Everyone Please Read:
Things are still in a formative stage, but here's some detail on what you can and can't do.
Gather resources inside the boundaries of your plot. That means mining below the surface, and gathering on-top resources as well. Don't go outside your plot to chop wood or kill animals or gather sand. You can lure a couple of animals back to your plot to breed them, but otherwise leave the critters alone. (picking up eggs is ok)
I'll try to get some wood blocks and saplings into a chest at spawn as soon as possible, so if you end up with a grassland plot you'll be able to get some trees going.
Our current Colony is surrounded by water, it's pretty easy to figure out where the world boundary is located. Islands are free to mine and gather, loot the ships and other dungeons you might find.
Might be a good idea to stay away from the floating sky dungeons till you're heavily armored.