Skaven Warband

So after asking for a Warhammer lesson, my wife wants to start her own army - it's an attractive combination of crafts and dice-rolling. As a good way to learn, we are starting with 150-pt warbands and working up from there. I threw together a warband with the rats I had on hand - 10 Clanrats w/ shield, 6 slaves with slings (just clanrats with the shield ripped off), 9 giant rats and a packmaster (scrounging rats from the sprues I've got and bases from a base pack), and a Cheiftain (Clanrat with skulls, chains, and a tail-weapon added). It works, and I didn't have to get anything else, but one of the other draws of a warband is that the small number of models really lets you get a good theme going and spend more time on individual details. I don't much care for the monkey-rats I have now either, and the new ones are awesome, so hopefully I can replace them over time. As for the theme, one paragraph in the Skaven book details the Nest-Ports - that's right, rat-pirates! My warband will be the crew of a pirate ship of Clan Skurvy. No Pestilens, some Moulder beasts possible, maybe a few Eshin teams, quite a few theme appropriate Skyre weapons, and a heaping helping of ye olde basic Rats. Here's my thoughts (just on theme, no idea which of these or how many I'd use): The Crew (Clanrats) Clanrats with shields, most likely. Use the armored bodies from the new Clanrats box. Mod on some pirate-appropriate bits - greenstuff tricorn hats for the leaders shouldn't be very hard (need to practice on some polymer clay discs). It'd be cool to have boaters for the general crew, but don't know how I'd do the straw texture. Blue/white stripe cloth? Jolly Roger banner! Not sure how I'd do a fiddler or squeezebox musician but that would be hilarious! The Gundeck (Weapon Teams, Jezzails, Warp-Lightning Cannon)

Warpfire throwers, Poisoned Wind Mortar, Jezzails, all with the appropriate pirate stuff - hats, maybe parrot on the barrel? A scratchbuild/kitbash Cannon would be great, especially with a scenic base that includes a ship-side and gun-port for the cannon. The Galleyrowers (Skavenslaves) Naked slaves. Use the unarmored bodies from the new Clanrats box. Clip the end off the spear-arms and mod on a paddle - greenstuff snake the same width as the spearhaft flattened at the end should work well if I taper the top of the spears and V the bottom of the greenstuff onto it so it has more area to adhere. Yay expendable!

The Bilge Rats (Giant Rat Packs)

The usual rats pilfered from the sprues - they are fast, cheap, and deadly. One packmaster could use the Packmaster Skweel Gnawtooth model with added hat, as he has a good cat-o-nine-tails thing going. Have to get some additional packmasters from a bits-seller I think.

Clan Skurvy Marines (Stormvermin)

Perhaps red armor with white straps - very British Marines. If I use these it won't be many. A bicorn admiral's hat on the champion would be cool.

The Amphibious Assault Squad (Gutter Runners)

Gutter Runners with skaven-esque scuba gear (bronze/warpstone)! I wonder what an underwater Warpgrinder would be - a mini-sub?

The Grenadiers (Poisoned Wind Globadiers)

Pretty much useable as-is.

The Water-roller (Doomwheel)

Mod skiis or floats instead of the little guide wheels and make a water-effect base...done!

The Chief Engineer (Warlock Engineer)

The model is not bad - again, maybe a parrot? Level 2 if I can afford it and hope for Death Frenzy!

The Captain (Cheiftain)

This model is perfect - even an eyepatch! Just needs the captain's hat.

Basing

Plastruct has a selection of wood-grained sheets that would make good bases - and can tie together convenient ranks of 5 too. Water-base for the Doomwheel would be very cool. A scenic base for the Warplightning Cannon with ship side and gun-port as noted above would be cool.