Eden Crater

Eden Crater is a mission in Aven Colony.

Description
Our research on the cube and the artifacts has led us to this. There is an extraordinary object near the center of Eden Crater, out in the distant "badlands" of Aven Prime ...  but we have no idea what it is. Beautiful though it is, Eden Crater lies in the single most harsh and unforgiving location on the planet. Earth crops do not grow here, and the weather is especially harsh.

Map
A large, open map with one wrinkle: You cannot grow earthly crops, so all the food your colonists eat will have to be either sources locally or imported.

Strategies
Despite the warnings by the advisors, this mission is not particularly hard. Lack of Earthly plants will significantly hurt food variety and food quality, so early game will involve mostly compromises between food quantity, morale, air quality, and nanite production. Most geothermal vents are rather far away from the start, which will likely slow the expansion. Once the colony is stabilized, the challenge of the map is gone entirely - the scenario doesn't offer any scripted events more dangerous than appearance of a single Guardian (which can be handled by placing a plasma turret or two in the direction it comes from) and can be taken slowly, with no risk. Each of the four guardians may take multiple expeditions to defeat, especially on higher difficulties.
 * Claim the two nearby mines and start producing nanites
 * Build an immigration center
 * Expand into the nearby fertile field and start producing a surplus of food
 * Satisfy the most significant need of your colonists
 * Try to claim the nearby pods for a big influx of nanites and some food variety
 * Establish trade early on, to avoid running out of varied food