ProdigyToby, Blackrock ships (especially the Desdinova) aren't flux neutral by design, you can't just fly them like a Sunder and keeping the pressure on the target. Hit & run tactics with big alpha strikes are what they are the best at thanks to their numerous weapon mounts and mobility.
Kill/overload, back off, and vent (they got a bonus with active venting) and get back for the finishing blow. Even the AI is "reasonably" good at it, at least in SS+. A Desdinova is rarely a good idea as an AI ship anyway, extremely expensive and quite fragile. A long range Desdi with a cautious officer can kinda works though, it won't let itself be caught easily.
Oh, and i managed to make the Knight works. Yes, pretty much everyone had that "Eww..." reaction when they opened the refit screen on the Knight and saw its weird loadout. But in the end, it's an all around better (but more expensive) Venture and should be expected to perform as such. Fitting it as a Scalaron pulse boat with Ferroguns does the job, an Achilles boat isn't a bad either as it can keep the enemy ships constantly on their toes, and leave them vulnerable for the rest of the fleet.
Of course, it's a carrier, and given the current state of fighters, it's going to fall off during very late game. But until then, it's a fairly efficient way to field fighters in battle and provide a reasonable amount of long-range firepower, which is why i tends to prefer it over the (even more expensive) Convergence.
Also, i like the Stenos new system. It's not as fancy as the previous one but given the AI tendency to screw it, i think it's better. It feel like a very passive system that will "add" to the ship, rather than the AI trying to play around it and take risks.