10 Hooks and Rumours for Cyberpunk 2.0.2.0.’s Night City

This list has ten hooks and rumours that can be heard in or about the Japantown district of Night City. Whether or not they are true is up to the GameMaster. They can be used as background colour or as potential adventure hooks.

1. Hotel Yamagumi in Japantown is, for some reason, owned by Arasaka, though no-one knows why. This hasn’t stopped speculation, though, with it being claimed to be a place where Arasaka can keep people safe to a place where they spy on the clientele, though neither makes much sense, given that it is easily verifiable that Arasaka is the owner.
2. Kenshiro Saeba is a young solo and former private investigator who has been forced to hideout in Japantown after solving a kidnapping case involving Yasume Kanzaki and a rival gang boss. Kanzaki is fond of Saeba, to the annoyance of his heir, Shin, and there are rumours that Shin would be perfectly willing to cooperate in anything that would result in the disappearance of Saeba that couldn’t be traced back to Shin.
3. The Garden in Japantown is Night City’s lover’s lane and is kept safe by the Gold Eagles, a Japantown-based guardian gang that keeps the area free of trouble. It’s rumoured that not only will the Gold Eagles stop anyone from attacking those who use the Garden, they will also ensure that they, and anyone they associate with, is never able to do anything similar again.
4. The Gazebo in Japantown is rumoured to have been built by Richard Night himself, and it’s also where a mass murderer called “The Claw” left most of his victims’ bodies. The City is said to be planning to tear the Gazebo down, as most can’t think of any uses for it, but it’s said they are meeting opposition by different groups who all want it preserved for historical reasons, whether to honour Richard Night, the victims of The Claw or The Claw himself.
5. The Imperial Bank in Night City’s Japantown has never been robbed, and it’s known to have a very expensive security contract with Arasaka. It’s rumoured that, as expensive as the current contract is, the bank is planning on increasing the current security, leading some to wonder if the management has become aware of a direct threat to the bank, one that has a chance of succeeding against the current security regime.
6. The Japan Trade Center is where the high-level executives of most Japanese corporations operating inside the United States meet every month to discuss their future strategy and planned acquisitions. The topics of the meetings are kept secret, but it’s rumoured that recordings of them have been turning up on the Net for those willing to fork over enough money to buy.
7. The Nakagowa Kabuki Troupe is the premiere attraction of the Bodukkan Center for the Performing Arts in Japantown, and there have been some claims that the Troupe is nothing more than a professional posergang, given that some members have been bio-sculpted and never appear in public out of character. Kabuki aficionados dismiss this claim, but it’s rumoured that sometimes the arguments on the matter can get heated, leading to the occasional fatality.
8. The Nichiban Mall in Japantown is designed to look Japanese, is filled with Japanese shops and all the signs are in Japanese, so any gaijiin will need help getting directions. It’s rumoured that asking for directions often results in being given ones that are poor at best and downright misleading at worst.
9. The Tokagawa Tower in J-town is home to, amongst others, the local yakuza boss, Hichigo Kanzaki. The penthouse in which he lives is said to be a veritable fortress, but it’s rumoured that no-one outside Kanzaki’s close family and retainers have seen him in some time now, and there are rumours that something may have happened to him.
10. The XYZ Piano Bar in the Nakagumi Business Plaza in Japantown is a karaoke bar and a known hangout for yakuza, who can be found frequenting the bar on a weekend. There are rumours that certain members of the bar’s staff have recently disappeared, as it turned out that they were spying on the yakuza for someone, which did not go down well once it was discovered.

Want some general cyberpunk rumours? Check out 100 Cyber City Rumours.

D10: Night City Rumours – West Hill is unofficial content provided under the Homebrew Content Policy of R. Talsorian Games and is not approved or endorsed by RTG. This content references materials that are the property of R. Talsorian Games and its licensees.