So what did you all end up doing for the quest involving powering the Helios One station?

I took an RP approach to That Lucky Old Sun and diverted the power to Freeside and Westside -- two areas that really need power. Full Region isn't optimal because if you spread it out across, as the name suggests, an entire region, then yes, power will be awarded everywhere, but only tiny, barely effective bits of it.

ARCHIMEDES is the way to go if you're taking a gameplay approach, as it yields the weapon.

I found the C-finder to be fun but ultimately disappointing compared to the other outcomes. It's not much of a doomsday device that it was made out to be.