The Woods

"You're tellin' me people camp for fun?"

- Francis

The Woods is the first chapter of the fifth campaign, Blood Harvest.


 * For the actual in-game forest, see Allegheny National Forest.

The Survivors start off at a small campsite in the middle of a thick forest. They are tasked with traversing through Allegheny National Forest, finding the safe room, and holding off any Infected on the way. The Survivors fight their way through Infected until they reach a chasm which is crossed with the help of a rope bridge. Once on the other side, they continue past a small cabin and onwards through some more trees. Further ahead, they approach the outskirts of a trainyard. The Survivors maneuver around the area and enter it through a small entrance in one of the station's buildings. This leads them to the safe room and the end of the level.

Campaign
At the beginning, the AI Survivors will grab:
 * Bill will grab a submachine gun.
 * Zoey will grab a submachine gun.
 * Francis will grab a submachine gun.
 * Louis will grab a submachine gun.

The Survivors start off in Allegheny National Forest at what is presumably a camp site. To your right is a picnic bench with tier 1 weapons and four first aid kits as usual. One of the Survivors will mention that there is a military evacuation zone to the north. Although each of the AI Survivors grab the submachine gun in this level, having one player with the the pump shotgun is not a bad idea. It is highly useful for quickly pivoting around and mowing down Infected that are charging you from behind. In light of the fact that Infected do attack you from behind frequently, one player choosing the shotgun can benefit the team.

Regardless of which weapon you choose, grab both it and your first aid kit, and head out. The Survivors head through the woods via a narrow wood trail. Progress down the path, whilst remaining wary of not only hidden Common Infected, but hidden Boomers, Hunters and Smokers as well. Check the area to the left next to the fence behind some rocks for the supplies that occasionally spawn here. Eventually you will spot a picnic bench and lantern. This bench is often home to Molotovs, or gas cans. Less frequently, it has a bottle of pills up for grabs. However if you are doing well, this table and the aforementioned area are likely to be devoid of usable items.

Move beyond the bench and you will reach a small wooden rope suspension bridge. Be careful crossing it as a  Smoker likes to hide unseen either on the opposite side or pops up behind the team on the right. The best thing to do is to sprint across the bridge to reduce the team's exposure. Just after this bridge is also a possible, albeit rare, location for the Tank to spawn. When retreating from the Tank as he crosses the bridge, players are often lulled into a false sense of security. They believe themselves to be perfectly safe from the Tank's rock throw if he is on the bridge. However this is untrue because he has the remarkable ability to lift out a large chunk of rock for throwing―from the wooden rope bridge.

On the other side of the bridge there is a trailer containing an ammo cache and often pills, Molotovs, pipe bombs and an extra pistol. Outside next to the trailer there may also be a gas can or propane tank. Grab what you can and continue further through more woodland. A hurry-up horde is sure to spawn soon after leaving the trailer and re-entering the woods. Thereafter the pathway widens into a broad track and dips down into a gully beneath a bridge. This area is always thickly populated with loitering but alert Common Infected. Deploying a throwable or item such as a gas can will help thin their numbers. Part-way along under the bridge is a small hut to the left, in and around which minor supplies can sometimes be found. The Survivors then head further along the trail to a point where it makes a 90-degree turn to the left directly towards the Richardson Atlantic freight depot. Bots will tend to speed up here as the safe room is located inside of a yellow building forming part of this complex. Run straight to safety without delay because this area is famous for spawning not-so-fast-you Special Infected. Naturally it is crucial to remember your teammates are running with you and not dawdling way behind because otherwise either you may arrive at the safe room alone and get ambushed or a laggard gets bushwacked well outside the safe room. After you've made it in, take a break and heal yourself. Once you feel ready, switch on that flashlight, because you're headed for The Tunnel.

The Survivors
Now that humans are controlling the Special Infected, things can only get harder. 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 running!

This is actually a terrible level for an all-human team of Survivors. The Infected lurk behind the dense forestry, rapidly attacking you and concealing themselves once again. You will be outclassed in this forest, and as team, you must move as quickly as possible. However, the AI players in your team can provide a major―if not, unfair―advantage to your team. The AI have the uncanny ability to "see through" the leaves and bushes. This grants them the ability to spot and kill Infected that human players would otherwise miss. Even if you do not have an AI on your side, the game registers it that you can "see through" the shrubbery and leaves as well. This leads to the Special Infected being unable to spawn in certain areas because they can be "seen" by the Survivors. They will then have to find a solid object to hide behind.

The deep chasms that you can fall into are a problem. The Special Infected can take advantage of this in many ways: Above all, avoid the chasm, that first step is quite big.
 * With an extremely well-timed pounce, Hunters can stumble everyone near their target, and send them over the edge. If the group is tightly clustered, this can effectively end the round.
 * Smokers can tug Survivors over the edge and leave them hanging for their lives. There are even several spots throughout the level where Smokers can drag them over the edge, bypass the "grab on" action where the Survivor grabs the edge, and kill them with fall damage. This causes an instant kill.
 * Rarely, a Boomer can explode and send a Survivor stumbling over the edge. A more likely scenario is that a Survivor will get vomited on and will quickly rush around looking for a place to fend off the approaching horde. This can lead to them rushing over the edge of the chasm.
 * The obvious Infected that can exploit the chasm is the Tank, and unfortunately, the rope bridge is a possible spawn point for the Tank.

Once you are in the open area in front of the safe room, be extremely careful. If you and your team don't move quickly, you can be ambushed by the Special Infected with lethal efficiency. Inversely, if you move too quickly and get ahead of your teammates, you are running the risk of a fatal Smoker or Hunter ambush. Move rapidly but as one unit. Stick together, cover each other and expect everything and anything. Do all of this, and you'll be fine.

The Infected
Boomers: This is your kind of level! It's not indoors, which is actually good in this case because it means plenty of room to escape. Plus, with the trees technically restricting the Survivors' passage, it is in tight quarters! Lurk amongst the trees and emerge only to unleash your hail of green bile. Once you have, you can simply run backwards and into the trees! The ones covered in bile won't really be able to see you anyway, but if you missed one, the trees could save your life. Let your bile recharge by either waiting here, or moving ahead and waiting there. Once it has, repeat the process of emerge, vomit, conceal and recharge until you are killed for being extremely pesky!

Hunters: Hunters are made for this kind of land. Wide, open areas to leap around in, yet lots of cover to shield against Survivor aggression. If you angle yourself correctly, you can pounce up certain trees and position yourself atop them. Landing a pounce from this position will earn a decent amount of instant pounce damage. However, sometimes the effort required to get up the tree is not worth it. Keep in mind that AI Survivors can "see" you through bushes and leaves. If you know there is an AI in your enemy's team, try to note what character it is playing as, and avoid hiding from it behind non-clip objects. Otherwise, this is an easy level for you. Pounce fast, pounce quick, and pounce to victory. If pouncing isn't an option, just slash. Of all the levels, this is perfect for simply running up to the Survivors, slash them, and run back into the forest. Because you don't generate any sound when you're standing up, you can easily hide from the Survivors. And as you look a lot like a Common Infected, Survivors will have a difficult time keeping track of you.

Smokers: This level is virtually perfect for you. Fate has even given you deep chasms with instant-kill locations! Your main goal is to hide behind bushes, trees, and anything else that is near but off the main path. From here you can snatch unsuspecting Survivors and split up the team. Combined with a Boomer attack and the confusion of your location through the trees, this can lead to a large amount of damage to the Survivor team. Remember that although your main job is to attack from a distance, your melee attack can be devastating. If a Survivor appears to be heavily wounded, your melee attack may even incapacitate them!

Tanks: As with most levels where you are at your peak, you are very rare. Hitting the Survivors far away could not only send them down the ravine to their death, but it will more than likely send them hurtling into the dense forest and separate them from their team. As a general rule of thumb, try to avoid fire or molotov-wielding Survivors. If a Survivor is constricted or pounced, do not attempt to "help" the Smoker or Hunter. Your attack will free them and kill your buddy in the case of the Hunter. You may end up saving the Survivor's life. Otherwise, this level is easy, albeit short, to finish the Survivors off with a Tank.