I have been recently exposed to the potential of the 2212 1400 kv for FT planes that are rated for a minimum of a B pack equivalent. You will notice that all the combat planes, the cub and scout all will fly on that 2212 at 1000kv, same with the Seaduck and maybe the bronco as well as twins. The Kv range you can play with depending on the voltage you would like to supply it with is what decides the kv choice for the most part. If you choose with the 2212 in the cub on 3s a 1400kv on a 9x4.5 prop will work under a 30 amp ESC. Lighter battery, lighter ESC, slower flight for the novice.
And you are correct as well on the larger BEC as you go up in amp ratings on the ESC for the most part. Just make sure you read the specs. Quad ESC's sometimes come with no BEC so you have watch.
Say you did a larger model like the Seaduck which is a twin, the 2212 will work fine if you go with a lower Kv, say the 800 range, on 4s, even up to a 10", again you have to read the specs on the motor to watch for amps draw on bench tests charts and to make sure the motor will handle 4s. All this information is usually posted with the product, if it isn't then its a good bet to look at something else. The reason you can get away with the 4s on the duck or the bronco is because it is a twin and the plane is naturally larger, so it will handle the weight with less stall penalty. You could do 4s on any of the planes really but then again your skill set needs to be ready for it as well. Then it would be a good idea to then jump up to a 40-50 amp ESC depending on how far you want to take it. Plus the quality of different brands varies... I am really looking at Sunnysky as my next choice of motors. Best deals are in packs of 4-6 units.