Plank Country

"I shot a zombie. He was a zombie, Ellis He must've been bitten before he picked us up."

- Nick

"No CEDA. No Military. Stay out."

- Coach

Plank Country is the first chapter of the campaign Swamp Fever in Left 4 Dead 2. The map begins with the Survivors leaving the railway box car in which they found temporary shelter in the wake of their Dark Carnival helicopter pilot turning into a zombie, obliging Nick to shoot him and bringing the helicopter down in the Louisiana swamps.

In front of the Survivors is an abandoned gas station near a collection of trailer homes and shotgun shacks bordering a tourist attraction gator farm (Earl's Gator Village) and many square miles of bayou. The townspeople mistakenly thought they could wait out the Infection by barricading their community, to which end they had fought off Infected whilst spurning outside help and refugees. Unfortunately the plan failed and everyone has either fled in panic, died or become Infected.

Campaign


The boxcar has basic starting supplies; four first-aid kits and tier 1 weapons. An opening cut scene shows players the initial route into the map.

The crashed and burning helicopter can be seen by peeping between two neighbouring railway wagons to the left of your starting position.

Once players leave, go to the gas station nearby. There's always a melee weapon of some sort in there. Check the oil holder nearby as there's usually a throwable there. Once you are satisfied with your efforts, go to a small storage room near the factory. The Director is usually nice, so you will probably be able to find Pain pills, Adrenaline Shots, or an explosive or incendiary ammo pack here.

Once you loot the storage room, go to the house closest to your location. There's usually various items you might find useful, such as a Bile Bomb, a Chainsaw or Grenade Launcher. Zig-zag through the area, searching the shack that is wrecked badly for any potential supplies. Then go into the mobile trailer home as there are usually various items that you can find. After that, zig-zag into the small house left of the mobile home. Go up the ladder and turn around. Sometimes, the Director places another ammo pack that you can use.

Go into the village (or Earl's Gator Pond). Usually at this point, the Director spawns a Tank or Witch. Go into to the convenience store and search as there are usually throwables, Ammo packs or occasionally the Laser Sights. If the ammo pack is not in the store, it's usually in the bar area or in the two-story building up ahead. Clean up all the Common Infected in the area. While in the village (when you near the Crescendo Event), no Special Infected or Hordes will spawn unless you go to the store area again. Sometimes a Witch may spawn nearby, though it is possible to avoid her by going around her as she is never too close to the lever.

Before you start up the lever, search carefully one more time. On a table is a submachine gun (which can be silenced). In the dock-like area, a Chrome Shotgun or Pump Shotgun can be found. Once you are ready, start the lever. A Crescendo Event will start and it is recommended to get to the nearby two-story building for vantage and defense. Alternatively, you can start Re: Your Brains from the jukebox in the restaurant and start the event when the horde appears; this helps on harder difficulties as there are less Common Infected to deal with using this method.

Once on the other side of the gator pond, this is one of the few most likely times for a Tank to appear, which is unfortunate because players are handicapped with paltry Tier 1 weapons. Hence, if the distinctive Tank sounds are heard near this point, it is essential to get into a defensive position, heal if necessary, and ideally have a Molotov or a Bile Bomb ready.

Players who died at the ferry dock will respawn in a wooden shed on the left of the walkway.

After following a wooden walkway for a short while, a cabin appears on the left. It often holds valuable supplies: from rare weapons (like the Chainsaw, Grenade Launcher and Laser Sight) to common accessories like Pain pills/Adrenaline and ammo.

Players are presented with a choice either to go left or right on elevated walkways but in practice it does not matter which route is taken since they join up again and both paths often hold Tier 1 weapons like the Submachine Gun and Pump Shotgun, as well as other supplies. If a Witch is heard, the chances are that she will be located at the point where the two paths meet, though sometimes she is on the staircases on one path. Look for a lighted shelter on the walkway; either a Hunting or Sniper Rifle is found on the nearby table and will help mop up stray Infected.

The walkways soon end and the obvious way forward is down into the swamp. Press on ahead or take a small detour to the right. If you plan to go on ahead, your movement speed will be reduced from the swamp water. Taking the detour will lead to planks and will provide better movement while on them.

A light will soon be espied in the distance. It is the entrance to a safe room housed in a drainage culvert under a railroad causeway.

The Survivors
Now that humans are controlling the Special Infected, things can only get worse. However, they can't spawn until you leave the campsite area. That doesn't mean that you should let them have a good chance to find just the right spot, though! Hurry up and get your supplies, and get moving!

This level can be very tricky for the human controlled Survivors, since the Infected are not bots any more. There are some "instant kill" spots in the Crescendo Event area. Also, Tanks may spawn after leaving the ferry.

Whilst most of the level through the Shanty town is relatively easy due to its wide main street which easy fire ways into most buildings things can become incredibly hard once the winch for the barge is activated. Not only will tons of Common Infected swarm on you, even if you camp in the building, but you will become easy prey for Special Infected like the Smoker, the Jockey and the Charger who are all capable of dislodging you from your camping spot and getting instant kills by throwing you into the river. The best strategy then is to stick together and watch all directions, using a Bile bomb or a Pipe bomb to siphon off the majority of the Horde and leaving you free to spot any of the Special Infected unencumbered.

The Infected
Chargers:
 * You can make instant kills here. For you to finish off unlucky Survivors, you must charge them into the water, making them fall to their death. This applies on both sides of the water.
 * Charging Survivors off the walkway is a good strategy.
 * Try to hit the Survivors on the docks and don't let them see you.

Smokers:
 * Since there are many houses in the plank country, you can try ensnaring them from the rooftops. Be sure to not be at the highest spot as the Survivors may spot you easily and kill you.
 * If a Witch spawns in the village try to drag Survivors to her, they will all be equipped with tier 1 weapons so they will have troubles killing her fast. If the Survivor is not dead but incapacitated your comrades can take their chances to finish them off.
 * Pulling players off of the walkways and into the water can slow them down and separate them from the pack, forcing them to take precious time to backtrack and regroup.
 * Dragging Survivors while hidden among the bushes will often result in their rescuers having difficulty hitting you, as you will be concealed. However this is best on Realism Mode, since Survivors that are the victims of Special Infected have an aura around them, making it useless on Versus Mode.

Hunters:
 * The swamp has many hiding spots, use them to your advantage to pounce unsuspecting players.
 * Practice your damage pounces from the rooftops.
 * If one player goes off on their lonesome in the houses to search for supplies, let this be their downfall.
 * If the Survivors are bunched up next to the river, and you pounce one, the knock back effect just might push one or more of their teammates over the edge.

Spitters
 * Spitting on the boat while the Survivors are in it will cause them to take a vicious amount of damage, because there is no escape from the ferry.
 * Likewise, spitting on the boat just as it arrives will force them to make a decision between spit damage, or the horde of Infected charging at them, though if players hold out for enough, no Infected will spawn and the players will feel free to walk onto the ground. Spit on the boat WHEN they activate the boat to take them to the other side if possible.
 * If the Survivors are camping in one spot at the Crescendo Event, feel more than free to spit on them and disrupt their formation.
 * As always, spitting on incapacitated Survivors as their rescuer arrives is a great strategy.

Jockey: Boomers:
 * If you're riding a Survivor and he's not resisting, you can send him/her into the water for an instant kill.
 * In the village itself, riding Survivors into and out of houses can buy you a few extra seconds to do damage.
 * Wait for the Survivors in the houses, then ambush them.
 * During the Crescendo Event, it can be crucial to vomit on the Survivors. Obviously yes, but when vomited on, players (especially inexperienced ones) can tend to move around to try and get away from the horde. If they make this mistake when their back is to the river, things could turn ugly for them fast.
 * As a Boomer, try to explode near them all of the survivors some unlucky ones will fall into the water.and the rest will still have vomit on them. Try to do this before the ferry comes. However, if any Bots are around, it is not recommended since Bots will instantly shove you and then shoot you.

Tank:
 * If you spawn as a Tank in the village you can try tossing some of the cars at the Survivors to instantly incapacitate them.
 * The swamp is full of trees, so your rock throws will fail most of the times. Try to punch the Survivor near the water to instantly kill them.

Survival
This Survival map is unique in that the Survivors start with less supplies overall, with the ferry arriving at the 2 minute mark carrying extra items. Retrieving these supplies may be hazardous as it involves treading near the water, and also backs the Survivors into a corner, with Infected pouring over the fence nearby. It can also be an inconvenience if the Survivors plan to hold out at the other edge of the map.

There are plenty of gas cans and propane tanks lying around to set up a defensive perimeter around the team's selected defense point. However, players should not be standing in the dock area, as Jockeys, Hunters and Boomers can send players hanging onto the ledges. Jockeys can steer you off the dock. Chargers and Tanks can send the team flying to their doom with no chance of revival.

Starting supplies:
 * Assault Rifle
 * Combat Rifle
 * Tactical Shotgun
 * Frying Pan
 * Machete
 * Axe
 * Cricket Bat
 * 2 Molotov Cocktails
 * 2 Pipe Bombs
 * 2 Pain Pills
 * 2 Adrenaline shots
 * 11 Gas cans
 * 5 Propane tanks

Supplies on the ferry:
 * Sniper Rifle
 * Grenade Launcher
 * 6 Pipe Bombs
 * 5 Molotov Cocktails
 * Bile bomb
 * 5 First Aid kits
 * Defibrillator
 * 3 Pain Pills
 * 4 Adrenaline shots
 * Incendiary Ammo
 * Explosive Ammo

Scavenge
During Scavenge, grab several gas cans, and drop them under the water to make sure the Spitters cannot destroy them. This also prevents you from having to run farther away to grab them. This is probably the best strategy for Plank Country. Another strategy is to have two teammates actually in the swamp water, and two on the platforms with snipers. The latter two will cover the ones in the swamp using their scopes, while the others have rifles or shotguns, grabbing gas cans. You can also have two people grab adrenaline shots, and inject them when they get to the swamp water (causing them to run faster than normal), grab the gas cans, and toss them over. Another way is to run in a sort of line leading to the tanker: having one teammate grab the gas, throwing it to the next Survivor, and having the next person throw it down, repeat, then the last one puts it in. The 4 strategies are:
 * Grab several gas cans, put them in the water close to the tanker, then repeat.
 * Two snipers on platforms, providing covering fire for two grabbing gas cans in swamp.
 * Two people with adrenaline shots tossing cans over to two Survivors at tanker.
 * Line up to tanker, tossing the gas tank to the generator.