History of Night City
“Night City’s my home. It might be the biggest hell hole this side of the Sierra Nevada but there’s a spark here that I ain’t found anywhere else.” — Green Thumb
Origins: Coronado City
Night City began as Coronado City, the brainchild of Richard Night, a visionary businessman and engineer. Concerned by the impending collapse of the 20th-century social order, Night envisioned a controlled, crime-free urban environment—a haven of enlightened capitalism.
He selected the site of the Morro Bay Massacre (a ghost town on the Central California coast wiped out by boostergangs) for his project. Partnering with Petrochem and Merrill, Asukaga & Finch, Night hired Arasaka to clear the area and began construction.
The City of Dreams
Night leveled the surrounding hills to fill the bay, widening the landmass. His design was eclectic, featuring distinct neighborhoods with different architectural styles:
- Faux East Coast: Upper Eastside, Little Italy.
- West Coast Style: Studio City, Charter Hill.
- Urban Living: Lake Park, Westhill Gardens, University District.
- Asian Districts: Little China, Japantown, Eastpark.
- Old Downtown: An open-air seaside village homage to Morro Bay.
- Corporate Center: Glittering high-rises and “starscrapers”.
The Mob Move-In & The Death of Richard Night
To build the city, the partnership hired the Mob (West Coast organized crime families) who controlled construction unions. The Mob saw Coronado City as a golden opportunity for rackets (gambling, prostitution, drugs). When Night refused to let them run the city, they threatened him.
On September 20, 1998, Richard Night was murdered in his penthouse at Parkview Tower. The City Council renamed the city Night City in his honor, but the dream died with him.
The Mob War (2009-2011)
For the next decade, the Mob ruled Night City, turning it into a war zone. Crime skyrocketed, and gangs like the Blood Razors and Slaughterhouse emerged. In 2009, the Corporations decided to take back their investment.
Led by Arasaka paramilitary troops, the Corps launched an all-out war against the Mob, using assault vehicles, tanks, and assassinations. By 2011, the Mob’s power was broken. The Corporations installed a puppet mayor and cleaned up the city center, but their draconian policies pushed many into homelessness, fueling the Scavver problem.
The Time of the Red
Today, Night City is recovering from the 4th Corporate War and the nuclear detonation that rocked its center. The city is a patchwork of “Reclaimed” zones, dangerous Combat Zones, and heavily fortified Corporate fiefdoms.
Why The History Matters: “Cities are like layer cakes. Different eras of construction are often built right over the previous era… buried parts of a City may hold all kinds of interesting and now lost treasures—weapons, money, data, etc.”
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