Left 4 Dead - Tips and Tactics

[Rednog]

1) Aim for the midsections of hordes with the auto shotgun, you will easily take down a good chunk of the group.
2) If you grab the same gun in the middle of a reload it will automatically switch it out for a fully reloaded version (if you aren't reloading it will just give you ammo and you will still have less shots left in your current clip.) This is insanely useful for tanks at finales, you can dish you 2-3 full clips in the time it take for a normal reload.
3) In campaign melee the tank when he is beating a downed teammate to death, sometimes he will turn and go after you and spare your teammate.
4) As a special infected you can set off gas cans and propane tanks, excellent way to damage the survivors and stop them from using it against a horde or tank.
5) Protect your slower moving teammates from the common infected, often as the rest of you run past the zombies chasing will turn towards the last guy and cause them a good chunk of damage with no support.

 

[Bludge]

In campaign mode, the easiest way to survive hordes is in small areas, cupboards and the like, have two crouched and two standing behind. You get away unscathed almost every time if the crouchers are just hammering the melee attack and the standers are firing.
Its called shiva stacking, its effective, but it can make the game a little dull.

If your team is organised well enough, try and pair up, so people are looking out for each other.

In vs, playing as the infected, coordinated attacks can stop a team in their tracks. For instance: Smoker pulls a survivor over an edge, causing them to fall/incap. Remaining survivors rush to help them up, if more then one of them is standing by the ledge where the guy is hanging, get a boomer up behind, or launch a smoker pounce for a chance to knock the whole team off the ledge. (on the first map of dead air, there is about 4 places in which this tactic can really mess up the survivors chances. Take your time to explole the maps as infected to find all the nice little attack spots)

When playing as the tank, ALWAYS use the punchable objects, and if you have the chance, always try to knock a survivor off a high edge for an instant kill.

As survivors, always stick together, if someone needs to go back for ammo or a kit, make sure you either all go, or pair up at least. (in vs, if its more then a few steps, generally there isnt much point in going back for supplies)

A lot of it is just finding the sneaky little places to go or perch yourself on, which in my opinion makes the game less interesting. The best games of l4d i have had are when i first got it, and didnt know the maps. It was so much more exciting.

And once you start getting bored of the campaigns, try out some of the user made ones. So far i have tried Death Aboard and Powerplant. Death Aboard is a pretty professional effort, but powerplant is crazy fun. Full of traps and whatnot, very long maps though.

 

[Evilbunny]

Survivors:
1. Before you go anywhere, talk to your team about where you plan on going to make sure everyone is clear. The last thing you want is half your team to go one way and half to go another way. A separated team is a vulnerable team, and the infected WILL use it to their advantage if you split up.
2. Close doors behind you. I know this sounds trivial as the infected can just knock them down but it serves as a method to slow them down and give you a warning that something is trying to sneak up on you. You see something is knocking down the door you just closed behind you? Shoot it a few times. If you manage to kill it you'll be glad you did.
3. Listen for audio cues. The witch music should tell you to turn your light off immediately, the tank approaching music should get you taking out your molotov and finding a nice, open area to fight the tank in, and the sounds the special infected make should get you on your toes for an attack. Remember, the boomer hides and ambushes the survivors, and the hunter and the smoker attack from the top of buildings generally. Be aware of your surroundings.
4. Just because the minigun is there, that doesn't mean you have to use it. I know it looks tempting but there is usually a more easily fortified position somewhere else in the map. Typically indoors is better than outdoors since it minimizes the angles that the infected can attack from, so think about that the next time you decide where you will make your stand.
5. Be alert. Make sure somebody is watching on all sides. If you are in the back, watch the rear and warn your teammates of any special infected you see. There is nothing more annoying than a boomer vomiting on everyone because nobody was watching your back.
6. Cover each other when getting an incapacitated comrade up. The infected like to use incapped survivors as traps so make sure somebody is watching for boomers and smokers when getting your teammate up.

Infected:
1. It is just as important that the infected team use teamwork as the survivors. If everyone just attacks by themselves the survivors will probably make it through just fine, but if everyone attacks together, that is when things get deadly. Work with your team and you will win.
2. Know your role on the team. The boomer must hide and ambush the survivors by either vomiting on them then running away, or putting himself into the line of fire so he will explode near them. If you choose the second option, try putting yourself between the survivors. This puts them in a difficult situation as they cannot just shove you in one direction then shoot you, and it usually ends with you exploding on two or more people.
The hunter is the primary DPS of the infected, but he cannot just attack the survivors when they are all together in a group. All that will happen is he will be killed quickly without doing much damage. Wait for the boomer to vomit or for them to get separated. That is when you will do a lot of damage. Also, you don't always need to pounce. Your claw does a lot of damage by itself, so a good tactic is during a horde just run up and pretend you're a common infected and start clawing away at the survivors. Often they'll be incapacitated before they realize what's wrong. The smoker, much like the hunter, has to choose his moments. Your tongue can be easily defeated. They can simply melee the survivor, shoot the tongue, or outright kill the smoker. So, you need to wait until you are pretty sure they will not be able to save your victim immediately. Also, you can use your ability to pull survivors to pull them into traps such as car alarms or witches. You can also pull them off ledges, which is very effective as long as his teammates can't just immediately pull him back up. Finally, the tank can be a make or break moment for the infected team. You want to be constantly keeping the pressure on as a tank, while all the while keeping an eye out for opporitunities. If you see a cliff, try to knock them off of it for an instant kill. If you see a smashable object(outlined in red) try to him them with it, since it knocks them down with one hit. If you do knock down a survivor, don't just stand over them and try to kill them. They will just chip away at your health and it won't be worth it. Instead try to knock down the rest of the team. If your teammates are good they will help you, so let them do so. If you see a hunter has pounced on one of the survivors, leave him alone and go for his comrades. Just because you are the tank doesn't mean you're invincible. You still need your teammates' support.
3. Cover each other. If you are a hunter and you see your smoker teammate has a survivor by himself, don't pounce and steal his kill, instead cover him. This means stay crouched and wait for another survivor to come along and try to save him, then pounce on him before he can do so. Not only will you do some damage yourself, but it will delay the survivors in saving the first victim, and thus increasing the amount of damage done and possibility for an incap or even a kill. The same goes for even the tank. The tank, regardless of how good he is, can not take down all of the survivors himself if they concentrate their fire on him. A boomer vomiting on them will do wonders for a tank as it slows them down to a crawl, allowing the tank to run in and finish them off. Also, the tank typically has people running for their lives and often leads to the survivors getting separated. Use this to your advantage as a hunter or smoker. If the tank keeps the pressure on enough, your victim's teammates will not be able to save him.

 

[Flying-Emu]

9/10 times the Ai playing as Zoey will take the Sniper rifle just to piss you off. (In reality it's to simulate what an actual team would do as many of the game testers would keep a balanced set. But in reality the sniper is only useful in certain situations.

The Hunting Rifle rounds go through any obstruction just about (I can't remember if they can pierce concrete), including zombie flesh; one bullet fired into a horde easily takes out six or seven in a straight line. Add to that its high damage yield against Witches and Tanks, even from a distance, and it's one of the most valuable weapons in the game in the hands of a skilled player.

The HR is so underappreciated.

 

[Evilbunny]

The Hunting Rifle rounds go through any obstruction just about (I can't remember if they can pierce concrete), including zombie flesh; one bullet fired into a horde easily takes out six or seven in a straight line. Add to that its high damage yield against Witches and Tanks, even from a distance, and it's one of the most valuable weapons in the game in the hands of a skilled player.

The HR is so underappreciated.

This is true. Something the infected like to do is hang out near the witch to get the survivors to startle her. Somebody with a hunting rifle can not only take down the infected near the witch, but the witch herself given enough room. Some of the best players I know prefer the hunting rifle over the autoshottie and assault rifle.

 

[Danny Ocean]

With all the buzz about L4D2 (and the overwhelming amount of threads bashing it), I think it's high time we return to enjoying what we have and talk about the original L4D. Having just bought the game, I was unimpressed with it, but the more time I spend playing online, the more fun I have.

Since I'm new to the game, I don't really know all the tricks of the trade yet, and thought I'd start this thread so that everyone could share their favorite Campaign and Survival tips and tricks. What's the best time to start the lift? How vital is laying down petrol cans and propane tanks before triggering the horde? What's the most successful weapon combination for Zoey, Bill, Francis, and Louis? Are there any tricks to getting achievements?

We all love L4D, let's get some good discussion going!

If you have this on PC PM me, you can come and have a few learner games with my 'crew' and I.

 

[Rednog]

The Hunting Rifle rounds go through any obstruction just about (I can't remember if they can pierce concrete), including zombie flesh; one bullet fired into a horde easily takes out six or seven in a straight line. Add to that its high damage yield against Witches and Tanks, even from a distance, and it's one of the most valuable weapons in the game in the hands of a skilled player.

The HR is so underappreciated.

This is true. Something the infected like to do is hang out near the witch to get the survivors to startle her. Somebody with a hunting rifle can not only take down the infected near the witch, but the witch herself given enough room. Some of the best players I know prefer the hunting rifle over the autoshottie and assault rifle.

The HR is an insanely situational weapon, it is amazing when you have an amazing group to cover you, but in your average pug group its next to useless.
That and since there is melee fatigue in VS it makes you more susceptible to hordes, which imo takes out most of groups that don't cover each other.

 

[Flying-Emu]

The Hunting Rifle rounds go through any obstruction just about (I can't remember if they can pierce concrete), including zombie flesh; one bullet fired into a horde easily takes out six or seven in a straight line. Add to that its high damage yield against Witches and Tanks, even from a distance, and it's one of the most valuable weapons in the game in the hands of a skilled player.

The HR is so underappreciated.

This is true. Something the infected like to do is hang out near the witch to get the survivors to startle her. Somebody with a hunting rifle can not only take down the infected near the witch, but the witch herself given enough room. Some of the best players I know prefer the hunting rifle over the autoshottie and assault rifle.

The HR is an insanely situational weapon, it is amazing when you have an amazing group to cover you, but in your average pug group its next to useless.
That and since there is melee fatigue in VS it makes you more susceptible to hordes, which imo takes out most of groups that don't cover each other.

Switch to pistols if you're in the front of the stack. The melee cooldown is way shorter.

 

[blaze96]

During hordes try and keep a door between you and the infected. If you can get in an area with one entrance do it. Always take a little time and look for supplies, you never know what you will find. Running is oftentimes a course of action worth considering against tanks, if you outrun him long enough without your team taking hits he will die without any of you firing a shot. Take the high ground whenever possible. I suggest as a very good weapon, the assault rifle, it has a good mix of accuracy, ammo capacity, and rate of fire that if you fire in bursts makes it extremely effective in most if not all situations.

 

[DM.]

Shooting the tank slows it down, and a well aimed pipe can stun it for a while.

And if you encounter an early tank in a level with tier 2 weapons. Make sure you all have autoshotties. You can kill the expert tank in 4 to 5 seconds.


As for versus the only hint I can give is attack in a group.

 

[wonderbanana]

I wrote a guide on my clan website ages back for L4D, may be a bit outdated but I think there's still some good stuff there: http://www.22g.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=4911

 

[arcstone]

The hunting rifle is actually REALLY REALLY useful against swarms in tightly packs corridors.

You know how the hunting rifle bullets can pierce through any number of zombies, right?

Aim down the corridor the zombies are swarming through, shoot once, step a little bit to the side, shoot again, rinse repeat.

Its also pretty nice against special infected.

 

[arcstone]

But above all else, BE WITH A GOOD TEAM!

 

[Hedberger]

Since most tips have already been mentioned i'll throw out something for fun instead.

If you want to try something new and exciting sometime you could always do like a friend of mine. He stayed in the saferoom until all the other survivors had left and almost cleared the level and then he snuck thorugh it all without firing a shot or taking any damage. It's not that easy either even on a forest campaign. Only works on VS though.

 

[Symp4thy]

I'm surprised no one has said this (unless I missed it): Stick together! This is the number one rule as a survivor, IMO. Nothing looks better to an infected than stragglers.

I've had L4D since it came out but have only really played the campaigns on single player or with friends on the same console. I played a few times on Live, but I got frustrated because my teammates never helped me and I didn't really know what I was doing. Half the time they would just vote to kick me. Finally, the other day, I got into a game and told everyone from the beginning I was new and any help would be appreciated. They helped me, we worked together, and easily won the campaign. I now realize how much fun L4D can be. So my other advice would be: don't be afraid to ask for help in the game. If you are luck you will end up with some good/nice people who are more than willing to share their knowledge.

 

[Grayl]

Never underestimate how useful the Melee ability is.

This is the best tip there is, I think.

The second I hear a smoker make the scream before it shoots out its tongue, I get close to my team-mates ready to whack the one that gets the tongue wrapped around them (and after you melee your team-mate, the tongue falls off).

Hunters easily go down with melee attacks (especially while they're on-top of a team-mate), and in campaign I rarely ever shoot one to death. If you get good at it, you can just melee them as they're about to leap on you (mid-air), and then just keep bashing them until they die, saving you ammo.

And once a smoker shoots out its tongue, if it's close, go and bash it to death. It can't shoot out the tongue again for about 20 seconds or so, so it's an easy kill.

This is all in campaign, though. I can't stand VS mode...

 

[Bob_F_It]

Counterpoint to not having one person straggling behind, don't have one person rushing ahead. A Vs round ended very quickly when our friend who was famous for chargning ahead did just that, while 2 hunters and a smoker synchroinised attacks and had the rest of us screwed. Obviously the rusher died soon afterwards.