Scorpion

The Scorpion is a heavy pistol in Mass Effect 3.

Description
Originally issued to the salarian STG to allow small units to contain much larger enemy forces, the Scorpion pistol now sees service galaxy-wide. It fires low-velocity, squash-head projectiles with a dual use. The high-explosive filler within the projectiles contains an adhesive that secures the projectile to the target on impact. When fired into a surface, it turns into a proximity mine.

Acquisition

 * Single-player: Priority: Sur'Kesh: In the corner next to the power switch. (Purchasable from Aegohr Munitions if missed during mission.)
 * Multiplayer: Randomly rewarded by purchasing an item pack.

Player Notes

 * Single-player
 * The Scorpion is unique in that it does not fire conventional slugs like other guns do, therefore damage is not instantaneous. Shots detonate roughly three seconds after attaching.
 * The biggest problem with the Scorpion is its very low clip and reserve capacity. Precision is critical to using the Scorpion effectively, though this is somewhat mitigated by the explosive nature of the shots.
 * In addition, the Scorpion is very heavy for a pistol, meaning that characters reliant on powers may be forced to use another weapon. However, squadmates' power recharge times are unaffected by weapon weight.
 * The Scorpion's biggest strength is the explosive manner of its rounds, which can result in taking out multiple enemies with a single, well placed shot. It can give a small level of lenience if a shot is misplaced, as the explosion can still do considerable damage.
 * The shots from this weapon can effectively turn the Scorpion into a "mine launcher". This allows deadly ambushes to be created and can ease some of the pressures of an overwhelming force.
 * Or as "cover-denial" when against enemies using a corner as protection: launch a quick salvo at the proximity of the corner the enemy is taking refuge; the resulting detonations will severely maul, if not kill, an enemy.
 * Most human enemies will panic when a round sticks to their body, interrupting their actions and drawing them out of cover. This can be useful on higher difficulties, even when a single round may not kill them outright.
 * It's worth noting that the effect of ammo powers activate when the shot hits the enemy, and the effects remain until detonation. Because the Scorpion has a high chance to activate the effect on hit, this can make a Scorpion enhanced with Cryo Ammo deadly to unarmored enemies. On normal difficulty, it is possible to one-shot unarmored Cerberus troops with this combination.
 * The Scorpion should not be taken along on Priority: Mars in New Game Plus, as it may make the final fight unwinnable.


 * Multiplayer
 * With practice, the Scorpion can be paired with biotics for unorthodox (but highly amusing) tactics. A player can shoot an enemy with the Scorpion and then use Throw or Pull to guide them into nearby groups of enemies to take full advantage of the Scorpion's splash damage. Alternatively, one can catch a group of enemies in a Singularity and then fire upon them with the Scorpion without having to worry about missing.
 * With practice, the Scorpion can be very effective against Ravagers. In normal difficulty, 4 shots--whether on contact or as proximity mine--could easily kill a Ravager.
 * Used in tandem with a Cryo Ammo equipped M-37 Falcon in multiplayer, a team can snap freeze and paint multiple unarmored targets at a time with explosives and cause significant damage to or destroy outright groups of unarmored Cannibals, Cerberus Assault Troopers and Geth Troopers. It is a very useful crowd control tool when faced with multiple targets, as it slows down the pace of the battle in your favor.
 * The Scorpion is very effective when combined with the Tactical Cloak of an Infiltrator who wants to use offensive powers regularly, such as the salarian Infiltrator with Energy Drain. The damage of the Scorpion projectiles is only done when they detonate and Tactical Cloak is only broken when they are fired, so by firing them all onto a large target such as a Geth Prime and then going into Tactical cloak allows for the damage bonus of Tactical Cloak to be applied to all of them.
 * In addition, it can be used very effectively on Ravagers to kill any Swarmers that appear with its AoE damage.
 * When firing the last round in a magazine whilst in Tactical Cloak, the Tactical cloak will not be lost. This appears to be a bug.