Enter the Scorpion

They say, deep in the wastes - among the rocks and sand, where no man may dwell - in the places where water is in scarcity and the sun, abundance: there can be found the hardiest of the half-races. In those places, the Girtablilu have made their lairs.

They say - far from the places where men dwell, where the wells flow over terraces and where the barley grows - at the ends of roads mortal feet wear out before reaching: there, the gods set their homes, made their palaces, kept their keeps: and along the way, set these Aqrabuamelu to hinder the way.

They say, in these places of dying, in the corners of the wilds, where the sons of angels once walked, but whose sandals have turned to dust - the generations and generations of their abandoned guardians, their orphan soldiers, hatched from hidden clutches buried beneath the rock and clay, swarm in their thousands.

Or, so they say.

Waykeepers of the First Gods

Scorpion Men are - as their name indicates - a fusion of man and giant scorpion. They have the upper body of a man mounted atop the body and tail of a desert scorpion. They speak a language derivative of the Wild, despite the origin of their species being steeped in Chaotic sorcery. 

Encountering Scorpion Men

Scorpion Warrior
Armor Class:	6	No. Appearing:	2-20
Hit Dice:	3+3	Save As:	Fighter 3
Move:	150' (50')	Morale:	8
Attacks:	1 Weapon and 1 Stinger	Treasure Type:	A
Damage:	As Weapon +1 1 + Poison	Alignment:	Neutral
Frequency:	Uncommon	Chance In Lair:	5%

When In Lair When encountered in lair, the No. Encountered represent warrior males; a second roll should be made for females – which are likewise capable, but not necessarily armed, in that they may not be expecting combat. There is a 2-in-6 chance they will be guarding eggs: in which case their Morale increases to 11.

Poison Stinger A character which is injured by the Stinger attack of any Scorpion Man must Save vs Death or perish. The effect takes between 1 and 4 turns; but if a second dose is administered (that is, a second sting occurs and a second save is failed, the time remaining is reduced to 1 to 4 rounds.

On the Organization and Tack of Scorpion Men 

• 3-in-6 Scorpion Men - warriors, the rank-and-file - carry a morning star, shield, and crossbow. With shield equipped, their AC improves to 5.
• 2-in-6 Scorpion Men -  lancers, the cavalry among the chimeric - carry composite longbows and spears, with which they are wont to charge: benefiting as using a lance.
• 1-in-6 Scorpion Men - mutants, regressions - are hatched with the claws of a scorpion rather than the hands of a man: often with projecting antenna and occasionally mandibles in addition to their jaws. These creatures are sentient, albeit not as clever as their kindred - their intelligence corrupted by their instincts - but they benefit from two natural pincer attacks which do 1d6+1 damage each, which they use in lieu of a weapon and in addition to their normal Stinger attack.
  

Split Fire All Scorpion Men may - if equipped with ranged weapons - split fire: that is, move a portion of their movement, fire a ranged weapon, and then move the remainder of their movement afterwards, but still within the Missile phase.

Spoiler Alert!

The Deeper Lore section contains some notes to help a GM (me) to run the Scorpion Men in a way consistent with the archetype they are supposed to fill and some of the inspirations behind their creation. If you play in (or want to play in!) a game GM'ed by me, beyond this point will ruin some of the mystery for you for both Scorpion Men and for most of the sentient races: having some impact in the game world that isn't immediately available outside of player character discoveries.

Deeper Lore

The Scorpion Men are free peoples, with tribal affiliations determining the nature of their governance. However, they have a kinship with one another - a bond brought on by their shared origin. Scorpion Men are not a Vice Race: they bear no seed of Chaos - but they were mutated, chimerized by the ancient gods of Chaos to wage war on other celestial beings - the lords of Law and the natural world, alike.

In the ages that followed, they have been employed by various powers as guardians - some say that they guard the gates that hold the sun in the evening - in part due to their territorial nature and in part due to their rugged survivability. They are fiercely loyal to their own - but they are not intractable: with a good reaction and proper communication, they are apt to make powerful allies to any who have curried their favor. They are territorial with one another - although it is rare to find unrelated tribes in proximity to one another: and often, the borders are drawn and observed amicably.

They have some suspicion of the gods and of Clerics. In the modern age, as mentioned, they are free - but the elders tell tales to the hatchlings of days wherein the gods enslaved them, ensorcelled them, sent them to battle for purposes alien to the Scorpion folk. The truth of it - many serve these powers unintentionally due to their penchant to protect their territory: having been placed there to block the movement of other races into a place beyond of which the Scorpion Men have no knowledge - others reside in forgotten places: the purpose of their seeded colony having been lost as the cosmic struggle moved on.

Public domain and open license artwork retrieved from OldBookIllustrations.com, from Pixabay, and from The Public Domain Review and adapted for thematic use. Attribution in alt text.