Not to be confused with the passive item
Mulligans are fairly weak enemies that appear only in the Basement, but can also be spawned by Mom. They look like people with bloated heads, and are constantly crying and whimpering.
Mulligans attempt to avoid the player as much as possible, and may even run over spikes or into fires in doing so. They don't damage the player on touch, but staying close to them is very unwise: they may commit suicide and explode (like Mulligoons) and leave 4 projectiles travelling orthogonally along with 2-4 random flies (Pooter, red and black Flies).
They are sometimes replaced by their gray-colored counterparts, known as Mulligoons, but they can be seen in the same room together.
The chance of them suiciding becomes higher when they're in corners.
They explode into 4 projectiles in an X-pattern and drop a troll bomb on death. If they choose to explode, they do so into 6 projectiles rather than 4.
- Runs away from player
- Does not deal touch damage
- May randomly commit suicide and burst, shooting six 1/2 heart damage ranged projectiles
- On death drops a troll bomb and 4-6 half heart damage projecticles
- You can try chasing them to a wall that is likely to lead to a secret room, making use of their troll bomb. This can be especially profitable when encountered in the basement, when you don't have any bombs yet. This can also be used to blow up any Tinted Rocks you may encounter in the room.
Mullibooms have a bomb wedged into their head. Instead of avoiding the player like their other variants, they will charge at Isaac and explode on contact, dealing 1 half 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.
- Mulligans were created in order to make the player feel bad about killing them.
- A Mulligan is a rule in many card games. If a player's starting hand is considered too bad, they are allowed to shuffle back their hand into the deck and draw a new set of cards.
- In Edmund's words: "The mulligans in Isaac are born so messed up they should get a do over.. basically."1
- Originally, explosions from Mullibooms inflicted one full heart of damage. After many complaints about layouts where avoiding damage seemed impossible (which on the Basement often resulted in frustrating deaths), Edmund reduced their damage to 1/2 heart. This makes their explosions the only kind that does not inflict a full heart of damage.
- The item The Mulligan somewhat gives you the appearance of a Mulligan.
- The Gaper, Mulligan, Hive and Swarmer are all the same monster in stages of decay and infestation. 2