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Scorpion 5e: Stats, Sting Damage and the Scorpion Familiar
A scorpion is a CR 0 Tiny beast with AC 11, 1 hit point, a 10-foot speed and 10-foot blindsight. Its sting is +2 to hit for 1 piercing damage plus poison. In 2014 the target makes a DC 9 Constitution save, taking 4 (1d8) poison damage on a failure or half on a success. The 2024 rules (SRD 5.2.1) remove the save: every hit deals 1 piercing plus 3 (1d6) poison. The 2024 rules also make the scorpion a legal familiar form, which it never was in 2014.
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Scorpion Stat Block (2014)
Scorpion
Tiny beast, unaligned
Armor Class 11 (natural armor)
Hit Points 1 (1d4-1)
Speed 10 ft.
STR
2 (−4)
DEX
11 (+0)
CON
8 (−1)
INT
1 (−5)
WIS
8 (−1)
CHA
2 (−4)
Senses blindsight 10 ft., passive Perception 9
Languages —
Challenge 0 (XP 10; PB +2)
Actions
Sting.Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 1 piercing damage, and the target must make a DC 9 Constitution saving throw, taking 4 (1d8) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Stat block from the SRD 5.1 (2014 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
The Scorpion in the 2024 Rules
Scorpion
Tiny Beast, Unaligned
Armor Class 11
Initiative +0 (10)
Hit Points 1 (1d4 - 1)
Speed 10 ft.
STR
2 (−4)save −4
DEX
11 (+0)save +0
CON
8 (−1)save −1
INT
1 (−5)save −5
WIS
8 (−1)save −1
CHA
2 (−4)save −4
Senses Blindsight 10 ft.; Passive Perception 9
Languages None
Challenge 0 (XP 10; PB +2)
Actions
Sting.Melee Attack Roll: +2, reach 5 ft. Hit: 1 Piercing damage plus 3 (1d6) Poison damage.
Stat block from the SRD 5.2.1 (2024 rules) by Wizards of the Coast, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. Check an encounter with this monster in the encounter calculator.
The stats are identical except the sting. The damage math against a character with AC 14 and Constitution +2:
2014 Sting
2024 Sting
Hit chance (+2 vs. AC 14)
45%
45%
Damage on a hit
1 + 1d8 poison, DC 9 Con save for half
1 + 1d6 poison, no save
Average per hit
About 3.8 (the target saves 70% of the time)
4.5
Average per turn
About 1.7
About 2
The 2024 sting is a little stronger on average and much more predictable. A dwarf or anyone else with poison resistance halves the poison either way. A creature immune to poison damage takes only the 1 piercing.
How Scorpions Fight
A scorpion moves 10 feet a turn. It can't chase anything, so it fights only what comes to it: a hand reaching into a chest, a boot that steps into a crevice, a character who lies down in the wrong place. Its blindsight works in total darkness but only to 10 feet.
Running a Scorpion Encounter
At 10 XP each, scorpions make a better hazard than a fight. Twenty scorpions are 200 XP, the whole Low budget for four level 1 characters under the 2024 rules. Under the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide guidelines (used by our encounter calculator), twenty scorpions with the ×4 multiplier for 15 or more creatures reach 800 adjusted XP: Deadly, at double the 400 threshold. Neither number describes the real threat, because 10-foot speed means most of them never reach anyone. The calculator shows the 2014 reading.
Run them as terrain instead: a pit floor crawling with scorpions, where each creature that ends its turn there is stung by one (DM ruling, not rules text).
How Players Beat Scorpions
•Walk away. Ten feet of speed. Nobody needs to fight a scorpion.
•One hit, any hit. One hit point. A torch, a boot heel or a cantrip ends it.
•Bring light and a stick. Searching a dark crevice with a 10-foot pole instead of a hand keeps the scorpion's 5-foot reach out of play.
For a scorpion that can actually kill a party, see the giant scorpion: CR 3, Large, AC 15, 52 hit points and two claws plus a sting every turn.
Scorpion Familiar and Wild Shape
Familiar. The 2014 Find Familiar list doesn't include the scorpion. The 2024 spell adds "another Beast that has a Challenge Rating of 0" to its list, so a 2024 caster can pick one. Its blindsight is the point: a caster looking through the familiar's senses gains them, and blindsight sees Invisible creatures within its range. A scorpion familiar left in a doorway notices an invisible intruder who passes within 10 feet.
Wild Shape. CR 0 with no fly or swim speed, so a druid can take the form from level 2 in both editions. In 2014 the druid has 1 hit point in this form. In 2024 the druid keeps their own hit points, which makes a Tiny scorpion a safe way to sit in a dark corner and wait.
Scorpion Encounter Ideas
The poisoner's jar. An alchemist keeps a dozen scorpions in a clay jar and milks them for venom. The jar is on a high shelf in the shop the party is searching at night. Knock it over and the floor of a dark room fills with things that only see 10 feet.
The sleeping bag. Desert travelers shake out their bedrolls every night for a reason. The first character who doesn't takes a sting, and a 2014 scorpion's 1d8 poison on a failed save can drop a level 1 wizard to half hit points before the trip has started.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much damage does a scorpion sting do in 5e?
In 2014, 1 piercing damage, and the target makes a DC 9 Constitution save, taking 4 (1d8) poison damage on a failure or half on a success. In 2024, 1 piercing plus 3 (1d6) poison damage with no save.
Can you have a scorpion familiar in 5e?
Under the 2024 rules, yes: Find Familiar allows any CR 0 Beast, and the scorpion is CR 0. The 2014 spell's list doesn't include it.
What CR is a scorpion?
CR 0, worth 10 XP, in both editions. The giant scorpion is CR 3.
Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.
This page includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Loreify is not affiliated with Wizards of the Coast.