Similarly to the primary weapons, there were a number of problems with L4D2s secondary weapons. With very little variety, and a few weapons being outright better than others, it meant that most players either defaulted to using the Magnum or one of the better melees, regardless of which primary weapon they had equipped.

To improve upon the secondary weapons, TAO makes these major changes:
- Secondary weapons are more varied, giving players a lot more choice and opening up a wide array of loadout combinations that weren't possible in vanilla L4D2. 3 new secondary weapons have been added, being reworked forms of primary weapons: the Uzi, Chrome Shotgun, and Scout.
- Your choice of secondary weapon is more impactful. Like the primary weapons, they have specific strengths and weaknesses, and players are encouraged to select one that complements their chosen primary weapon. Many secondary weapons are now also usable while incapacitated, and will have certain upsides and downsides in this situation as well.
- Survivor bots can use all secondary weapons, including melees and the chainsaw, to help make TAO more fun in singleplayer mode.



Like the primary weapons page, the secondary weapons will also have some stats listed.

Damage: How much damage each bullet deals.

Firing Speed: How long, in seconds, you have to wait after firing a shot before you can fire again.

Reload Speed: How long, in seconds, it takes to reload the weapon when it's out of ammo.

DPS: How much damage a weapon deals on average per second if you fire the entire clip and reload.

Clip Size: How many bullets the weapon can fire before it needs to reload.

Accuracy: A rough indicator of how likely a weapon is to hit a target. Higher accuracy means increased effectiveness at longer distances.

Other Features: In some cases, a weapon might have an extra bonus that isn't made clear from stats alone. It will be listed here.



One of the few weapons to receive only buffs, the pistols have had their accuracy increased to make landing headshots much easier. If you are incapped whilst using the pistols, you will no longer have a decreased accuracy, reload and firing speed penalty. They're a good choice for dealing with mid range threats, and pair well with a shotgun primary.

Damage: 36
Firing Speed: 0.155
Reload Speed: 2/2.5
DPS: 125/151
Clip Size: 15/30
Accuracy: High


The magnum has been reworked, gaining a damage boost in exchange for a reduced clip size, lower accuracy, and slightly reduced firing speed. Offering powerful close range stopping power, it's great as a backup to your SMG or a rifle like the SG552.

Damage: 90
Firing Speed: 0.3
Reload Speed: 2
DPS: 154
Clip Size: 7
Accuracy: Moderate


Now functioning as a fully automatic pistol, the Uzis range, clip size, penetration and firing speed have all been slightly decreased, whilst its accuracy has been buffed. It pairs well with a shotgun or sniper primary thanks to its mid range chip damage and crowd control potential.

Damage: 20
Firing Speed: 0.085
Reload Speed: 2.27
DPS: 134
Clip Size: 35
Accuracy: Moderate


Rather than have 2 similar T1 shotguns, the Chrome Shotgun is now a secondary weapon with 6 shots in the clip. Whilst its decreased damage prevents it from crowning Witches in a single shot, it can still serve as a powerful backup damage dealer for threats at close range. Thanks to its ability to hit multiple targets at once, it can offset the weaknesses of the sniper primaries.

Damage: 23 x 8
Firing Speed: 1.0
Reload Speed: 2.5
DPS: Varies, usually around 200
Clip Size: 6
Accuracy: Low


The Scout functions mostly the same as its vanilla counterpart, albeit as a secondary weapon. It has a clip size or 7 and a faster firing speed, but deals the same damage per hit, making it great for taking out specials at long range. Its strength at range makes it a natural companion to any primary weapon with low accuracy.

Damage: 90
Firing Speed: 0.7
Reload Speed: 2.9
DPS: 90
Clip Size: 7
Accuracy: High
Other Features: Scope


The Chainsaw has received a significant number of buffs across its various iterations in TAO. It hits faster and from further away, but deals the same DPS as in vanilla. This improves its consistency when cutting through hordes, but doesn't make the weapon any more powerful in terms of its damage. It also has 50% more fuel than in vanilla, and can be refueled by shoving red gas cans.


The Pitchforks infamous vertical swing has been replaced by a horizontal swing, making it much more effective in combat.

The Shovel has been changed to a sharp melee, letting it cut Smoker tongues and kill zombies slightly faster.

The Crowbar, Frying Pan, Baseball Bat, Tonfa, Katana and Machete have all had their swing patterns and hitrays adjusted to bring them more in line with each other. All standard melees serve the same purpose of clearing space around you and letting you avoid getting swarmed by common infected. They've been made more similar so that the choice comes down to personal preference rather than which is statistically the best.


The mounted guns appear in various areas throughout many campaigns, but are rarely used due to their oddly restrictive nature and surprisingly low effectiveness in combat. To help make them more appealing defensive options, they've had their accuracy, use time and cooldown time buffed. They're perfect for dealing high DPS against Tanks and helping to thin out hordes during defensive holdouts.


Compared to vanilla, Pipe Bombs have gained a new mechanic: they can be equipped and thrown while incapacitated. This gives downed survivors a chance to buy themselves more time before being killed, as the Pipe Bomb can be thrown in the opposite direction they're crawling to make them easier to revive.


Bile bombs last longer, coat infected from further away, and can be thrown at yourself or teammates to turn them into a temporary distraction. The radius for coating teammates is smaller than for the infected to avoid accidentally coating a teammate. Like the Pipe Bomb, Bile Bombs can also be thrown while the user is incapacitated. This is a much riskier tactic however, as the Bile can coat the player if it impacts too close to them.


Molotovs can slowly spread over a larger area than usual. Additionally, as with the Pipe Bomb and Bile Jar, Molotovs can now be thrown while incapacitated


The Explosive and Incendiary Ammo upgrades found in vanilla are normally fairly underwhelming, and are usually deployed immediately rather than held on to. In TAO, they will instead grant players either full ammo or a laser sight upgrade. This is much more impactful, and it makes them worth holding onto until the players are either out of ammo or they find more powerful weapons that can make better use of the laser sight upgrade.