Season 3 spans several months on a world where the seasons can last for years at a time. Autumn has fallen across the world, with winter not far behind. The people should be preparing for years of snow and ice, but the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros instead remain gripped by civil war. Would-be king Renly Baratheon has been assassinated, altering the alliances in the war. The cruel boy-king Joffrey Baratheon has won a great victory by securing an alliance with House Tyrell, with his supporters defeating his uncle Stannis in an epic battle. Joffrey now commands the largest armies in the realm and his triumph appears inevitable.