Sap-fling

Sap-fling is a limited time lobbed-shot premium plant in Plants vs. Zombies 2: It's About Time that was added in the 3.1.1 update on December 4, 2014. It creates a puddle in a single square by throwing its sap-covered pinecones. Any zombie that walks over it will turn orange, slowing down in the process. If it passes over that puddle or the puddle disappears, the zombie's speed will return to normal.

Sap-fling is the first limited-time premium plant that can be purchased with a real-life currency while it is the third plant in general to be limited time with Ghost Pepper being the first and Sweet Potato being the second. Prior to the release of the Frosbite Cave's first update, it became a Bundle for purchase.

Almanac Entry
AREA: Tile

RANGE: Lobbed

Recharge: Fast

Sap-flings create zombie-slowing puddles of sap.

Damage Details: does no damage on impact, but creates sap puddle

Special: slows zombies who walk in puddle

You've gotta see Sap-fling's throwing arm to believe it. He may be young, but everyone agrees ... the kid's got TALENT. Scouts from some of the biggest Pinecone Ball teams have been keeping a close eye on him. He could be headed to the majors. Oh sure, some knock him for his incredibly sticky spitball. But he only uses all-natural sap, so it's entirely legal.

Plant Food upgrade
When fed with Plant Food, it throws 20 pinecones randomly on the lawn, turning into sap puddles which will stay for fifteen seconds.

Strategies
As a plant with slowing down effect for an entire tile, it can be used effectively both as a replacement for plants with ice effect or together with ice plants. Its relatively low cost makes it useful in many situations. The Sap-fling, being a lobbed shot pant also gives it a number of advantages and disadvantages. Its biggest downside is that it cannot damage zombies.

Since the Sap-fling does not use chilling status alignment to slow down zombies, it can be used very efficiently with the Torchwood. For the first time ever, zombies can be slowed down and take massive damage from burning peas at the same time.

The slowing effect of the sap puddles can also be very useful when used alongside plants with limited range or one tile effect such as Bonk Choy, Snapdragon, Ghost Pepper, Spikeweed and Spikerock. It makes it possible for these plants to deliver a lot more damage against zombies as zombies move slower inside their shooting range. This effect is also very useful for plants with slow fire rates; like Laser Bean, Fume-shroom, Bloomerang, and other lobbed-shot plants as these plants can deliver more shots against zombies.

Sap-fling and Laser Bean in Dead Man's Booty can make an excellent choice of tandem on levels with Barrel Roller Zombies since Laser Beans penetrate the entire row, Sap-flings slow down the front lines, forcing the last lines to move closer, dragging them down to the sap puddles. However, set-ups like this can be easily overwhelmed by the zombie hordes so have Magnet-shrooms handle hardened Pirate Zombies and Blovers for Swashbuckler Zombies and Seagull Zombies. Sap-fling can also cut down the time for Imp Cannons to detonate immediately since when they get frozen by Winter Melon's frozen melon, it dispels them, returning to their original state which can slightly boost the detonation period, allowing Laser Beans to finish off Imp Cannons quickly.

Being a catapult plant, Sap-fling ignores tombstones and aim directly at the zombies. This gives it a good advantage against most of the other shooter plants on Ancient Egypt and Dark Ages levels. However Sap-fling, not able to damage zombies, does not aim at tombstones if there are no zombies left on the lane unlike other catapult plants. Also, its usage of sap puddles against zombies makes it disadvantageous to be used in certain Pirate Seas and Big Wave Beach levels because sap puddles cannot be created on water lanes or air. Also it is useless against the airborne zombies as they are not effected by the sap puddle. On the other hand when used alongside E.M.Peach, Sap-fling is very useful against mechanical zombies, as zombies slowed down via sap and doubly slowed down zombies stay disabled under E.M.Peach's effect twice and thrice longer respectively. While being useless against Jetpack Zombies, Sap Fling is definitely advised for the higher levels of Terror from Tomorrow, being exceptionally useful for slowing down a number of mechanical zombies simultaneously.

It is not advised to plant more than one Sap-fling on one lane as they do not damage zombies and one is enough to slow zombies in one tile simultaneously. Also, if there is a Sap-fling planted on every lane, it's not recommended to use plant food on it, since they can already handle the slowing down of a lane fine, having non-damaging sap puddles on random tiles does not make fighting again zombies easier in many situations.

Trivia

 * It is the second lobbed-shot plant that does not have the suffix "-pult" in its name with the first one being Winter Melon.
 * It is the first lobbed-shot plant to not deal any damage.
 * It is currently one of the two lobbed-shot plants that can slow down zombies, the other being Winter Melon.
 * It is the second pinecone related plant in the franchise, the first being Hazelnut Ball.
 * Sap-fling's name is a portmanteau of "sapling", "sap" and "fling".
 * Sap-fling is currently the only lobbed shot plant to lob a liquid projectile, though technically it throws pinecones that creates the sap.
 * Its projectiles cannot be deflected by Jester Zombies. However, Sap-fling's Plant Food effect can be deflected by Jester Zombies.
 * Therefore, it is the only lobbed-shot plant whose projectiles shot during its Plant Food effect are deflected, but the normal projectiles aren't. It is the other way around for all other lobbed-shot plants.
 * Dead zombies can also be affected by its puddle, unlike the frozen ones. Their dying animation will also be slowed down.
 * Sap-fling, Snow Pea's ice trail generated by its Plant Food effect and Hurrikale are the only plants that can slow down Zombie Chickens without killing them.
 * Since flying zombies are immune to the sap, Sap-fling will not throw sap if it encounters one. It will also not fire any sap if a zombie is currently treading through water in Big Wave Beach. However, Swashbuckler Zombie is still affected.
 * It appears to have a cold, often sniffling and wiping its sap on the ground as if it were snot from a runny nose. In the Zen Garden, when watered, it will sneeze and some sap will be thrown to the ground as if it was snot.
 * It can still apply sap onto tiles occupied by other plants and tombstones.
 * This, Oak Archer, Torchwood, Old Stump and Ghost Fire Tree Stump are the only plants based on trees.
 * Its spinning effect for its Plant Food ability is taken from, and is a recolor of, the Jester Zombie's spinning effect.
 * When it lobs its projectiles, it makes the sound of a tree creaking.
 * In Frostbite Caves, when a zombie walks through sap, it will not change colour and its feet are partially covered by the sap. It is unknown whether it is a glitch or not.
 * The description contains a reference to Kid's Got Talent.[citation needed]