Visit Ludendorff - the best fish boiled in lye in all of North Yankton!”
Ludendorff is a small rural town located in the state of North Yankton, featured in Grand Theft Auto V, and appears as a seasonal Survival setting in Grand Theft Auto Online as part of the Bottom Dollar Bounties update.
Description[]
Ludendorff was established in 1945, and still retains some of its original buildings.
Little else is known about the town's history, other than it being home to the "Midwest's Biggest Beaver", The Ludendorff Beaver, which was built in 1987 and stands 10 meters tall[1].
The town is very small, with its amenities centered on Cavalry Boulevard, the main street running through the town. The town's population is given as 918 on the welcome sign[2], however this is undated. There are no radio stations available in the town, but there is a newspaper, the Ludendorff Weekly although it is sometimes not published owing to a lack of newsworthy events.
Ludendorff has its own in-game Lifeinvader page which is only accessible by Trevor. It states the town has 3 churches, 3 liquor stores and 3 Ammu-Nations. A resident named Eddie Joyner has claimed the largest radish in the state of North Yankton for 9 consecutive years. The town is obviously usually cold and snowy, as the Lifeinvader posts include mention of 51 °F (10.5 °C) being unusually hot.
In both of its appearances the exploration of the town is considerably restricted, not allowing the player to follow any paths other than the main road. During the night at the end of the main road there is a low-textured illuminated wall, this "wall" is unsolid. The wall is probably created to make the illusion of a bigger town, in fact, after the crossroad for the Church the town is not designed to be explored.
The pause screen map is not accurate and many roads displayed on it do not exist in areas that are not normally accessible, i.e. past the town. However, all buildings that are shown on the map are there, as drawn.
Ludendorff is known to have a stenchful, foul odor during parts of the year due to "sewer malfunctions." When Michael and Trevor are hanging out together, they might mention this and reflect on it, sarcastically claiming they're glad they "didn't die in a place that smelled so bad."
There is an easter egg found under the bridge. An alien can be found frozen under some transparent ice. The alien looks the same as those killed in the mission Grass Roots and who abduct Michael in Did Somebody Say Yoga?.
Influence[]
Ludendorff may be based on the eastern area of Fargo, the largest city of North Dakota, with the landmark cinema in town being a replica of the Fargo Theatre.
The town may be named after Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff, a German general in World War I who later become infamous for staging the Munich "Beer Hall Putsch" alongside Adolf Hitler in 1923. This would be similar to the city of Bismarck, North Dakota which was named after German chancellor Otto von Bismarck.
Known Residents[]
- Bill Petty [3]
- Eddie Joyner [4]
- Sandy Munsen
- @LudendorffAnnie (Bleeter user)
- @snowchainlennie3 (Bleeter user)
Roads[]
Businesses[]
- Ammu-Nation (x3)
- Banner Hotel (x2)
- Bobcat Security Depot
- Burgers
- Caipira Airways travel agency
- Café
- Cheap Shot Coffee
- Discount Kitchen Supplies
- Klepto's Pawn Store
- Liquor Store (x3)
- Ludendorff Hardware
- Ludendorff Locksmiths
- Ludendorff Repairs
- Ludendorff Shipping Co.
- Ludendorff Wood Supplies
- Pharmacy
- Pollock Cinema
Law Enforcement[]
Main article: North Yankton State Patrol
The police seen in Ludendorff in GTA V are State Troopers of North Yankton. The state police drive white Police Roadcruisers with two stripes down the side and "STATE PATROL" written next to the front door, along with the police emblem. They also use Police Ranchers with the same livery. The cars are fitted with snow chains on their tires. Officers wear black coats over white shirts with black ties, and light brown pants.
Events[]
Events of Grand Theft Auto V[]
In 2004, Michael Townley, Trevor Philips, Brad Snider and an unnamed "local yokel" driver robbed a cash depot in Ludendorff. The police arrived on the scene and chased the trio as they try to escape to their getaway helicopter. The driver was shot and killed by the police and Michael took the wheel. The Rancher XL was hit by a train, spun into a pole and wrecked, and the group escaped on foot to their destination. An FIB sniper hiding around a corner shot Brad and Michael, killing Brad and immobilizing Michael. Trevor is forced to fend off the approaching police himself, and escapes from some armed pursuing locals. A funeral for Michael is then shown at a snowy cemetery, while Michael watches on from a safe distance, flicks away his cigarette and leaves.
Sometime between 2004 and 2013, Michael, his family, and Trevor both move to Los Santos and Blaine County, respectively. During Bury the Hatchet, after becoming increasingly suspicious of the circumstances surrounding the aftermath of the cash depot job, Trevor returns to Ludendorff in order to exhume Michael's grave, whilst Michael pursues him. When Trevor arrives at the cemetery, he opens up the coffin, and his suspicions are confirmed when he finds Brad's body inside. Trevor then escapes again when Michael is confronted by a gang of Los Santos Triads members who are hunting Trevor. A shootout ensues in the graveyard and Michael is eventually captured as he tries to make his own escape.
Events of Grand Theft Auto Online[]
Ludendorff is first introduced in the Bottom Dollar Bounties update. As this area is exclusively a Survival game mode setting, it plays no role in the storyline of GTA Online.
Prominent Appearances in Gameplay[]
Grand Theft Auto V[]
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
Gallery[]
Grand Theft Auto V[]
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
Glitches/Exploits[]
Grand Theft Auto V[]
Trying to explore Ludendorff during Bury the Hatchet is impossible as the game will fail the mission should the player deviate from the designated path to the church's cemetery. Earlier, there was a glitch that allows the player to explore it by abandoning the Asea where the route changes, and then climbing onto some walls and running along the nearest building at the left (when heading to the cemetery), without abandoning the car to prevent a mission failure.[5]
- The method is somewhat long, as the player needs the Asea closer while using another car, as leaving far away or re-entering it will fail the mission.
- An exception is when the Asea is pushed too far away of the destination point, allowing the player to explore the place without failing the mission. However, if driving too close to the cemetery, the mission automatically fails.[6]
It should be noted that although the town's solid areas are very small, accessing the town through the use of modifications on the PC version reveal that vehicles will continue to spawn and navigate the streets, probably to avoid crashing the game or causing other glitches.
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
Before patch 1.08, Grand Theft Auto Online players could freely explore Ludendorff through a glitch, but it has since been patched. After this, players were still able to access North Yankton by using a slight variation of the original glitch, but this was patched once again in patch 1.10.
Since they aren't scripted in the online glitch version, standard Los Santos Police Department units spawn instead of state patrol units.
Bottom Dollar Bounties[]
Ludendorff visited during an Air Race through the Playlist exploit (patch 1.69).
With the Bottom Dollar Bounties, Ludendorff is officially introduced in GTA Online as a Halloween Survival-exclusive setting. For this appearance, only the town of Ludendorff is rendered, while a huge section of Cavalry Boulevard (including the frozen river, bridges and the cash depot) are not rendered.[7]
Players could freely explore the town section of Ludendorff through an exploit, by creating a Playlist with two Jobs, with the first on the list being the Ludendorff Cemetery Survival (only available during Halloween seasons). If the player is Wasted after the first wave starts and skips to the next job, the game would not switch the Ludendorff map off and it will keep loaded for the next job in the Playlist. If the second Job involves an aerial vehicle (Air Races for example), players can freely fly to Ludendorff in the southeastern portion of the map. This glitch/exploit was patched in a background update on October 16, 2024.
References[]
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑ Lifeinvader/Ludendorff
Ludendorff Posted an update
Will Bill Petty please return his overdue library books? - ↑ Lifeinvader/Ludendorff
Ludendorff Posted an update
Congratulations to Eddie Joyner for winning the largest radish in North Yankton for the 9th consecutive year - you betcha! - ↑ Stated in earlier updates. Still unknown if works as on update 1.23.
- ↑ Apparently, the mission fails at less than 1.35 km (measured by the destination point on road).
- ↑
