The Last Stand

The Last Stand is a "campaign" exclusive to Survival Mode.

It has only one map called The Lighthouse. The goal is to survive as long as possible against both the clock and an endless horde of Infected.

The campaign's tagline "It Doesn't End Well" reflects the fact that all the Survivors will ultimately die. This is also the only free DLC for the Xbox 360 version.

Last Stand takes place at a remote cliff-top lighthouse. Since this is a Survival mini-campaign, Valve was content to contextualize it with a purely nominal storyline: a road leading up to a chain-link fence and car with its headlamps still on are enough to suggest that the Survivors sought to escape to this remote area with perhaps an idea of signalling for help from the lighthouse. According to writer Chet, this campaign explains what would happen if the Survivors took a wrong turn and attempted to call for help from this location; in which regard, some commentators have gone so far as to posit that it as a hypothetical branching associated with the Death Toll campaign (refer Notes section below). In any event, The Last Stand is non-canonical as the four Survivors from Left 4 Dead appear in a chronologically later campaign: The Passing.

Below is a survival gameplay of the campaign:
 * 1) The Lighthouse

Please note that the gameplay videos are on each campaign's info page and not on each map page.

Strategy
Light House Walkway Method House Defense Method General Pointers and Tips
 * The horde is fought from the top of the lighthouse (i.e.) the wraparound walk way. This gives the best line of sight and forces all of the Infected to climb up thereby slowing them down greatly.
 * Having at least one Survivor with a Hunting Rifle is highly recommended on account of the available sight lines and the need to combat the constant threat of distant Smokers pulling Survivors off the walkway.
 * Assault rifles are highly recommended so as to engage all Infected (especially Tanks) from the moment they come into sight.
 * One player with an Auto Shotgun is a good idea to take out pouncing Hunters and to mop up any Infected that do manage to climb up onto the walkway at the top of the lighthouse. Having more than one shotgunner is ill-advised―shotguns do not have a long range capability.
 * Molotovs and Pipe bombs are excellent force multipliers.
 * If an ammo run is needed, the best route is via the roof of the generator room since it requires less climbing and keeps players off the ground.
 * Time spent before the scenario kicks off bringing all of the Gas Cans and Propane Tanks up to the very top of the lighthouse is never wasted. Care is obviously needed to group these supplies in one known spot to reduce the risk of stray gunfire igniting them and thus obliterating the team. A sniper perched up on the walkway can throw these items down and use them opportunistically. As noted above and below, camping snipers make easy targets for Smokers so they must keep moving and scanning the middle distance.
 * Note that Smokers generally attack from three locations: from middle distances behind trees on the hills on the Survivors' left; the ground on the water front side; and the lower roof levels on the water front side.
 * Smokers set up on the hillside are extremely difficult to see whilst those on the seaward side are able to drag their victims so far away that rescue is often impossible.
 * The drawbacks to this strategy are twofold. Firstly, the walkway railings are fragile and can result in players falling off the walkway and thus becoming incapped by hanging at inopportune times. Secondly, players make excellent targets for Smokers who can almost effortlessly drag their victims off the light house and beyond any hope of rescue (especially when a Tank is in play). To avoid these pitfalls, walkway players must keep moving and scanning the middle distance so Smokers either cannot lock onto a target or are taken out before they can set up and attack. Moreover, when Tanks arrive, players should move down to a lower level of the roof as this will give clearer lines of fire and nullify the blind angles and deadly drops associated with the walkway.
 * It is absolutely imperative that team members communicate threats, actions and intentions!
 * Another good spot to defend from the horde is inside the house, all of the Survivors should use Auto shotguns or three Auto shotguns and one Assault Rifle.
 * The advantage to this tactic is that the Special Infected become way less effective because each Survivor is positioned in their own corner of the room. When a Hunter pounces someone he can be easily dispatched by a covering teammate as can a Smoker trying to drag a victim out, and a Boomer can only slime two Survivors at a time at most―they are basically standing unprotected open sight during their attack phases.
 * Gas Cans should be stationed around the house and especially outside the front door to keep that way clear. All team members should have Pipe Bombs to hand.
 * The Tanks die really quickly if shotguns are used at close range (refer the above point concerning a shotgun-heavy preference for this defense method)―and the House Defense Method brings Tanks into right in close. When a Tank arrives, everyone in the group concentrates their shotgun fire onto the Tank and he should be dead in seconds.
 * Incapacitation is a killer! Players must do their best to avoid incapacitation as it can be quite hard for a hard pressed team mate to revive a fallen comrade. A good idea is thus to heal slightly earlier than usual.
 * The point made earlier about all players communicating is worth emphasizing.
 * A glitch-based Jesus Place existed in this level that left a player untouchable by all opponents save for the Smokers. To use the place, a Survivor would go down the hill until they encountered two trees sprouting in front of a rock. By jumping between the trees and the rock, a player would become stuck in the space and usually taken beyond reach of Infected. Tanks also seem to die upon approaching this position. Even when grabbed by a Smoker, a character couldn't be dragged and therefore wiould not die. Note that only one character could occupy this position. This has now been patched, however.

Achievements

 * See Main Article: Achievements

(PC Only)