I'm interested in playing a Dracothian's Tail, or maybe Fangs of Sotek army, but I don't have any Sallies (or Razors). I considered Chameleon Skinks just because they can generate MWs at range as well. What models would you suggest instead of Salamanders in a DT or FoS army? Thanks.
For FoS I think 2 maxed out blocks of Skinks is a good start. Then bring all those force-multiplying heroes to juice them up - Starpriest for Serpent Venom and Hand of Glory, Priest for Curse and maybe even a Starseer for Control Fate (without Sallies your relying almost entirely on MW for damage so reducing saves helps a few more attacks slip through). You might also bring a Steg Chief as his CA for an extra melee attack can go a long way in getting your Skinks to pop off in combat phase, especially in tandem with the abilities mentioned above. All that still leaves you with a lot of points to play around with (not counting the mandatory Slann / Kroak). I often see a Solar Engine filling the gaps in this type of list, which gives you a tanky linchpin in an otherwise pretty soft army - also helps achieve monster-related battle tactics.
Engine of the Gods (possibly paired with a Starseer): drop them, activate the engine, then charge DREAD SAURIAN. Drop the beast along with a starseer, charge with 3d3 (+1 from constellation).
These are all interesting suggestions, so far. Thank you! I kind of thought that a Starseer would become much more important in a Starborne list without any Salamanders.