The Foot Soldier is easy to pick and play, making him a good class for beginners, yet in the hands of a skilled player, he becomes a force to be reckoned with and a menace at almost any range.
The Foot Soldier Zombie is always in the fight - armed with an array of the latest Zomboss tech he doesn't understand, but still manages to operate thanks to his Zomboss Academy Training. His speciality is taking out rooted Plants, claiming high ground via his rocket jump, and counting things.
In-game description[]
A rapid-fire Z-1 Assault Blaster, explosive ZPG, and versatile Rocket Jump make the Solider[sic] great in all situations.
Zombie Stink Cloud arcs a gas grenade in front of the zombie; any plants inside the gas suffer damage. The gas is also extremely helpful for cover. It requires a 20-second recharge after use.
An alternate ability of Rocket Jump, the Foot Soldier will go a further distance, but will not jump as high. Rocket Leap also has two uses. This ability is good if you want to get around places faster.
Zombie Stink Cloud arcs a gas grenade in front of the zombie; any plants inside the gas suffer damage. The gas is also extremely helpful for cover. It requires a 20-second recharge after use.
An alternate ability of Rocket Jump, the Foot Soldier will go a further distance, but will not jump as high. Rocket Leap also has two uses. This ability is good if you want to get around places faster.
An alternate ability of ZPG, the Foot Soldier will launch four rockets to attack plants upon using the Multi-Rocket.
Upgrades[]
Garden Warfare[]
Description about the Foot Soldier's weapon upgrades
Rapid Reloader[]
The Zomboss Rapid Reloader enables the Soldier to reload faster.
Ammo Thing-a-ma-bob[]
The ammo capacity Thing-a-ma-bob is larger now and able to hold more Zomboss Rounds.
Harder Zomboss Ammo[]
Zomboss rounds have been enhanced through application of small hard things on the outer shell.
Garden Warfare 2[]
Health Regeneration Delay Upgrade
This upgrade decreases the delay before health regeneration begins!
Zoom Upgrade
This upgrade increases the zoom distance of your primary weapon!
Health Regeneration Upgrade
This upgrade increases how quickly your health regenerates!
Speed Upgrade
This upgrade allows you to move faster!
Reload Upgrade
This upgrade decreases your reload time!
Ammo Upgrade
This upgrade increases the number of times you can fire before reloading!
Damage Upgrade
This upgrade increases your primary weapon damage!
Health Upgrade
This upgrade increases your maximum health!
Statistics[]
Garden Warfare 2[]
Z-1 Assault Blaster[]
Weapon stats
Internal data
Ammo capacity
Rate of fire
Reload time
Fire mode
Damage (DPS)
Damage falloff
30
550 RPM
2.25 s
Fully automatic
6 – 8 (55 – 73.3)
Projectile speed
Projectile lifetime
Projectile travel distance
Projectile gravity
350 m/s (1148.29 ft/s)
1.25 s
437.5 m (1435.37 ft)
15 m/s² (49.21 ft/s²)
Projectile spread (unzoomed, standing)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
0.4
1.5
0.06
15
Projectile spread (unzoomed, moving)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
0.7
1.8
0.08
15
Projectile spread (unzoomed, jumping)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
2
2
0.1
15
Recoil (unzoomed)
Maximum vertical amplitude
Vertical increase per shot
Maximum horizontal amplitude
Horizontal minimum increase per shot
Horizontal maximum increase per shot
Amplitude decrease factor
10
0.15
-0.3
0.1
10
18
Projectile spread (zoomed, standing)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
0.1
1
0.04
15
Projectile spread (zoomed, moving)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
0.4
1.3
0.06
15
Projectile spread (zoomed, jumping)
Minimum angle
Maximum angle
Increase per shot
Decrease per second
2
2
0.1
15
Recoil (zoomed)
Maximum vertical amplitude
Vertical increase per shot
Maximum horizontal amplitude
Horizontal minimum increase per shot
Horizontal maximum increase per shot
Amplitude decrease factor
10
0.08
-0.3
0.1
10
18
Strategies[]
General[]
In general, the Foot Soldier is a class that is very easy to play, yet somewhat difficult to master. He has three very useful abilities - a way to provide cover to his fellow zombies as well as deny areas to the plants (Zombie Stink Cloud), a way to get to elevated positions and attack enemies from above (Rocket Jump), and a hard-hitting removal ability (ZPG). All of these abilities make Foot Soldier a great team player, and possibly even a game changer when used well.
The Foot Soldier also makes for a good pseudo - sniper, as the Z-1 Assault Blaster has an accurate crosshair. He also deals good damage at long range. Furthermore, his ZPG can instantly take out an unaware plant, and his Zombie Stink Cloud, when aiming up and jumping, goes a decent distance so it can be used to cover objectives when the Soldier is far away. He can also use it to flank himself since the Stink Cloud obscures vision. However, what makes him a capable sniper is his Rocket Jump. It gives the Soldier the highest boost in height, surpassing the Peashooter's Hyper. This makes it common for Soldiers to appear on rooftops, so plants should always keep one eye on the sky, or else they will be vanquished quickly.
However, the Foot Soldier has a few flaws to go with his numerous advantages. His primary weapon is somewhat inaccurate up close, and that multiple plants can quickly overwhelm him. His Rocket Jump only gives one height boost, so if the player accidentally slides down, it will be 20 seconds before they can jump back up again. The ZPG, while very powerful, has a lot of startup time, making it not the best choice in close quarters. His Zombie Stink Cloud, while flanking his position, also covers his and his teammates' vision.
Chompers can also be quite problematic as his Goop and Spikeweeds can render the Foot Soldier's abilities unaccessible, preventing the Foot Soldier from using Rocket Jump to escape or ZPG to take the Chomper out. Also, when the Foot Soldier is indeed stunned, the Chomper can take advantage of the situation and score an easy vanquish.
Nonetheless, the Foot Soldier's pros outshine his cons, and he is considered a very good character by a lot of players.
With[]
A skilled soldier would prefer a higher ground to battle against plants to avoid devastation from chompers. A good choice is a vantage point some (not too long) distance away from the enemy's vantage point. This forces the enemy team to turn their attention to you, providing your team a chance, no matter what it is. Pick up sunflowers and cacti (in case you want to be a sniper) as they're the most invulnerable plants to you. Leave peashooters to the tanks instead facing head-on, as they might kill or at least seriously injure you.
A foot soldier does not have speed and small hitbox like an imp, nor he has high health like All-Star and Super Brainz. All he relies on is his weaponry, his abilities, and your brain! Although as it name seems to encourage you to run in exposed battlefields, Foot Soldier is the counterpart of Kernel Corn. Value your 125 hp and FLANK points in modes such as Suburbination and Gardens & Graveyards, as it has no harm to you! Outsmarting your enemy in a few seconds matter, as these seconds are the time for you to vanquish them.
The Foot Soldier has a devastating instant kill explosive, the ZPG. This weapon is best used for dispatching of rooted plants, such as Sunflowers or Peashooters using their Sunbeam, PeaGatling, or even Cacti using their drones. If you have good aim, you might want to activate the ZPG behind cover, and aim at the rooted plants, as they might vanquish you before you even start your ability. The Zombie Stink Cloud is best used for covering major objectives, making it harder for plants to defend them, as well as escaping a tight situation. Use Rocket Jump to gain vantage points by supporting your teammates while also making yourself a small target. The best use for the Foot Soldier is to provide support by vanquishing rooted plants from afar. In Gardens & Graveyards and Taco Bandits, the Foot Soldier should sometimes use its stink cloud on annoying Spawnable Plants at a distance (such as the Bamboo Shoot and the Scaredy-shroom) as it temporarily disables the Spawnable Plants allowing the zombie team to pass. Be sure to also keep on the lookout for Cactus drones to shoot them down in order to prevent any lethal Corn Strikes from being performed against your team.
Against[]
The main counters for the Foot Soldier are the Peashooters and Cacti. Peashooters can use Hyper to quickly get to vantage points before the Foot Soldier and has enough offensive potential to hold its own in a one-on-one fight against the Foot Soldier. Cactus can snipe the Foot Soldier at long range, as well as setting upcover against him and attack him with drones or even drop Potato Mines where the Foot Soldier will land when he uses his Rocket Jump.
In case you're not a peashooter or a cactus, you may keep an eye on the vantage points, as they're the points where Foot Soldier appear the most. Fighting against him requires patience, as Foot Soldier tend to attack aggressively. Remember to bring a pal or two to get him if possible, as his firepower does a big deal to individuals.
Balancing changes[]
Garden Warfare 2[]
Post beta[]
▼ Velocity was decreased from 7.0772624 m/s to 6.45 m/s.
Please note that only official translations are used.
Language
Name
Description
English
Foot Soldier
Traditional Chinese
步兵
French
Fantassin
German
Fußsoldat
Italian
Fante
Japanese
ソルジャー
Polish
Żołnierz
Brazilian Portuguese
Soldado
Spanish
Soldado
Trivia[]
Foot Soldier is missing a shoe, just like many other classes. All-Star and Imp are currently the only zombie classes that have both shoes on.
If the player looks closely, the stock of the gun is a boot. This boot might be the one missing from the zombie's foot.
Foot Soldier's helmet resembles the real-life M1 helmet, which was issued to United States military personnel between 1941 - 1985.
Like Team Fortress 2'sSoldier, Foot Soldier can also launch himself into the air using a rocket.
On the box art of Garden Warfare, both Foot Soldiers in the fore- and background can be seen with a pair of goggles on their helmets. However, these goggles aren't seen on the Foot Soldier in-game, nor are they a customization option, either.
Additionally, in the title screen of Garden Warfare, stone statues of Foot Soldier and Peashooter flank a headstone with the Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare logo in the center, the Foot Soldier boasting the unexplained goggles on his helmet.
Originally Foot Soldier was going to be a SWAT zombie but this was changed due to not being "funny enough" as quoted by Justin Wiebe.
Textures of the SWAT zombie and files referencing the character actually exist in the game files of both Garden Warfare and Garden Warfare 2.
Foot Soldier has the most Super Rare character variants, with a total of four.
There is a glitch that the Foot Soldier can do with the ZPG. If the Foot Soldier launches his ZPG just before a Chomper comes out of his Burrow and eats him, he has a chance to vanquish the Chomper while it's about to eat him, leaving the Chomper vanquished and the Foot Soldier alive. The ZPG must be timed at the exact right time for it to work.
In Garden Warfare 2, his helmet has a net over it, and its straps are now brown instead of green.
In Garden Warfare 2, Foot Soldier's Z on his belt was changed from yellow to brown.
In Garden Warfare 2, there is a robotic zombie similar to the Foot Soldier called Robo-Zombie. It appears in certain special waves of Garden Ops, as well as the Foot Soldier Wave of Flag of Power.
As of November 1st, 2015, the Foot Soldier was ranked the #1 most used zombie class in Garden Warfare.
If you go on the multiplayer portal against an AI Foot Soldier on Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, the Foot Soldier will either be called Sergeant Jargon or Private Puddles.
He has corporal ranks on his sleeves.
Foot Soldier is the only character class in Garden Warfare 2 to return from the original Garden Warfare that didn't receive any new abilities, counting bling abilities.
Peashooter has Dark Bean Bomb and Bling Gatling, Chomper has Chomp Cannon, Rainbow Warp, Twilight Warp, and Vampweed, Sunflower has the Rainbow Flower, Cactus has Pizzazzling Potato Mine, Red Artichoke Drone, Dark Garlic Drone and Bling Maiden, Engineer has the Big Bolt Blaster and its bling variant, Scientist has Heal Beam of Science and Armored Bling Station, and All-Star has the Future Dummy, while Foot Soldier received no new abilities.
Ironically, as said earlier, the Foot Soldier is the most played Zombie class in Garden Warfare as of November 1st, 2015.