Mulligan

16.0

For the item with a similar name, see The Mulligan.

Mulligans are enemies with tear-filled eyes and a bloated head that appear in Chapter 1. Mulligans are afraid of Isaac and will actively try to avoid him; their eyes widen and their speed increases when doing so. In their panicked state, they may stumble over spikes or into the fire.

Upon death, they can spawn several Black Flies, Attack Flies and occasionally a Pooter. While scared and running away from Isaac, Mulligans may self-detonate, indicated by them holding their breath and inflating; in addition to spawning flies as normal, it will also fire shots in the cardinal directions and destroy nearby objects if it self-detonates. Mulligans cannot deal contact damage to Isaac ( unless they are champions.).

In later chapters, deformed variants of Mulligans will appear.

Variations

Mulligoon

16.1
Chance to replace Mulligans

Mulligoons display a depressed appearance, but unlike Mulligans, they do not have tears in their eyes. Their skin is a darker shade and one eye appears to be missing. Much like Mulligans, they are afraid of Isaac and will run away from him, don’t deal contact damage, and can self-detonate. They release 4 projectiles in an X-pattern and drop a troll bomb on death. If they self-detonate, they release 8 projectiles rather than 4.

Mulliboom

16.2
Rare chance to replace Mulligans or Mulligoons

Mullibooms have a bomb wedged into their head. Instead of avoiding Isaac like all other Mulligan-types, they will charge at him and explode on contact, dealing half a heart of damage. They also explode immediately if they are killed, similar to Boom Flies. Make sure to keep a safe distance when delivering the final shot, and consider killing them next to a wall that might be adjacent to the Secret Room.

Hive

22.0

Hives are enemies with a large rotting head and no eyes. Inhabited by flies, they can be found in Chapter 2 and Chapter 3. Although harmless on contact and lacking any direct attacks, they will spit out Attack Flies and spawn multiple Black Flies and Attack Flies upon death. They behave similarly to Mulligans including audibly whimpering and evading Isaac. Hives have higher health than Mulligans.

Drowned Hive

22.1
Chance to replace Hives in Flooded Caves

Drowned Hives behave similarly to Hives but spit Drowned Chargers instead of flies. Upon death, they spawn 1-2 Drowned Chargers.

Nest

205.0

A Nest, a new enemy in Rebirth, is a variant of the Mulligan, which, instead of flies, are swollen with Spiders which they will periodically spit. Nests share the same high health as Hives. On death they can spawn Trites or Big Spiders.

Leper

310.0

Lepers are a Mulligan variant introduced in Booster Pack #5. Lepers alternate between running away from Isaac and chasing him, with a preference towards running away. For every 15 damage they take, a chunk of their head, known as Leper Flesh, will detach and start erratically chasing Isaac. Lepers deal contact damage if they are in this state or below. Lepers can naturally be found with some head chunks missing.

After being reduced to 15 health, Lepers will start chasing Isaac, leaving a trail of damaging red creep. Upon death they leave behind one Leper Flesh and a slightly grayer Gusher.

Trivia

• The Mulligan, Mulligoon, Hive, and Swarmer are all the same monster in stages of decay and infestation.
• In the original Binding of Isaac, when a Mulligan self-detonated, the explosion would not break rocks.
• Mulligans will start running in random directions instead of directly away from Isaac if he stays close to them for long enough. This behavior also apples to (Small) Baby Long Legs.
• Mulligans, Mulligoons, and Mullibooms can be manipulated into destroying tinted rocks and opening Secret Room doors. Mulligoons and Mullibooms only need to be positioned next to the item before being killed, while Mulligans have to be pushed into a corner where the item is and baited into self-detonating. Example
• In the game's files, there is an unused Mulliboom self-detonation animation, an unused graphic of a Hive with a Mulligoon's face, and an unused graphic of the Drowned Hive with a blue-tinted Mulligoon's face.
• Drowned Hives, along with Drowned Chargers (name of Drowned Charger wasn't revealed), were revealed for Afterbirth in this official Binding of Isaac post.
• A leper is a person who suffers from leprosy, which is a contagious disease that causes discoloration and lumping on the skin plus disfigurement and deformities.

Gallery

• 

  Concept drawn for Nests.

• 

  Leper concept art by _Kilburn.

Bugs

Bug! If a Mulligan or a Mulligoon is killed before the spawning period is finished (before they move), it will count as a self-detonation.

Bug! If a Nest is killed in the Burning Basement, it has a chance to spawn a Flaming Hopper.

Bug! Rarely if you kill a Drowned Hive before their spawn period is finished (before they move), it will shoot 4 projectiles in ordinal directions but the monster won't explode.

Booster Packs
#1	HairpinFully recharges Isaac's active item upon entering a boss fight. Wooden CrossGrants a Holy Mantle shield upon entering a new floor, which protects against one hit of damage. Butter!Using an active item will drop it onto a pedestal on the ground. Taking damage may result in dropping a passive item. Huge GrowthMakes Isaac large for the current room, increasing his range and damage. Ancient RecallSpawns 3 random cards. Era WalkFor the current room, enemies are slowed, Isaac's speed is increased, and his shot speed is decreased.
#2	Filigree FeatherAngels drop items instead of key pieces when defeated.
#3	Door StopThe last door Isaac went through stays open, allowing him to leave the room even if enemies are in it.
#4	Extension CordBeams of yellow electricity flow between Isaac and his familiars, damaging any enemies between them.
#5	Rotten PennySpawns a blue fly every time a coin is picked up. Baby-BenderGrants Isaac's familiars homing shots. Finger BoneGrants a chance to gain a bone heart upon taking damage.