represents a character from one of five factions of Eastern Europe who are attempting to earn their fortune and claim their faction's stake in the land around the mysterious Factory. Players conquer territory, enlist new recruits, reap resources, gain villagers, build structures, and activate monstrous mechs.

Scythe gives players almost complete control over their fate. Other than each player’s individual hidden objective card, the only elements of luck or variability are “encounter” cards that players will draw as they interact with the citizens of newly explored lands. Each encounter card provides the player with several options, allowing them to mitigate the luck of the draw through their selection. Combat is also driven by choices, not luck or randomness.