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“	And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse, and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in hand.	”
–Revelations 6:5

Famine

Official artwork by Edmund McMillen

Floor(s):
Basement
Cellar

Related Boss(es):
Famine
Pestilence
War
Death
Conquest
Headless Horseman

Attacks:

Charges (contact damage)
Spawns Pooters
Spawns Fat Flies
Shoots blood bullets

Effective item(s):
N/A

Item drop(s):
Cube of Meat

Unlock:
Defeat Mom for the first time

Famine is one of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, a boss encountered in the Basement or Cellar after you beat the game for the first time. He appears as an eyeless, humanoid-like being with a quite creepy smile riding on a stick horse that appears to be famined like its rider. Using the Book of Revelations in the first two levels will ensure that he or the Headless Horseman will be the level's boss.

BehaviorEdit

Phase 1Edit

Famine will begin his fight with a very fast charge to the left or right that will make him go through the wall and come back from the other side, stopping short before going through the wall again. After that, he will stay in practically the same spot and spawn a Pooter or a Fat Fly, capable of having a maximum of two at any given time. For as long as these flies are on-screen, he will not move around much and charge only every ten seconds or so. If you move directly to his left or right, however, he will instantly charge no matter what. These charges will destroy any flies in the way, so it can be an effective strategy to force him to charge as much as possible. Be careful that he does a whole heart of damage on touch, as opposed to half a heart from the flies' projectiles.

Phase 2Edit

When he only has a third of his health left, his body and horse will be destroyed and only the head will be left. It won't be able to move around or spawn any more flies, but it will fire triple shots (one in the center and two in a split pattern to the sides) directly at the player's location. These only deal one-half heart of damage, though. When defeated, he will drop a Cube of Meat, just like all Horsemen besides the Headless Horseman.

Champion VariantsEdit

BlueEdit

Phase one attacks in a six-way pattern (no bullets in vertical directions). He also charges faster, at a much higher rate than normal. While charging, he moves slightly (diagonally if needed) towards Isaac, and makes a complete charge around the room rather than just stopping short as per his non-champion form. Phase two spews out blood in a pattern similar to Monstro. He does not spawn enemies in this form.

GalleryEdit

BugsEdit

On rare occasions, Famine may use his charge attack and push the player into the wall behind the rocks. If the player has no bombs, they may be permanently trapped and the playthrough will need to be restarted.
If the player uses The Gamekid while fighting Famine, and he uses his charge attack, they will not be able to go offscreen and thus will be stuck in the wall (and invulnerable) until The Gamekid's effect ends.
If Famine rams you into an opened door, he will push you out, causing you to have to fight him again at full health. This bug is similar to the one that occurs with Larry Jr. in mini-boss form.
On later floors, Famine's health is not sufficient to qualify as a boss. Therefore, if encountered with another boss, hurting him will not change the displayed health meter. If encountered alone (like in the Cathedral), there will be no health bar.

VideosEdit

The Harbingers					Related

Famine	Pestilence	War	Death	Conquest	Headless Horseman

Bosses
Basement	Larry Jr. • Monstro • The Duke of Flies • Gemini • Steven • Famine
Cellar	Widow • Pin • The Duke of Flies • Famine • Gurdy Jr. • The Blighted Ovum
The Caves	Fistula • Peep • Gurdy • Chub • C.H.A.D. • Pestilence
Catacombs	The Husk • The Hollow • The Blighted Ovum • The Carrion Queen • Peep • Pestilence • The Wretched • Gurdy Jr.
The Depths	Loki • Monstro II • Gish • War • Mom
Necropolis	Mask of Infamy • Daddy Long Legs • The Carrion Queen • The Bloat • Loki • War • The Wretched • Mom
The Womb	Scolex • Blastocyst • The Bloat • Death • Conquest • Daddy Long Legs • Triachnid • Teratoma • Mom's Heart • It Lives
Utero	Teratoma • The Bloat • Death • Conquest • Daddy Long Legs • Triachnid • Lokii • Mom's Heart • It Lives
Sheol	The Fallen • Satan
Cathedral	Isaac
The Chest	???
First to fifth and seventh level	The Fallen • Headless Horseman
Devil Room	Krampus

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