Destiny Warrior
Smash Apprentice
Disclaimer: At the very outset, I would like to state that this "guide" was made mainly for informative purposes, because an actual guide to Summit does not seem to exist if the stickied thread with links to guides with specific stages is any indication. This was not made in an attempt to contest Summit's legality, but discussion of it is not unwelcome.
Overview
The Summit is one of the stages in the game with transformations, the others being Delfino Plaza, Luigi's Mansion(arguably), Pirate Ship, Frigate Orpheon, Halberd, Pokemon Stadium 2, Spear Pillar, Port Town Aero Dive, Castle Siege, WarioWare Inc., Flat Zone 2, Pictochat, and Pokemon Stadium.
The stage undergoes a total of 3 different transformations that proceed in a well-defined cycle. The stage's structure, as can be seen in the image, has a solid wall suspended in midair. There is an extension that projects down and right. Beneath the flat wall of the wall is an "icicle garden". Here, icicles grow and drop off at regular intervals. There is a hinged platform attached to the lower left part of the wall, that falls off after stood on for a certain amount of time. There are 2 solid permanent platforms attached to the top of the wall on either side, and there is a freely floating platform to the right of the wall slightly right and below the platform attached to the right side of the wall.
Attached to the lower right portion of the wall is a platform made of ice. After taking a certain amount of damage, it is destroyed, but reappaears after a while.
While in the lake, if you land in the water, after a certain amount of time, a giant fish jumps to swallow you. If you get caught in the fish's mouth, you get carried below the lower blast line. If you get hit by the tail, it does some damage and can KO at higher percents.
Clouds pass by the lower and the upper part of the stage randomly, They can be stood in, but they will drift off the stage.
Finally, there are no ledges on this stage.
Technical Data
* The first transformation, the stationary stage at the top of the mountain, lasts for 27 seconds.
* The second transformation, the stage sliding down the mountain, lasts for 33 seconds.
* After the stage stabilizes, it remains floating on the lake for 25 seconds.
* After this, two arrows appear on the lowermost platform of the stage on the right and the left, and a sound is created. This lasts for 4 seconds.
* It takes 3 seconds for the stage to completely come out of the water.
* After this, it takes 8 seconds for the stage to reach its original background, restarting the cycle.
* In all, a cycle lasts for 100 seconds(1 minute and 40 seconds), so in a standard 8 minute match, it will repeat itself 4 times and the match will end on the lake.
* While in the lake, the lowermost platform occasionally rises above the water, however, at such a time, if you land on the lowermost platform, it will immediately sink back to its usual level and you will be in the water.
* After you land in the water, it takes the fish 3 seconds to jump out, which is sufficient time to escape, though you should always attempt to escape as soon as humanly possible to avoid risks.
* The hinged platform falls down after being stood upon for 3 seconds continously, and returns back to its usual position 10 seconds after that.
* The first icicle falls after ~8 seconds, and the subsequent icicles fall every ~16 seconds. Each icicle has 10% health, so if you inflict that much damage upon an icicle, it is destroyed and the cycle is reset.
* The ice platform has 30% health. I have not measured how long it takes to regenerate however.
* Gravity is approximately halved while the stage is sliding down the mountain.
Some notes on Circle Camping
This stage's structure unfortunately promotes circle camping. However, certain aspects of the stage mean that the circle camper has to be very careful to ensure that he does not make errors and give his opponent a chance to catch him and turn the tables.
* Icicles: Circle campers must be cautious when moving through the lower part of the stage(when it is in phase 1 or phase 2), because of the icicles. If they are in a position to fall down very soon, he is forced to wait for them to fall, or to attempt attacking them, which can give an oppoenent an opportunity to close in at times.
* Hinged Platform: Due to the limit on the hinged platform, a circle camper trying to place himself "diametrically" opposite his opponent along the wall to maintain maximal effective distance is forced to jump regularly if his opponent picks the ice platform to stop at. Such positioning can lead to mindgames on occasion.
* Lake: Phase 3(the lake) is less supportive of circle camping than the other 2 phases. Campers can no longer land on the lower platform and move to the other end, due to the water and the fish. Instead, they have to move purely through the air, so their opponents have a better chance to close in due to the likely lag of the moves they need to use to get across. Additionally, the icicles may occasionally push them down into the lake.
* Ice: During phases 1 and 2, dashing is not very safe on the lowermost platform due to the reduced traction of the floor. Turning around after a dash is more difficult than on other stages, and is very laggy. Also, the tripping rate on ice is increased(from what I know at least), so the odds will catch up with you faster.
Special Note: Ice Climbers
The Ice Climbers have cleats, so they treat the ice like a normal floor. This has obvious advantages, as they can turn more easily and do not have the increased trip rate. While they cannot do sliding charged smashes like other characters can, they have Ice Block to chip at a turnaround-lagging opponent long range instead.
Conclusion
While Summit is banned universally, it can be an interesting stage to play on. I hope this guide detailed to you the specific details of this stage.
