Katana

Katana
Weapon type	Close Combat Weapon
Technical specifications
Rate of fire	0.75s per hit. 15s to kill a Tank.

"I'm grabbin' this ninja sword. Anybody see some nunchucks, gimme a holler."

―Ellis

"Shit. I'd pay cash money for this."

―Coach

The Katana (also erroneously called the Ninja Sword by some Survivors) is a close combat weapon in Left 4 Dead 2.

It spawns in the following campaigns:

• Dead Center
• The Passing
• Dark Carnival
• Hard Rain
• No Mercy
• Dead Air
• The Sacrifice
• Cold Stream

Melee weapons replace Pistols in the secondary weapon slot. Unlike Pistols, close combat weapons never need to be reloaded and cannot run out of ammo (excluding the Chainsaw). They have two main drawbacks: a limited reach and (with a few exceptions) relatively long cooldown periods. Close combat weapons cause minimal friendly fire damage to the Survivors, even on Advanced and Expert difficulty levels (the Chainsaw is an exception).

These weapons are extremely effective. All melee weapons, on all difficulties, kill Common Infected and most Special Infected in one hit, aside from the Charger (which takes two—but see point below), the Witch (which takes four), and the Tank (which takes twenty, excluding the Chainsaw). Due to their death effects, it is generally advised to melee neither the Boomer (unless there is no choice) nor the Spitter (unless it is possible to move away immediately from the resulting acid splash).

The melee weapons appear to do more damage if an Infected's head or upper body is targeted. With the correct timing it is possible to kill a Charger with one hit while it is charging, allowing a Survivor to "level" a charge without first dealing damage to the Charger and to gain the achievement "Level a Charge".

The Katana is classified as a slashing weapon. As such, hits from this weapon will sever limbs and splatter blood.

Pros & Cons

Pros

Nick holding Katana in Hard Rain

• Other than the Machete, Nightstick, and Golf Club, all of which are only available in a select few campaigns, and the Chainsaw, which is a rare weapon with limited fuel, the Katana has the fastest fire rate of any melee weapon.
• Wide arc of swing, allowing for multiple Infected to be killed in one swing. 

Cons

• Very rare find. Sometimes it does not spawn at all in a campaign.
• Covers the screen with blood since it is a slashing weapon.
• Not recommended for killing Boomers due to bile showering attacker and any nearby Survivors.

Achievements

	CONFEDERACY OF CRUNCHES	(30G)
	Finish a campaign using only melee weapons.

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	HEAD HONCHO	(15G)
	Decapitate 200 Infected with a melee weapon.

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	TANK BURGER	(30G)
	Kill a Tank with melee weapons.

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	BEAT THE RUSH	(15G)
	In a Survival round, get a medal only using melee weapons.

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	CLUB DEAD	(15G)
	Use every melee weapon to kill Common Infected.

Notes

Picture of a Katana.

The Katana in action.

• The katana is a sword worn and used by the Japanese elite warrior class known as the samurai, beginning in a division of Japanese history known as the Muromachi period. Traditionally crafted Katana are made of a particular form of steel called tamahagane, which is forged from a furnace known as a tatara.
• When picking up a Katana, all Survivors (except Rochelle) may say, "Grabbing a ninja sword." This is due to the popularity of the Japanese ninja in American media. Despite popular belief, the closest thing to a "ninja sword", otherwise known as a ninjatō, may never have existed and is purely theoretical. Though under the right circumstances (such as losing their weapon during combat), a ninja or shinobi may have used a Katana. A Katana has a long curved blade and is generally held with two hands, while the ninjatō is a short (generally straight) blade.
  • Ellis and Rochelle are the only Survivors who can correctly identify a Katana. Coach and Nick will always identify it as a "ninja sword" upon sighting it.
    • Despite being able to identify the Katana, Ellis still calls it a "ninja sword" upon picking it up; he may just be referring to it informally.
    • Regarding the original Survivors, it is unknown who among Bill, Francis, Louis and Zoey could identify one.
• In a Blog Post, the Katana was voted the players' favorite melee weapon on both Xbox 360 and PC.
• The Katana is featured as the only weapon in the Mutation Four Swordsmen, although the Survivors can still use their pistols when incapacitated, most likely for gameplay reasons.If the survivors are to die, they will respawn with pistols, if rescued. Once they arrive in the safehouse, the pistol will be replaced with a Katana, and the pistol will be on the ground next to the survivor.
• Despite being held with two hands, light from the flashlight still appears in front of the Survivor who equips the Katana. This holds true for other two-handed melee weapons, such as the Axe. This is merely a game mechanic.
• When closely observed, the Katana's tsuba, or hand guard, appears to have an engraving of a scorpion (this has not yet been confirmed by Valve) on it.
• In the history of videos and trailers, The Sacrifice trailer is the first to feature the Katana. Ironically, whilst being a weapon from Left 4 Dead 2, it is seen to be used by the original Survivors from Left 4 Dead, which does not feature melee weapons.
  • As the trailer suggests, it could be a retcon, which is done by mixing elements from Left 4 Dead 2 into Left 4 Dead, such as Bill wielding an AK-47 in The Sacrifice comic.
  • Zoey makes her move as the first Survivor to ever lay hands on a Katana, though she holds it only for mere seconds before handing it to Louis, who then uses it to fight off Infected. However, the latter is credited to be the first to use the Katana against the Infected.
  • As seen in the trailer, Zoey and Louis both wield the Katana single-handed, an impossible act in-game. Also, prior to handing over the Katana to Louis, Zoey is seen holding what seems to be a Magnum pistol in her other hand, and Louis grabs the Katana with his left hand as a testament to his ambidexterity.
  • Where and how Zoey found the Katana is never revealed, as the location where the trailer is set is an unlikely location where one can find such weapons.
• Similar to most slashing weapons, if the user's reaction is fast enough along with facing the correct direction, the Katana can slice through a Smoker's tongue when snared. See the Smoker's tactics section for more details.
• It is possible to kill a Hunter who leaps toward the Player with the Katana, although it requires good timing (This rule applies for other melee weapons also).
• It can be found in all current finished DLC's released by Valve for Left 4 Dead 2.
  • The Katana used to appear in all Left 4 Dead 2 ports of the original campaigns. After the December 16, 2011 update, it became exclusive to No Mercy, Dead Air and The Sacrifice.
• The Katana, like all melee weapons, does not appear on the original Survivors' backs when not equipped in the ported Left 4 Dead campaigns, making it appear as though they are brandishing it out of thin air. The only possible explanation is that the original Survivors' models have not been updated to support attachments for the close combat weaponry.
• Zoey's hands clip on the Katana most out of any Survivor on various instances since her restored animations are not in sync with the new animations.
• Ellis is the only Survivor so far to mention or make reference to various aspects of Japanese culture upon grabbing the Katana; he often references ninjas whenever he mentions "Grabbin' the ninja sword. See some nunchucks, gimme a holler/Wish I brought my throwing stars". Also, at one point, it is revealed through obtaining the Katana that Ellis is skilled at karate, a well known self-defense martial art from Japan.
  • It is odd, however, that Ellis does not mention the samurai in any of his lines, despite the fact the samurai themselves are the best-known individuals for wielding the Katana.
  • Also, though he has stated that he took karate lessons with the Katana, this is unlikely; karate deals with defending one's self without the use of weapons. It is more likely that Ellis has mistaken kendo, the Japanese art of swordplay, for karate.

External Links

• PAX 09: Highway Fire katana - One of the first videos featuring the Katana.