Counting Bullets tells the story of a small group of cavalry soldiers who are pinned down in a canyon by the enemy. Over the course of a few days, they are forced to face their differences and rely on each of their instincts to survive.
An otherwise honest gambler, played by Jack Holt, begins to cheat at cards in order to put his son John Darrow through mining school in this lavish Zane Grey adaptation produced by Paramount. The callow foster-son pays back the noble gesture by running off with Holt's mistress, Olga Baclanova.
Indian Agent Kip Lewis arrives in Gun Town where Buckskin Sawyer is having her payroll shipments robbed by Indians. Kip and his men are ready the next time and learn the robbers are white men dressed as Indians. Kip finds Davy Sawyer's case at the scene and confronts him. When Davy accuses Talbot whom he lent it to, Talbot shoots him. But Davy names Talbot before he dies and Kip goes after him.
Treasure hidden in an abandoned Shiva temple attracts both good and evil characters to it, but can they retrieve the priceless gold and jewels before the earthquake (Zalzala) hits?
Ben Trego dies defending his twin sons from Indian attack. Separated, the two boys grow up very differently, one as Paul Marsden, the other as a cowboy named Three Word Brand. Paul becomes governor of Utah while Brand partners with George Barton in a ranch. The owner of the adjacent ranch plots to get Barton and Brand out of the way in order to control water rights. When Governor Marsden comes to the area to investigate, Brand sees the resemblance between them, though neither knows about his twin. Brand waylays Paul and takes his place as governor in an attempt to thwart the crooked rancher in the water rights scheme.
Cisco saves a stagecoach from being robbed and takes a shine to one of the passengers whose father is in cahoots with a vicious criminal who plans to murder him.
Lopez is a bandit who has stolen the herd at Gil's ranch, so Hardy is about to foreclose. But Lucia has come back from New York and Gil is happy until he meets her husband, Morgan.
Zandy Allan purchases a mail-order bride, Hannah Lund. He treats her as a possession, without respect or humanity, until their shared ordeal as they struggle to survive develops in him a growing love.
When the miners of Roaring Camp become Godfathers to a motherless baby, they name the boy Luck and promise to set aside money for him from their diggings. But when they strike it rich the money is gambled away instead.
Sergeant Bob Steele (Bob Custer), of the Texas Rangers, is assigned to put an end to the lawlessness of a gang of outlaws led by a mysterious man known as 'The Black Hawk.' Hoping to infiltrate the gang, he poses as an outlaw named "Lightning" Brady.
When his ranch falls on hard times, Cowboy Roy Roger has trouble making his mortgage payment and he takes his song and dance to Wall Street to try to raise cash fast.
Sheriff Tom Tracy is summoned to the sheep camp where he finds Old Man Jenkins fatally wounded and, with his dying breath, accuses Ned Hampton, brother of the girl to whom Tom is engaged, of having shot him in the back.
Steve McGowan has proposed to avenge the death of his father, murdered by one of the followers of Chief Miller. This engages the services of a famous gunslinger called Sabata and instructs him to kill Steve. The fate joins Steve and the Mexican bandit Leon Pompero, and together they decide to defeat the murderous gunman.
A young couple and their neighbors celebrate Christmas in 1874 on the Dakota prairie. Despite tragedy and an ongoing battle with the railway company, Christmas is a homespun and overly sentimental affair.