The Truck Depot Finale

"I want that truck."

- Zoey "Hey Zoey, when I drive us outta here, don't shoot me alright?"

- Francis


 * For the actual in-game truck depot, see The Truck Depot.

The Truck Depot Finale is the second and last level in Crash Course.

This chapter takes the Survivors to a truck workshop where an armored bus (the Survivors refer to it as a truck) sits atop a raised service hoist in a vehicle depot workshop.

In what looks to be homage to the vehicle used in the Dawn of the Dead movie remake, the vehicle's modifications include armor-plate and suitable zombie-proofing to resist attack and break through the Infected's ranks.

Players must activate a generator to lower the hoist and so that they can enter and drive off through an attacking horde.

The finale poses three simultaneous combat challenges. Firstly, the hoist drops very slowly; secondly, the generator stalls and must be restarted; and thirdly, this is a Crescendo Event featuring waves of Infected (Common and Special) and two Tanks. This finale is difficult for the Survivors because the Infected can attack at close range and from virtually every direction.

Strategy

 * Shortly after leaving the safe room, there is a shortcut which Survivors can use to skip a section of the map. This requires jumping on an alarmed car stuck in between the fence and delivery truck by a Humvee. This route takes players over a barbed wire fence to the top of the truck on the other side. This shortcut will take the Survivors to the metal supply plant loading docks. This method is risky because the car alarm will alert a horde. However it is possible to jump on the truck and avoid setting off the car alarm, but this is rather tricky and requires jumping at the right spot to avoid failing in the jump or landing on the alarmed car.
 * In Left 4 Dead 2, this exploit is removed. The truck does not appear and the alarmed car is relocated away from the fence.
 * It is better to not restart the generator until the second Tank is dead.  There should be enough time to restart it before the next horde.
 * A useful setup spot for the finale is beside the Minigun in the garage (Left 4 Dead 2 ). Common Infected have a a wide attack vector and can stream down from the windows. The small window behind the Minigun is a common spawning place for Special Infected, especially Boomers and Smokers. Note also that it will be harder to restart the generator when using this strategy.
 * Another strategy is to fight at first from within the rescue closet underneath the Minigun. Tanks are fought by then running to the Minigun and holding out on the bus outside or the platform reached via stair access.
 * The simplest location to fight from atop the bus outside in the yard. It provides an all-round field of fire and is close to the generator and an ammo and supply cache. Common Infected will swarm from at least two places at once but not from all four sides unless players are slow at thinning their ranks. Special Infected can be picked off from the top of the bus and the sandbags on top are very useful at preventing players from being dragged off by Smokers. Ready access to ammunition is a self-evident advantage associated with this position. Note that this spot is not recommended for Versus, as human-controlled Hunters can easily pounce from the roof of the main garage for 15-plus damage. A possible drawback is the sprinting distance and changes of direction needed to reach the target vehicle once the hoist is down. Players must get to the door at the back of the escape vehicle in the face of a rapidly re-spawning horde and slow, injured players are thus very vulnerable to interception.

Left 4 Dead 2 Version
The map only has one significant change, the removal of a shortcut by the alarmed car, as detailed above. Cosmetically, the large cargo containers on the finale have been given different colouring. It is notable that, as this campaign was released during Left 4 Dead 2 ' s development, it already had several of Left 4 Dead 2 ' s randomised map elements even on the Left 4 Dead version, such as the alarmed cars and open side rooms being different each play.

Easter Eggs

 * 736.jpg armored van is a nod to the armored bus from George A. Romero's remake Dawn of the Dead and the Dead Reckoning armored bus from the not-so-famous Romero sequel, Land of the Dead.
 * A map found in the starting safe room (see gallery for picture) shows Military Outposts that have either been overrun or are still safe. One will notice that the outposts in Pennsylvania and Louisiana are not crossed out. This hints at the Military Outpost in Blood Harvest and also Left 4 Dead 2 ' s New Orleans mission quest (Crash Course was released after most of the work on Left 4 Dead 2 was complete.)
 * On the right of the safe house door appears a message to a man named "Peter" telling him the truck is finished and they will wait for him. This is clearly the same armored truck featured in the finale.
 * "Allison's" lengthy farewell poem on the safe room wall receives responses in the form of disparaging remarks referring to popular Internet memes: "Cool Story Bro!", QQ (depicting mock sadness, as in crying eyes), "Roses are red, Violets are Blue, You Suck.", and "PS I'M FAT!" (Refer the image below.)
 * One of the empty food packets in the safe room contains "Choco-bites", Team Fortress 2 reference.