The Waterfront

Chapter 1 The Waterfront
Campaign	The Parish
The Parish Chapter Chronology
Chapter 1 The Waterfront Chapter 2 The Park

"Now this is a'far as Virgil goes, but y'all can make it to the bridge from here."

―Virgil

"We've been through hell getting here. Now we're at the last mile. Let's make this COUNT!"

―Coach

For the actual in-game waterfront market, see Waterfront Market.

The Waterfront is the first chapter of the campaign The Parish of Left 4 Dead 2. A video of this campaign can be seen here. The second part is here.

Strategy

The starting place of The Waterfront

Campaign

The Survivors start from a dock after being dropped off from a boat captained by Virgil, who ventures further up river to ferry more Survivors. To your right, you will find Tier 1 weapons, four first-aid kits, and a melee weapon.

Go up the ramp which leads you in front of some burning houses. The fighter jets will fly over your head, alerting some of the Common Infected to your presence. Kill them and go through the door next to the street and head to the left. There are two abandoned buses; next to the first bus is a ramp that leads you into a room which may contain Tier 1 weapons and melee weapons. After searching the room, jump onto the bus and head down the street.

Café with the Jukebox

At the end of the street, there is a café with a jukebox inside.There are three possible paths that will lead you to café backyard: the door behind the café's counter (you can find a Tier 1 weapon and a melee weapon here), the corridor after turning right at the café, and a low fence near the end of the street (you can find a Pistol or Magnum here). The Director will often block one of these paths, sometimes two of them that can result in a one-way entrance, or open all of them to you (extremely rare).

In one of the videos from E3, the Survivors have no choice but to progress on the streets again, but in this video, they are just walking in the backyard, with no possibility to keep their way on the streets, because a fence is blocking them.

• Warning: Depending on the mood of the Director, the door will sometimes appear. There is a possibility that the door will be closed and the small archway closed, so that it becomes a one-way entrance. Rarely will all three entrances be open. You can however, with a melee weapon, smack the door that is covered in wooden boards, allowing you to make yourself a two-way entrance.

• Warning: In the backyard, if a Tank spawns, it can quickly dispose of you in the small, enclosed space, with the large amount of dumpsters. Players should be careful at all costs if the Director spawns the one-way entrance as said above.

In the backyard, you must enter a kitchen. In here, you can sometimes find a Frying Pan or two, and another Tier 1 weapon. This is also a place for a Witch to spawn, although it is rare. After you leave the kitchen, you pass onto a street yet again. Right in front of you, there is an alarmed car, so you must pass it carefully. If you happen to start the alarm, try to rush into the safe room and shut the door before the horde arrives. Finally, the safe room - a small convenience store - will be in front of you. This is the second time we can see the exit of the safe room heading on to the next level.

Sign showing that groups were divided by colors and giving protective masks

Versus

The Survivors

This is one of the shortest chapters in the game. Like the other campaigns you will start with two Tier 1 weapons, four health kits, a melee weapon, one pistol and a pile of ammo. You will start off on a docking bay after being dropped off by Virgil, who drove the rescue vehicle in the last two campaigns: Swamp Fever and Hard Rain. First of all, equip yourself and leave the safe room. Be sure to kill all the Infected that spawn in front of the Docks. Once you do, check both left and right corners for any more Common Infected, then head for the sign saying "French Market" and go straight through the door under the sign. Once through, deal with the Infected at the beginning of the street; once you do, head up the collapsed balcony and into the window on the right. There will be two melee weapons and two Tier 1 weapons inside. Once done, kill the Infected down

The final street with the safe-room at its end

below, this will save you the trouble of going down and getting swarmed. Then continue down the street to pass a café, with a jukebox inside. Depending on the Director, there will be at least one path to take: through the door in the café; up the steps and over the fence to the street to the right of the cafe; or through a small archway on the same street as the fence. There is a pistol/magnum at the end of the street, next to the stairs over the wall. Go through the back door to another restaurant, and the first room will be a kitchen with numerous Frying Pans inside. Note that the freezer door in the kitchen will not close as it did in Left 4 Dead, so in the rare times that a Tank comes, do not try to hide in the freezer. Then go through the double doors, out the café, then you will pass a red car with an alarm, which attracts the horde if shot. Turn left and go to the fence-like barrier then turn right, to see the safe room.

The Infected

This can be a very difficult level for the Infected team in Versus as it is one of the shortest chapters in the game. The relative closeness of the safe room from the start gives you fewer chances to attack the Survivors. Coordination and infected teamwork is essential in this level as well as exploiting all the nooks and crannies. Remember that the Director can change which doorways you can access and which are blocked. While spawning, it would be wise to check which way Survivors can go; be sure to tell your team so that they can plan on taking out the Survivors accordingly. Also note that the alarmed car outside the café can give your team a big advantage, but at the same time, can be useless if Survivors sprint to the safe room after activating it. Try to ensure they activate the alarm and guard the safe room from anyone attempting to make a break for it. Though the car alarm is the your greatest advantage in this level, don't spend all your time waiting for the Survivors to get there, as a healthy Survivor can easily make it to the safe room if not attacked prior to the alarm. Use the alarm cars, teammates, and the extremely rare Witch or Tank to bring down the Survivors, and use the rooftops and balconies to your advantage.

The Hunter: A level with both open areas and enclosed spaces, roofs and walkways with easy access and many places to flee should the need arise will make you a happy Hunter. The multiple rooftops will make high damage pounces a certainty, but do keep in mind that you deal high damage per second. Should the area that leads to the Magnum lead to a dead end, you can pounce any player that rushes off for it on their own. There is also a glitch that involves jumping from a bus to a room in a building where Infected spawn. You can use this room to trap any lone wolves who decide to glitch and abandon their team, as the Survivors cannot see you from there.

A Jockey drives Rochelle away from the team

The Jockey: Your primary goal in this level is just to separate Survivor teams for your Infected friends to finish off. This level is so small and littered with static objects that can get in the way of the Survivor you are riding, that the odds of you incapacitating one are rare. Don't let that discourage you. Ride a Survivor who is attempting to help a friend up or from another Infected's grasp. Even if they end up killing you both, a few extra seconds of damage can mean the difference between victory and defeat. Also, a Witch may be able to spawn on the road where the safe room is. Wait in there and you can ride a Survivor to the Witch. If there is no Witch, there is always a car alarm in front of the restaurant, which will attract a horde.

The Charger: At the very beginning of the level, you have a rare opportunity to get an insta-kill or two on the Survivors. Right after the level begins, as soon as the Survivors head up the docks, charge straight at the railing and you have a chance to go running straight over.There are several areas to bowl through Survivors, scattering them and causing you to get a few extra slams on your victim. Charging at the beginning dock can hurt Survivors, plus anyone that gets scattered by the Charger can fly off the dock into the water below, resulting in an instant death. There are also walkways and small cramped rooms, which can do well, but don't forget that you can carry Survivors away. Using this ability, plus your other Infected, can either damage multiple Survivors or severely damage the captured Survivor.

The Smoker: Like the Jockey, this level may not be the best for you. However, there are several areas where you can hide, should the tangled target be freed. Attempt to split up Survivors as much as possible, delaying them for your other teammates to spawn and have their chance to damage them. Should Survivors attempt to use the small staircase near the Magnum, pulling the last Survivor that doesn't jump over the fence quick enough will force the Survivors to attempt to hop and shoot over the fence or go around the building to free their trapped friend if they can.

The Boomer after vomiting on Ellis

The Boomer: Should you spawn as a Boomer, you must at least attempt to vomit on one Survivor. Obvious, yes, but because this level is so short, your teammates are going to need as much help as they can in taking out the Survivors. Attempt to shower weaker Survivors in bile; the Uncommon Infected for this campaign, Riot Infected, are not only a pain to deal with but should a player be incapacitated, they will be unable to deal damage to the Infected without a teammate's help.

The Spitter: There are several high rooftops and walkways that you can "snipe" from, but the few access ways and narrow passages require close contact. Remember that your spit will not only damage Survivors, but it can delay them from pressing forward. Also remember that Spitter Goo will compound damage from other Infected (Jockey riding, Hunter pinning, etc.) Spitting just before the safe room at the end may delay the Survivors from entering, which can be very helpful if the car alarm has been triggered.

The Tank: An appearance of a Tank in this level is rare, but it can be really useful. Usually, most Tanks will appear just before the safe room. There are few cars for you to punch and it will probably not go into the small cafe. Your main goal, should there be a Tank, is to try to spread as much panic and separate Survivors. Your teammates should help attack any Survivor you are not attacking. Keep as much communication going as you can. Be aware of what other players (of each team) are doing, and attempt to at least take down one Survivor. As always, never attack a Survivor who is currently at the mercy of a teammate. Doing so will most likely kill your teammate and free the Survivor, allowing them to kill you.

Notes

• Hidden in the developer's console, originally The Waterfront (C5M1) and The Park (C5M2) were supposed to be one entire level together as seen here. To explore the prototype level, go to the console and type in "map c5m1_waterfront_sndscape". Using "nav_generate" in the console after turning cheats on will make the bots able to move and even let you get to the safe room, but you will not get sent to the next level because it's missing a map called "c5m2_cemetary". This shows that The Parish originally had four chapters instead of five. Also, the Survivors will spawn in the middle of the Park because the spawns were for the original Survivors (Louis, Bill, Zoey, and Francis). But even if you make the single map use the first Survivors, they will still spawn in the Park (as if the map was made in the first game).
• Also hidden in the developer's console, if a player types 'map c5m1_waterfront survival', they will find another fully made survival map. Unfortunately, the map was cut (probably because there are no Crescendo Events in The Waterfront, so making a survival mode on this map makes no sense, or that it made no sense to make a survival map at the start of a campaign).
• At the beginning of this level, a half-sunken Paddle steamer can be seen. It was assumed that the military only bombed places and rescue vehicles that are not authorized. As stated in several safe rooms along the way, the military have quarantined the entire area and are stopping any chances of the infection spreading, such as this unlucky example.
• The original name for this level was "The French Quarter."
• In the café, halfway through the map, there is a jukebox that plays music by Jonathan Coulton, the Midnight Riders, the song "The Saints Will Never Come", and occasionally "Still Alive," if activated.
• Standing on top of the jukebox causes all Infected, including the Witch, to ignore the player. This glitch will only work on the Xbox 360 version.
• In the demo, right next to the safe room, there is a clipping error that allows you to get on top of the house next to it. This can also be done near the first set of buses near the end of The Park.
• While on the street, if you take the awning up to the open window and head into the room, sometimes a Silenced Submachine Gun will be sitting completely upright on the table, due to a model placement error.
• A sign at the start of the level (see picture above) shows that the military separated people using color-coded wristbands. This may have been a way to keep carriers from non-carriers, or a way to signal an important person without raising too much attention.
• One thing unique to this level is that no grenades or healing items can be found in this chapter, except for the First aid kits in the beginning, and inside the ending safe room.
• You will hurt yourself by repeatedly hitting the trash bins in small alleys, probably because the trash bins bounce against the wall.
• The freezer door in the kitchen of the restaurant you pass through will never close.
• A common glitch on the very start dock with the railing: if a Charger charges, a Survivor Bot may get clipped halfway through the square part of the dock, instead of getting knocked into the water and drowning.
• Sometimes in the room with the jukebox, the door may be boarded up instead of a regular door. If you destroy it with a melee weapon on either side, you will noclip through the boards and end up on the other side. This creates a shortcut and a viable escape route if archway is closed and a Tank appears. Bots will not be able to use this shortcut.