The sandman's name describes it exactly: It is a manlike biped made entirely of sand, held together by magical cohesion. Sandmen are creatures of the Elemental Plane of Earth, but on the Prime Material Plane they serve as slave-takers of the dao. - MCA1
See, I don't agree. I really like these Sandmen. They are everything that I'd do but far better than I would have done. My only problem is with the clothing, really... the shadows are too "Outliney" especially when compared to the faces and hands that look far more "organic" (silicaceous, whatever).
I got a bit lazy with the clothing, I'll admit. Tony DiTerlizzi drew his version naked, though, so he's doubly lazy. You should always wear pants when you're painting, Tony D!
I think this is cool, in sort of an X-Files way. The Sandmen fill the role of another race of beings who can mysteriously become involved in just about any plot the DM wants, without having to have some grand conspiracy hiding their motives. They may be mysterious, but you know who they are.
I don't know if I like this drawing as much as the earth elemental... which I liked alot.