Mines

*(chapter 2.5)*

The **Mines** are the second floor of the alternate path added in Repentance. This stage can be accessed by using 2 bombs to open the boarded up door that appears after defeating the boss of the Caves/Catacombs/Flooded Caves I or II, or Downpour/Dross II. The alternative floor of the Mines is the Ashpit, unlocked after beating every single boss from the Mines.

The Mines are significantly more difficult than their standard counterparts, filled with stone and fire-themed enemies that boast greater health, aggression and occasionally resistances to damage. Most obstacles are rocks or spiked rocks, while poops are almost non-existent. Tinted rocks have a high chance of spawning Tinted Rock Spiders. Travelling through it is only advised if you have already acquired  in Downpour and intend to access the Corpse, however, you will still be presented with an additional, blind option in the item rooms.

After defeating the floor's boss, a door leading to the next alternate chapter - Mausoleum - appears. It requires 2 full hearts to open. The damage taken ignores almost every form of damage reduction, including  and invincibility. Unlike other methods of health donation, red hearts will not be prioritized over more valuable hearts.

## Unique Elements

* **Minecarts** - Several rooms contain rail tracks with minecarts racing around on them, usually containing enemies or hazards. These enemies can be defeated as normal, and doing so will destroy the minecart.
* **Throwable Bombs** - Occasionally, you can find Bomb Grimaces that will infinitely produce red, throwable bombs. Walking into one will cause Isaac to pick it up, lighting the fuse, and giving a short time window to rid of the explosive by pressing any of the fire buttons.
* **Dark rooms** - Some rooms are very dark, like a more potent Curse of Darkness effect, leaving only a small aura of light around Isaac.

### Knife Piece

If you have , a special double-sized room will spawn in Mines II containing a minecart and a broken length of rail track leading to a boarded up door, just like those that lead to a Bedroom. Behind this door lies the area in which  can be acquired. There are two methods for accessing this area:

* If you have flight and 2 Bombs, you can simply fly over to the boarded up door and blow it open. It is also accessible with flight and a item with an effect that opens doors such as , , , etc.
* Otherwise, you can repair the track. There are three yellow buttons spread throughout the floor. One will be in the same room as the broken rail track, but the other two are randomly placed. Once all three buttons are pressed, the rail track will be repaired and you can touch the minecart to access the area.

Upon entering this area, all passive and active items will be rendered inactive, and your bombs, coins, and keys will be set to zero. New pickups can still be obtained, however, and will persist after Isaac leaves the area. You will pass through several empty rooms before reaching a room with the . Once you pick it up, Mother's Shadow will spawn and your race back to the entrance begins. This enemy cannot be defeated by any means, and escape is your only option.

Unlike your initial trip to reach the , the path back will be obstructed by rocks and poops. While flying characters can handle all of this with ease, walking characters will have a significantly harder time. Using your tears and the conveniently-located Throwable Bombs, you will need to break through the obstructions, press buttons, and grab keys for key blocks to make it back to the main dungeon. Making it out taking little or no damage is possible, particularly if you are fast and accustomed to dodging the shadow's attacks. Once you escape, all your items will be reactivated, and the shadow will end its pursuit.

* It is possible for the floor's crawl space to appear on your escape path. Upon entry, your items will temporarily be reactivated, and you will be able to pick up any items/consumables available. Items will become inactive again after exiting. Mother's Shadow will still appear in the crawl space, and the enclosed area makes the dodging of her attacks very difficult. Furthermore, if a key is required to complete an obstacle on the way back, and it is picked up before entering the crawl space, it will be lost and could make the obstacle impossible.
	+ The Black Market can also appear in a crawlspace. Entering the trapdoor will complete the escape sequence.

## Trivia

* In Antibirth, the Mines used to have a different way of unlocking . Somewhere on the floor, there used to be a room containing four buttons. In the room, next to each button, was 1 to 4 small pebbles, indicating the order in which to press them. After you pressed the four buttons, the  would appear in the center of the room. This also wasn't the last knife piece, as there was a third one you needed to collect on the Mausoleum floor.
* As well as that, Antibirth also featured a music track by Mudeth for the Mines floor.
* Moles will open their eyes if encountered in a dark room, however, this doesn't change their behavior.