Left 4 Dead 2 Infected Eater's Guide

The Hunter is a high-damaging infected type, but must be used in cooperation with other types to be truly effective. The main attack is a pounce that pins a survivor while the Hunter repeatedly swipes for 10 HP a hit. This can only be executed while the Hunter is in a crouching position. You must crouch briefly before leaping.

The Hunter should always be used to catch straggling survivors. A pounce into a pack of survivors is a bad idea -- unless there's acid or fire under them or they are getting swarmed by the Horde. Make players back track to save their pinned compatriot and you'll have more time to mess with them.

The Hunter can be knocked off with a melee attack killed to stop its assault. If the Hunter is melee attacked and lands free of an obstacle, it can instantly pounce again after rolling backwards. Otherwise, the pounce attack must recharge. The Hunter also has a swipe attack that is made less effective due to the Hunter's miniscule life bar. Nevertheless, swiping at weakened (red) survivors or a survivor distracted by the Horde is an effective strategy.

The Boomer's primary attack is a spout of vomit that summons the Horde to attack a soaked survivor. Soaked survivors appear with a purple outline. The Boomer is a difficult infected type to get used to due to its miniscule life bar and girth which makes it easy to hit. As if this weren't bad enough, its recognizable gurgling makes it an even easier target for wary survivors.

Thankfully, the Boomer also serves as a walking bile bomb -- any nearby survivors will be covered in puke if the Boomer is destroyed nearby. This makes the Boomer one of the best candidates for a suicide run. Appear just ahead of the survivors and run at them while puking. Hopefully they'll panic and pop the Boomer, covering them in bile.

The Boomer's secondary attack is a claw swipe that can be used to attack survivors temporarily blinded by puke or overcome by the Horde. If you puke on survivors up close, you may as well run in an claw them since retreat is difficult.

The Smoker functions somewhat like the Hunter -- its primary attack, a tongue constriction, paralyzes a survivor and drains his or life in the process. The tongue attack drags a survivor towards the Smoker linearly over a wide distance, although the survivor will stop if he or she hits an obstacle. If the survivor is dragged all the way to the Smoker's location, additional damage will be inflicted.

The common place to tether survivors is on rooftops. From here you can constrict and then retreat quickly if you are interrupted. Like Jockeys and Hunters, stragglers should be your primary targets.

The Smoker has a weak claw attack that can be used if cornered and as a last resort.

The Tank is the ultimate survivor-smashing tool. The Tank has the largest amount of health out of any of the special infected. You will only be able to play as the tank during certain times in an episode, and sometimes only in the finale. If you don't do any damage as the tank in a set time, you will lose control to the computer or another player.

The Tank has two main attacks: one is a melee attack that knocks survivors far away. The other allows you to pick up a piece of concrete from the ground and toss it at the survivors, knocking them down and damaging them. This throw is often underestimated even though it can keep you at a safe distance while allowing you to inflict damage. Be sure to aim high, as the projectile will fall a bit as it travels. You can always toss a projectile then melee attack immediately afterward, so alternating the attacks increases your smashing potential.

The Tank can also punch certain objects and send them flying towards survivors -- like cars. These are outlined in red.

The Tank can kill special infected by accident, so keep clear of your teammates.