Hard Rain - 3/5: Mill Escape

"Ok, everybody gassed up and good to go?"

- Nick "STORM!! Nobody wander off!"

- Ellis

In the Mill Escape, the weather has begun to deteriorate as the Survivors turn around to bring the fuel back to Virgil's boat. Due to storm clouds blocking out the sun, all the Wandering Witches are now back to normal. This chapter has more Worker Infected than the previous chapter, but fewer Witches. You should try avoid the water as it will cause you to move more slowly.

Possibly on account of the weather conditions, the entire chapter is characterised by hypersensitive Infected who spot the Survivors at a distance and attack without undue hesitation. As the Survivors move through the Sugar Mill, the storm will periodically swell for a short amount of time. During this time, the Survivor's vision is shortened and a Horde may attack. Ironically, when the storm kicks up, Witch-like screams can be heard if one listens closely, suggesting the storm has some sort of major, unexplainable effect on them, which causes them to shriek wildly, and evade to seek shelter, explaining why there are much fewer Witches in this level, and the few that still remain are mostly found under some sort of cover (roofs, pipes, etc.).

When the storm hits with full force, microphone chat can be severely affected due to the way the audio channels layer. This is likely an intended effect by Valve in order to maintain an aura of realism. While you can still use the microphone, do not expect fellow Survivors to hear you clearly or at all sometimes. This effect is lessened indoors, and can be avoided altogether if Steam chat is used in place of in-game chat. However, this effect was left out of the 360 port of the game.



Walkthrough
After the journey in the second chapter, the Survivors have the green diesel cans strapped to their backs and are ready to go. However, they find that since entering the safe room the storm has intensified and the return route is subject to widespread surface flooding. On exiting the safe room, it is discovered that the roadway outside is heavily repopulated with Infected. Returning via the cane field (In the cane field WILL be at least one Tank, 99.9% of the time), the Survivors enter the elevator and take it to the sugar mill's top floor. During this traverse, the storm makes it hard to see and hear one another, so it is essential that teams stick together. This advice is especially important in the sugar mill itself since it is all too easy for one player to fall, get snagged or incapped and thus left too far behind the rest of the team.

On exiting the elevator, the Survivors have two departure points. Firstly, they can proceed down to the ground floor and leave by the way they entered. Alternatively, they can go to the first floor and jump down onto the roof of the Portakabin office on the left that has a hole in its roof. Either way, after checking out the supplies in the Portakabin, the next bound is to climb the yellow ladder affixed to the side of a nearby silo.

Note that this move sets the tone for the rest of the chapter. By staying up on pipes, catwalks and gantries, the Survivors are out of the floodwater and thus enjoy the advantages of faster movement and an improved combat posture than would otherwise be the case at ground level. The route across and through the sugar mill is relatively intuitive; however, navigational difficulty may be experienced by players whose screens suffer from lack of contrast and low image resolution. An easy way to visualise the aboveground route is that players will be following the same zigzag course through the mill that they used when entering, except now it is done above ground level.

On exiting the silos, the Survivors drop down onto a catwalk denoted by a portable generator; thereafter, they follow this route past an office containing weapons, grenades and supplies and onward weaving around a couple of large steel hoppers; a tricky section follows which involves sidling along a series of pipes and narrow catwalks. Slipping off due to a careless move or Charger attack is an ever-present risk. After dropping down onto a well-illuminated large pipe, the Survivors go through a hole in the wall, sidle along on the other side and reach a catwalk. After a short distance, a narrow pipe takes the team across to the facing wall. Moving forward, the pipe turns through 90 degrees and ends in midair. But just off to the left is the second Portakabin containing weapons and supplies. After jumping down and taking what they need, the Survivors get back up above the ground via a set of pipes angled upwards (one of the characters will provde a directive message on this point).

This is another troublesome area since it is not particularly well lit and it is easy for individuals to lose their footing. On moving forwards, a point is reached where a player can either jump across to a catwalk or sidle around to the right on a suspended pipe to reach this selfsame structure (Note that should players fall off, there is a ladder affixed to a wall on the left which will bring them back up to the right place again). At the end of the catwalk, the first floor of the Ducatel Sugar Mill office block will be visible in front and a character will make a comment to this effect. The Survivors drop down into the offices and then exit to the building opposite containing the safe room. Congratulations! You have completed one of the most challenging chapters in the game and are now ready to start loading The Return To Town map.

Tips
Survivors should take every possible item from the gas station safe room, as they will not return to it, unlike in previous chapters. Upon exiting the station, take out as many Common Infected as quickly as possible, to save from them attacking when the storm reaches hurricane conditions, which is fatal on advanced and expert difficulties. Then the team should form a single-file line, and quickly follow each other through the field and reach the elevator. Try to stay at the middle until you find the pipe; this should make navigating in the sugar field a bit easier. Be careful in the sugar cane field. A Survivor could be abducted by a Jockey, and by the time you realize it, it would be too late; thus, teamwork is vital.

Search the shed near the elevator for supplies, and then ride the elevator up. Beware: Since the building counts as shelter, a Witch could be taking refugee inside, so it is crucial you know where she is if you hear crying; however, on strange circumstances, a Witch might spawn in front of the elevator, causing the players to use a bot for bait when a Panic Event comes. Travel downstairs, outside. Check the house to your immediate left for weapons, if you are low on ammo. Head through the mill, being sure to keep high ground, as the water below slows you down significantly. If you fall down into the water, you will move slowly, and if a Tank spawns, it will be diasterous as he moves at regular speed and can catch up with you. Yet another house can be found to the left of the first section of the mill, which is usually rich in supplies. Be sure to check this house, unless you already did it before.

Continue forward, through the second part, checking the next house for even more supplies. Travel through here, and beware of any Witches, as they usually spawn on the path you need to take. If you are particularly good at "cr0wning," you could grab a shotgun from any of the before houses, to remove any Witches in your path safely. This, however, is not recommended on expert, of course, as the rate for failure is much higher, and the penalty is much greater, so avoidance remains the best strategy. Also, the shotguns can be Tier 1 shotguns, and if your Tier 2 shotgun is low on ammo, don't try it.

Go back into building #1, the one you first entered in the Sugar Mill. Be forewarned: a Witch might spawn near the entrance to get to the other supplies; if so, you will need to have each person go in, and then wait for the Witch to its moaning. If you want to get to the next chapter, you can fall down into the water on the right side from the vent. This, however, makes the Director think you stayed in a place too long. If the Witch spawns elsewhere, check the rooms for any supplies, as there can be Molotovs, Pipe Bombs, Boomer Bile, health kits, or other items in there.

Once out of this section of the mill, you are basically home free, but Witch/Tank spawns are still possible, and on very rare occasions, a Witch could spawn directly in front of the safe room door. If such happens, you could attempt to lure one of the AI teammates to it to startle it; however, it is a risky move. Proceed to the safe room, and shut the door. Chapter compete! Congratulations!

Notes:
 * It is vital to stay with your team, especially on Realism or when the storm kicks up.
 * If you're playing as the Infected, when the chapter is about to start, go hide in the cane field with your team. It's a wonderful place to ambush Survivors as it is very hard for them to see you through the canes and rain. Boomers will find sneaking up to survivors easier, giving them a better chance of survival. Spitters can launch their attack without being seen. The Smoker's tongue is hidden by the cane, so it's harder to follow the tongue and find the smoker. Jockeys and Chargers can separate Survivors by great distances, and along with Hunters, can attack from any direction. Think Jaws: you can see them, but they can't see you. What's more, the rain makes your musical cues and vocals hard to hear at some points. However, Survivor Bots can find you, so if there are any bots, target them so the player can get killed more faster.
 * Molotov are almost useless from now on. Pipe bombs and Boomer Biles should be used from now on due to the rain's effect on the fire.
 * Note the weapons from the last part you just took in. This allows you to find leftover items, and of course, replenish ammo, espically when doing the weapon swap glitch. However weapons are barely found, and all the weapons are the same.
 * For Survivors, try to have rally points if you get lost. Any landmark that can be distinguished is good, such as the bright yellow ladder, the overturned irrigation line, and the pipe in the ground.
 * An adrenline item is needed, as falling in the water makes you easy prey for any Witches, Tanks or other Infected in the area.
 * Tanks prove deadly, since if the Tank punches someone off on the "wheat" field side, they will have to wait for the next rescue closet, and cannot be defibrillated. The Tank can also do it on the Sugar Tank side, but the victim can be defibed.