The Spitter

"That long necked bitch hit me!"

- Coach

"Oh great, now they're spitting burnin' shit on us?"

- Ellis

"So that's a Spitter, huh? Do you think she's single?"

- Nick

Referred to as a "Neck", "Crazy Lady", "Long necked bitch", "Spittin' thing" and "Goo guy", The Spitter is a Special Infected that made her debut in Left 4 Dead 2.

The Spitter's mutations enable her to spit out a ball of mutated stomach acid which, upon hitting the ground, spreads out into a large pool. Any Survivors standing within the pool of acid take increasing amounts of damage based on how long they stand in it; this can be up to about 3 quarters of their heath with just one puddle. Overall the Spitter's acid does the most damage of any Infected, but is also the least reliable as it only lasts for a short time, and once it pools out it is stationary and relatively easy to escape.

When killed, the Spitter leaves a smaller pool of acid around her corpse. She can sometimes be a bit difficult to hear, making somewhat faint squealing noises as opposed to the more distinct noises other Special Infected make, but the hacking noises she makes when she actually spits are easy to hear.

Extent of Mutations
Through mutation of the Infection the Spitter has developed the ability to project an extremely caustic ball of acid from her mouth in a mortar-like fashion. This projectile will collide with a ceiling or wall and drop down to the nearest "floor," and upon contact will spread into a large puddle of acid that increases in damage over time. This damage increase is a part of the puddle, not a survivor standing in it, as such moving through a puddle about to despawn will cause a massive amount of damage. This acid bomb has the ability to ignite gas cans and propane tanks in Scavenge mode. The Spitter's lower jaw, cheeks, nose and lips seem to be either gone or noticeably eroded, signs that she may not be entirely resistant to the acid she is coughing up. Her proportions are awkward and stretched, including the elongated neck and bloated stomach, which are most likely used to accommodate and produce the fluids, and the big toe on her right foot has shifted to the side of foot like the thumb of a hand. While running, a trail of acid can be seen dripping from the creature's mouth. Somehow, the Spitter is able to move and adjust its head, which should be impossible due to its cheeks being eroded away, although it could twist its neck to move the head around. The Spitter's fingernails are very long but do not look particularly sharp, perhaps indicating that the Spitter was very vain before the infection hit. The Spitter's claw attack does about 4 damage per hit.

Survivors

 * If players kill a Spitter with a close combat weapon, they should immediately leave the area before the acid damages them.
 * When the Spitter spits, she'll be slow for a few seconds, then return to normal. Try to use this time to kill her.
 * The Spitter's acid projectile takes a moment to travel to its target, giving alert Survivors some time to get out of the way. You can also listen for the hacking noise the Spitter makes.
 * Do NOT try to get through a Spitter's acid pool, it chips off health very, very fast. Only do so if it is absolutely necessary (i.e. a Hunter pounces a teammate is about to die and an acid pool is in your way).
 * If someone is incapacitated whilst in acid, it is better idea to simply wait out for the pool to dissipate. It is a frequent mistake to think that you can revive the person before the acid knocks you down, but this is hardly ever the case.
 * If you and your teammates are separated by a pool of acid, wait for the pool to dissipate before you join them or they join you. It is better to stay together when a Spitter is around.
 * When playing Scavange, remember that Spitter goo will destroy gas cans bathed in it. Try to spread gas cans far appart so they cannot be hit by a single puddle, or place cans inside a puddle of water. (Spitter Goo will appear above the water, while the gas can will sink below and not be harmed)

Infected

 * Spit when you know the survivors won't move from the area for a while, preferably bunched together in a room.
 * The Spitter is one of, if not THE most valuable infected in Scavenge mode, for two reasons: The survivors cannot pour gasoline when there is an acid pool around the generator, and the Spitter's acid can light gas cans the survivors have picked up and dropped (outlined in yellow) on fire. If you are a Spitter in scavenge, get to a good spot and spit away!
 * Try to spit as far away as possible from the Survivors, making it less likely for them to kill you (unless you are right in front of them). Remember that after you spit, you'll move slower than usual for a few seconds
 * When playing as a Spitter and you're assured to die, try to die in front of the Survivor's path. The acid pool created by your death will delay them and give your teammates time to respawn and group.
 * If you have the opportunity to escape, take it! Those who spit and run away live to spit another day.
 * If one of the Survivors is incapacitated and there is another Survivor nearby to revive him/her, try saving your spit until the other Survivor is reviving the fallen. This will cause their rescuer extra damage and force them to stop reviving the fallen Survivor. Unless it seems likely that you can kill the incapacitated Survivor, focus on doing damage to the ones that are up, you might just incapacitate them too! Spit does greatly reduced damage against incapacitated survivors, and is unlikely to kill them unless they are already near death (it WILL take multiple applications to kill a freshly incapped player).
 * If a Survivor is surrounded by Infected, or even covered in Boomer bile make their day worse by spitting on them. If they are covered in bile they may be so worried about killing all the Infected around them that they will panic and possibly be either too distracted by the spit to kill the Infected, or too distracted by the horde to get out of the spit.


 * The Spitter is one of the most helpful Infected. Spitting in Survivors who are being choked by a Smoker can do extra damage. Also, you can use your acid to separate Survivors. For example, if someone is being pounced by a Hunter in a closed area, spit in the Survivors' path to avoid them saving the helpless one.
 * Your spit causes a lot of panic, because the first thing Survivors will try do is get out of it. So having a Charger or a Jockey to catch the Survivors while they're trying to save themselves from the acid is a good way to cause damage.
 * When the spit-projectile hits a vertical surface, it drops STRAIGHT DOWN. This is extremely helpful when you are far away or behind a wall when the Survivors are in a small space. Spitting onto the wall above them or into a window where they are will cause the spit to drop on top of them, doing major damage and the Survivors will have an extremely difficult time locating where the spit came from.
 * Aim carefully when spitting from a high vantage point. If the goop glob hits any horizontally flat surface that is above the Survivors, the puddle will float above them and do no damage.
 * In addition to escaping when possible, try attacking from unusual positions. For example, above the Survivors. By spitting down, you can get several attacks in without being killed. If you don't reveal your position, it's possible to incapacitate everyone. This works best if the Survivors are in a cramped area.
 * When playing scavenge mode make an attempt to team up with any Special Infected that causes them to drop their gas cans and spit on them. If you are successful you will keep the Survivors at bay for sometime while the fire keeps them from placing in the gas.
 * Work with other Infected. If a Hunter/Smoker/Charger has someone pinned, spit on them to deal extra damage. If a Survivor is incapacitated, spit or die near them to discourage saving and do extra damage to the unfortunate Survivor. Use your spit to force the Survivors to face a Witch or a Tank.
 * In the third level of Hard Rain, Mill Escape, it's possible to spit into the elevator while it's still coming up, forcing the survivors to take large amounts of unavoidable damage.
 * On the fourth level of Dead Center, Atrium, you can easily climb all the way to the top level of the area. From there, you can spit slobber to yer hearts content on those below. Aim for Jimmy's car when the survivors are refueling.
 * Remember, even though the Spitter is designed for long range, don't forget she can scratch. If you are caught up close with the survivors, and have no way to escape, try scratching away at a survivor in a corner or surrounded by common zombies. If you're lucky, you will get some melee damage in and then die in a steaming puddle of corruption right under the survivor's feet.
 * In scavenge mode, its a good idea to hang hidden around the area the survivors need to pour gas into. By spitting on someone pouring in fuel, you both keep other survivors from fueling/scoring, and the person currently pouring has to either suck up the damage or back off.
 * In the Atrium level of Dead Center, it's possible to time your spit to land in the elevator the survivors take to the ground floor just as the doors close. It does a lot of damage and is a good way to get the great Expectorations Acheivement too.
 * Ladders are a great spot to trip up a team. Spitting at the top will force them to run through the goo or drop back down. The spit will often fall onto the lower level as well, trapping them.
 * The acid dropped by the spitter on death is an often underestimated weapon. Try standing over an incapped survivor. If they don't shoot you, they get clawed to death. If they do, they die by acid. You can also stand over dropped cans and in important chokepoints.

Trivia

 * The Spitter is currently the first female Special Infected to be playable, followed by the female Boomer
 * According to Steam's global stats,as of December 2009, the Spitter has the most easily acquirable Game Achievement with the "Acid Reflex" achievement being awarded to 56.7% of all players of the PC version of Left 4 Dead.
 * The Spitter's goo does not seem to harm other Infected, as they are most likely immune to its acidity. This could be very useful for Smokers, Hunters, or even Boomers, as there is nothing much more problematic for a Survivor than to be blinded, standing in acid, being attacked by a horde, and pounced by a Hunter or strangled by a Smoker at the same time. However, she does not seem to have complete immunity, as there are large, irritated burns where her acid seems to have dripped on. Her mouth and face are also extremely twisted and appear to have melted, most likely due to spitting so much acid.
 * The Spitter appears to have an extreme version of the disease known as acid reflux. This is another reference to Special Infected possibly gaining their powers through bodily properties they had before they turned.
 * It should be noted that in Mercy Hospital, one of X-rays shows an elongated neck. It is possible that this X-ray is a person that has been Infected with the same strain of the virus as the Spitter.
 * In the achievement icon for Great Expectorations, the Spitter seems to look more like a hunched Witch than her current in-game model. When players unlock this achievement, the window says "Great Expectorations", while the Steam window will say "Spit happens."
 * The achievement Acid Reflex is also an achievement of the game Half-Life 2: Episode 2.
 * When playing as a Spitter, you will slow down for about 2 seconds after shooting goo.
 * The Spitter's attack music cue is called Enzymicide, possibly derived from Enzyme and homicide. This perhaps suggests that not only the gastric acid expelled from the Spitter hurts the Survivors but also the digestive enzymes such as proteases which are corrosive to the protein of human skin.
 * On the Spitter's left hand, one can see four rings. This could imply the Spitter was in several relationships previous to the spread of the Infection.
 * The Spitter's Goo attack has a very strange trajectory. It will travel completely horizontally for a certain distance, and if it does not hit anything it will make a sudden 90° turn toward the ground. Very skilled players with good judgement can take advantage of this, using it as a sort of mortar attack.
 * During the rollercoaster event, spitting on the moving coaster causes the puddle of spit to travel along with the amusement park ride. While this is of no benefit to your team as the survivors will never be ahead of the carriages, it is certainly peculiar to watch the green puddle speeding around the circuit.
 * For some reason, the Spitter's acid isn't diluted if it hits a large pool of water.
 * When playing as the Spitter in Versus mode in first person, no acid is visible dripping from its mouth like it is in third person.