I'm a custom house painter and not seeing a picture I would say... Hit it with KILZ primer if you have stains. I would use oil base. Then you can paint over it and the stains, if you have them, will not show after you paint it with latex paint. Not much to it.

But the smell will still be there - even with the KILZ. I have a client of mine that is a landlord. Sold them a house about 6 years ago. One of the tenants in the beginning of his ownership smoked in the garage. It has been cleaned, painted with KILZ and then coats (several) of paint over the KILZ. Two years after that tenant moved out you can still smell the smoke. Do whatever you have to do to get rid of it. Start with Otto's solution, but it won't be the end of the smell.

Technically its tar, not nicotine, but painting over it should be adequate.

I would spray it down with unscented Fabreeze before the Kilz.

Painting will not work. Over time, the smell will come back. I used this cleaning solution and it was horrific/awesome seeing the nicotine come off of the walls. This was after a former landlord painted and the smell was still around.

You will need gloves, sponges, rags, and lots of ventilation. Mix:

1 gallon warm water

1/2 cup plain ammonia

1/4 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup WASHING soda (not baking soda- this is usually in a box found in laundry additives area of market near the Borax or on the internet if your store doesn't have it)

If you want, you can put it in a spray bottle for ease of application. Apply it and let it sit for a few minutes, and then begin wiping it off with a clean wet rag or sponge. Depending on the amount embedded in the walls, you may need to repeat it several times before it stops oozing brown. After your walls are clean and dry, you can paint them. They will look worse before it gets better, but trust me, this works and once you get a nice coat of paint and no smell it is totally worth the hassle.

The pic below was taken after completing a section of a window well.