The Smoker

The Smoker is an Infected with a long, whip-like tongue that can drag Survivors away from their team-mates and use its tongue as an organic noose to strangle Survivors when it is perched above them. Similar to Half-Life's Barnacle, or Resident Evil's Licker. When killed, it leaves a haze of black smoke, distorting the Survivors' vision and disabling character speech and in-game voice communication. Like most other boss infected, a melee hit from the Smoker does about twice as much damage as the Horde.

Identified by its hacking and coughing, the Smoker is one of the most deadly if the Survivors are being attacked by the Tank or the Horde. Interestingly, a survivor cannot talk in smoke, only cough, choke, and hack (NOTE: voice chat and typing are not inhibited).

Survivors
General strategy:
 * Always have at least one buddy close at hand
 * Listen for the distinctive hacking sound the smoker makes
 * Immediately start shooting the smoker as there is a brief window where the survivor is ensnared but still able to fire.

Upon seeing a smoker:
 * If it is far away: open fire
 * If it is close: quickly do a melee attack. This is important because if you get tongued at very close range, you may not get any window of opportunity for shooting at all

Just after being ensnared:
 * There is approximately a one second window of opportunity after getting captured by the smoker's tongue to shoot the smoker
 * If you can't see the smoker, shoot the tongue instead. Don't neglect to kill the smoker afterward. It does take a while for the smoker to "rewind" that tongue for another attack, but it will happen. At the very minimum, warn fellow survivors that the smoker is still an active threat

Helping a captured survivor:
 * Use a melee attack. You can melee two things to instantly free them and avoid nasty friendly-fire incidents:
 * The survivor themselves
 * The smoker
 * Shoot
 * Target the smoker (the tongue should lead you right to it)
 * If you can't see the smoker then target the tongue instead
 * If you can't see the smoker nor the tongue then shoot the smoker through the wall or ceiling (i.e.: judge the position of the smoker relative to the survivor getting clawed by the smoker)

Infected
If you're playing as a Smoker, a common yet useful tactic is to always have the advantage of higher ground. Choking a Survivor from above is far more effective than dragging a Survivor straight to you. Being higher makes it harder to see and kill you, giving you the advantage.

The key point to the Smoker is to be patient and wait until the survivors are distracted by the horde or other distractions.

▲The Smoker also works well with the Hunter. Between them, they can immediately silence two separated Survivors without a fight.

▲The Smoker is the Tank's best friend. The last thing a group of Survivors needs is to have one of their number dragged a long distance off during a Tank battle.

▲Zombies don't stop attacking a Survivor just because you have him entangled, in fact it's the bane of a Survivor covered in Boomer bile. Try to prey on Survivors so marked, especially when they're weak.

▲Alternatively, if a boomer has vomited on the three other survivors, you can take the opportunity to grab the fourth. While the other three are covered in bile, they cannot see aura signals of their allies. In the mess of the Horde battle, the lack of an aura means they may not even notice.

▲If the survivors are near a large vertical drop (such as an overhang or rooftop), take advantage of this by pulling them over the edge. This will either cause a great deal of falling damage or incapacitate them (i.e.: they will be hanging onto the edge with both hands).

▲Try to think like a Survivor. Consider the worst possible time you've been "Smokered." Try to be the last thing the Survivors need right now. Realize the power of moving a character against their will, and things like fire and Witches become more appealing.

Survivors
Tongue Twister Kill a Smoker who has grabbed you with his tongue.

Drag and Drop Rescue a Survivor from a Smoker's tongue before he takes damage.

No Smoking Section Kill 10 Smokers as they are pulling helpless Survivors.

Infected
Chain Smoker Constrict two Survivors on one life as a Smoker.

Big Drag Drag a Survivor 100 feet with your tongue.

Specific Tactics