Designs around the reactor and use of slope highlighting edges, along with use of a bright color to distract from crew windows. Remaining space is filled in with random designs. A big part of my paint schemes is incorporating the parts into the design. Sanctuary (4th ship) Blends in the railguns with a similar color scheme. The first two ships match the color scheme with the reactors.
A more recent example and similar in concept. Uses a darker base layer. I prefer it to the old-ish style.
Occasional delving into the use of shaded decals to give the appearance of depth.
I experimented with using more decals then just the simple geometric shapes, which came out well.
I've discovered it you use a good color scheme you can get away with a lot.