State of North Yankton

North Yankton is a fictional state featured in Grand Theft Auto V and is seen in the missions "Prologue" and "Bury the Hatchet". The state is located in the Midwest and may be based upon the state of North Dakota. Very little is known about the state, however, the small town of Ludendorff is located in the state, a city based on Fargo, North Dakota and Bismarck, North Dakota. It is always snowing in North Yankton during both of its appearances.

Known Towns

 * Ludendorff

Bank robbery
In 2004, nine years before the main events of GTA V, Michael De Santa, Trevor Philips, and Brad Snider rob a bank in Ludendorff. The North Yankton State Patrol swarm the scene and chase the three men as they try to escape to their pickup helicopter. The getaway SUV is hit by a train and ruined, and the trio escape on foot to their destination. A sniper (Dave Norton) hiding around a corner shoots Brad and Michael, killing Brad and immobilizing Michael. Trevor is forced to fend off the approaching police himself, and runs away from some armed pursuing locals. A funeral for Michael is then shown at a snowy cemetery, while Michael watches on from a distance and flicks away his cigarette.

Sometime between 2004 and 2013, Michael and his family, and Trevor both move to Los Santos and Blaine County, respectively.

Cemetery shootout
North Yankton is visited again in 2013 during the mission "Bury the Hatchet" by Trevor, who was determided to figure out who was really buried in Michael's fake grave after the bank job, despite Michael's attempts to talk him out of it. Michael pursued him in an attempt to stop him. Trevor's suspicions are eventually confirmed when he discovers that the person who was buried in the grave was none other than he and Michael's old running buddy, Brad. After discovering Brad's corpse in the grave, the two are attacked by Triads in hunt for Trevor; Trevor escapes from the place, leaving Michael to fight the Triads alone. Michael fights his way through the Triads, but he is captured when he reaches his car.

North Yankton State Police

 * See main article North Yankton State Patrol.

The police seen in Ludendorff are State Police, evidenced by text on the cars. As of 2004, the state police drive white Police Roadcruisers with two stripes down the side and "STATE PATROL" next to the front door, and the police emblem emblazoned on the front doors. They also use Police Ranchers with the same livery. Due to the snowy weather, the cars are fitted with snow chains on the tires to allow for better traction on the road. State Troopers wear black coats over white shirts with black ties, and light brown pants and can be sometimes seen wearing a winter hat.

NOOSE

 * See main article NOOSE.

Though the NOOSE are never seen in either parts of the missions in GTA V, they also have jurisdiction and law enforcement capabilities in North Yankton, being a federal government agency. They most likely have a field office set up in a larger city in the state and were therefore never seen or responded to the actions of the bank robbery Prologue and Bury the Hatchet missions due to the amount of time it would take for them to arrive at the scene.

Trivia

 * A postcard for North Yankton can be seen on the official GTA V website in the Los Santos and Blaine County travelogue.
 * North Yankton's license plates in 2004 have a red stripe on the top with "YANKTON" written in white text, based on 2001-2006 South Dakota license plates.
 * Unlike Los Santos and Blaine County, North Yankton does not allow players to roam around the whole map, as attempting to do so will result in mission failure. This is because the rest of the map doesn't physically exist and several areas are not solid.
 * Textures, models and sounds for a Husky were found in the game files. Since Huskies naturally appear in cold places (Alaska, Canada, Siberia), it means that it could be spawning in North Yankton since San Andreas is not a suitable place.
 * It is not possible to take Snapmatic pictures in Singleplayer in North Yankton, however it is possible in GTA Online with a glitch.
 * There is a glitch to get into North Yankton in GTA Online. This glitch is very similar to the glitch on getting to Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

North Yankton