New syntheses are reported to give pyrazoles with cyano substituents at the 4-position of the pyrazole ring and ethyl or isopropyl substituents at the 3-position, as well as pyrazoles with cyano substituents at the 4-position and alkyl/aryl/bromo substituents at both the 3-and 5-positions. Synthesis of scorpionates using tetradecane as a high-boiling solvent has been shown to be more efficient than the melt method and has led to new scorpionates using the newly synthesized pyrazoles. An unexpected complex is isolated in which the Ni(cyclam)2(+) moiety crystallizes with two cyanoscorpionates as counterions, without binding of the scorpionate ligands to the Ni atom.