Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and is about one half of the size of Earth. This planet is the easiest planet to terraform and industrialize due to its proximity to Earth and its abundance of resources.
Appearance
Mars has been remade four times. In the last two iterations, It is a terrain object, consisting mostly of mud, sandstone, sand, snow, and asphalt. Mud covers the surface, while there are occasional deserts made of sand. Snow appears in a limited capacity, mostly at the poles. There are other colors on the martian surface, such as a lighter version of red, or something closer to maroon.
Mars is hollow, and is filled with water. Especially if Mars is terraformed, you will quickly see water if you dig using explosive charges. In the center of Mars, there is a solid, smooth, gray gravity cube.
Colonization
Mars is normally the first candidate when it comes to early game mining and terraforming, and for good reason. The planet is very rich in metal, water and gas, can provide players with lots of money from selling Mars rocks, and its gravity makes it easier to maneuver around infrastructure. This is somewhat hampered by the spawning of Sand Leeches, however.
During the process of terraforming, grass will begin to replace the Martian surface near the equator. Black sand patches will be converted to regular sand. Red water will fill in the lowlands. The ice caps will melt quickly. The sky will slowly change to resemble Earth's sky. The clouds will thicken and become lighter. The red water will turn blue, marking the full terraformation of Mars.
If terraforming is reversed, the ice caps will not be restored, and grass will remain.
Players may want to crash Phobos and Deimos into Mars before they begin terraforming it, as there is a possibility other players will cause the moons to collide with Mars after they terraform. This action causes the deterraforming of the planet, which makes mars uninhabitable and not viable for a spawn.
Alien Invasion
Upon Detonating a Nuke on Callisto's surface, the Galilean Squids may begin endlessly attacking the planet with bombing ships and land troops until their Mothership is destroyed. This can greatly slow down any expansion on Mars, as missiles launched by the alien ships can damage player-made ships, and in general cause death, chaos, and a holly jolly end of humanity. This threat may be countered using Explosive Charges and Turrets.
Moons
Phobos
Main article: Phobos
Phobos is the larger moon of Mars. It has a pebbly texture and is gray in color. If it is pushed, it will deorbit; pushing it far enough will cause it to crash into Mars. The impact will kill nearby players.
Deimos
Main article: Deimos
Deimos is the smaller moon of Mars. It has a pebbly texture, is slightly smaller than Phobos, and is light red in color. If it is pushed, it will deorbit; pushing it far enough will cause it to crash into Mars. The impact will kill nearby players.
Alcaeus
Main article: Alcaeus
Formerly called Ike, and previously Typhon, Alcaeus forms when both Phobos and Deimos have been destroyed by crashing them into Mars. Patches of lava will remain on the moon after its formation. The rest of the terrain is composed of slate, rock, and basalt. Shockstones spawn in its lava-filled fissures until it fully solidifies, and lava disappears from its surface.
Gameplay
In gameplay, the moon's sole purpose is to provide Cash. About 3 shockstones should be good enough to start a base, although that is the minimum and you can always collect more. You can base Alcaeus, though is uncommon due to it lacking natural gas and due to its size and gravity.
If only one of the moons is crashed, Mars will instead have rings around it and Alcaeus will not be formed until both moons are crashed. Both moons can also deterraform Mars upon impact since Release 20.
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