Sandstorm is a Predacon from the Beast Era portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

Someone used a magnifying glass and the sun on Scorponok.

Sandstorm is secretly the Covenant member Scorpius, a hard-shelled mystery of a robot, wrapped in a soft-shelled cover-identity and cemented by a tasty bean-paste of lies.

The Covenant's resident expert on court intrigue, Scorpius's billions of years of experience made him a natural to survey the deepening crisis on Cybertron due to Shokaract. He did so with gusto, immediately vanishing into a cover identity so thoroughly that even the Covenant couldn't contact him. His rise to power paralleled Shokaract's, and Sandstorm eventually ascended to become the leader of the (much diminished) Predacons, leading the anti-Shokaract rebels in the sub-levels under Iacon.

Fiction

3H comics

When Primus created life out of the moon Protos, the Covenant, including Scorpius, were born. The Covenant were to seclude themselves on Protos and observe the universe till Point Omega arose. They did so for eons, only with one false alarm when the Chronarchitect appeared in 2005 when Optimus Prime died.

During the centuries that followed, Libras constantly discussed with Scorpius about the theomachy and the nature of evil. Soon after one such discussion, Leonicus found himself before the Chronarchitect again and the god gave Leonicus vague advice. To discuss this, Leonicus presided over a zemstvo that gathered the Covenant. Scorpius was assigned to gauge the political scene of Cybertron. Covenant

Duck, Covenant member, duck!

Scorpius took on the name of "Sandstorm", becoming a Predacon. He was on Cybertron when it fell under the thrall of the dictator Shokaract. Sandstorm, ever the wily one, secretly became a Herald of Shokaract with the intention of gaining his trust. Terminus He also became leader of the Predacon resistance that formed on the planet. As part of this resistance, he aided in the spark-merge of the Cub and the Maximal Veteran that formed the Windrazor. Schism However, the overall rebellion was going poorly and his soldiers were losing their will to fight. Sandstorm went looking for one of the last strongholds of the old Great War in the hope of finding new weaponry and while he was betrayed by his contact, he learned that the stronghold was in the desolate J'nwan. Sandstorm's Predacon war journal

While Windrazor was to stop Cataclysm from travelling back to prehistoric Earth to preserve the Dark Essence, Sandstorm gathered a force and entered J'nwan. Schism At J'nwan, Sandstorm struggled in his journey, but eventually met with the Authority. However, Sandstorm's pleas for the legendary warriors in J'nwan to intervene in Point Omega were denied. Paradox

Nevertheless, Sandstorm travelled to prehistoric Earth to aid in the battle against Shokaract. He played the part of Shokaract's Herald, to the surprise of all. After Shokaract let his guard down, the scorpion attacked and destroyed Shokaract's defenses. Now, the other warriors could attack Shokaract, but Shokaract did not take this betrayal well and killed Scorpius with a blast from the sky. His sacrifice invigorated Leonicus, who led the remaining Covenant members into Shokaract's Matrix of Conquest and battled the manifestation of Unicron within. On the physical plane, Shokaract was held back by the legendary warriors of J'nwan, who had changed their minds. Through both fronts, Shokaract was defeated and Point Omega ended. Terminus Departure

Wings Universe

Scorpius was one of the constellations that existed in the Cybertron night sky. In a story, Leonicus battled the ice demon. When blows to its body only created more ice demons out of the fragments, Scorpius arrived to assist. Using his flame breath, Scorpius melted the army of ice demons. This story was a favorite of Dion's, who noted that "Fire breath is awesome." Flames of Yesterday

Toys

Beast Wars

I am 60% Jolly Rancher.

• Sandstorm (Mega, 1999)

• Accessories: "Cyber-bee", 2 missiles

One of two BotCon 1999 exclusive toys, Beast Wars Sandstorm is a grey/brownish and orange redeco of Scorponok, transforming into a fairly organic but highly inaccurate scorpion. The right pincer contains a small, spring-loaded "cyber-bee" drone, while his left pincer has a spring-loaded double missile launcher activated by pulling the top part of his claw open far enough to trigger the attack. His tail also has a spring-loaded "stinging" action activated by pushing forward on a lever halfway up the scorpion tail. All three gimmicks are available in both modes.

As one of the first molds released in the Beast Wars line, this mold features a "mutant head" gimmick; the halves of his mutant mask clamshell over his robot face from the sides.

Sandstorm's toy package features a 'diary entry' by him on it.

This mold was also used to make Double Punch. This toy was also later repurposed as Beast Wars Shattered Glass Scorponok.

• More information on Sandstorm at TFU.info

Legacy

The other members of the Covenant must feel pretty miffed.

• Predacon Sandstorm (Deluxe Class, 2022)

• Accessories: Cyberbee drone, missile
• Known designers: Mark Maher (Hasbro)

A redeco and retooling of Kingdom "Predacon Scorponok" featuring a different head based on the original toy's "mutant head," Legacy "Predacon Sandstorm" transforms from a tan, orange, and purple robot to a realistic scorpion in 24 steps. Sandstorm also has a pair of missiles (in one piece) and his Cyberbee, each with a 5 mm post compatible with the C.O.M.B.A.T. System/F.O.S.S.I.L. Technology, and can store into each of his claws.

If the scorpion legs are out of the way, the stinger tail can reach over his head in robot mode, as it features multiple joints. Unfortunately, due to transformation, the stinger tail loses most articulation in beast mode. The toy is a shorter-than-average Deluxe Class toy, akin to other shorter Deluxes such as Cliffjumper or Huffer. The size makes sense for the mold's original use, Scorponok, but Sandstorm wasn't depicted as especially smaller in his fictional appearances.

The figure was a Walmart exclusive in the US and a Farmers exclusive in New Zealand, and unlike other boxed Deluxes from that line, his packaging has a plastic window. He and his case-mates Nightprowler and Buzzsaw were notable shelfwarmers, and then showed up in huge numbers at discount chain Ross for the 2023 holiday season.

Notes

• Scorpius is named for the astrological sign Scorpio.
• Early in production, Sandstorm was going to be named Quicksand. The change marked a strengthening of the bonds between 3H and Hasbro, as both BotCon 1999 toys were given names Hasbro already held trademarks for.
• Sandstorm's on-package bio said his cyber-bee housed the spark of a deceased comrade. This does not appear to have played into his fictional appearances, leaving the spark's exact identity (if any) uncertain.

External links

• Sandstorm's Botcon-99 Overview