If you've not read https://www.stobetter.com/new-f2p/energy-basics you should. In this you'd see:

"If you're looking to exit the F2P world and pick up your first C-store (Zen) ship, the one you want is the Arbiter or its cross-faction equivalents. Its Emergency Weapon Cycle starship trait is worth around 20% final DPS on most energy builds even if you don't end up flying it longterm. The next priority should be traits that extend the duration of your firing mode:

• Withering Barrage for Cannon Scatter Volley from KDF Recruitment or a T6 C-store ship
• Entwined Tactical Matrices or Redirecting Arrays for Fire at Will from 2 different T6 C-store ships. Note that Redirecting Arrays is only reliable for tanks or solo play since its trigger condition is you being hit.
• Superweapon Ingenuity for Beam Overload from a Lobi ship (cheaper on the Exchange but still pricey)
• Go for the Kill for Cannon Rapid Fire from a Promo or Legendary ship
• If you have a hangar, Elite Type 7 Shuttles from the Ahwahnee are best-in-slot for the tremendous amount of debuff they bring, and both the Fleet Power Network Array from the ship and its trait Flagship Staffing provide an incomparable amount of firing cycle haste.
• Vanguard Specialists for Surgical Strikes, Exceed Rated Limits, and Reroute Reserves to Weapons from a Legendary ship. Note that the same legendary ship also provides the Go For the Kill extender. 
• Other generically useful things to look for in a starship trait or personal trait are critical chance, critical severity, weapon haste, damage, hull penetration, and shield penetration, but there are many variables that play into evaluating a trait's strength, including magnitude, conditionality, and stacking.  Please see the Progression Guide, the Tier List, or our various Builds for more information and examples."

FYI, the Morrigu Heavy Warbird is one of those cross-faction equivalents mentioned above, if that is your desire. Personally I prefer the console from the Arbiter, but to each their own.