Guard Power Gauge

The Guard Power Gauge, or simply Guard Meter, is a mechanic introduced in the Street Fighter Alpha series, used in Street Fighter Alpha 3.

Description
Each character has a guard meter that depletes when taking hits while blocking. It works similarly to the stun mechanic, including Stun Meter later seen in the Street Fighter III series, in that its length is determined based on the character's maximum health and/or stun. X-ISM Guard Meters are generally longer compared to other meters, since the style emulates a series where blocking was effectively the only defensive option.

The meter will begin blinking when it is close to running out; if knocked to zero by another hit, the character will suffer a stun-like state known as Guard Crush, where they are staggered and left open to attack. In addition, the meter will shrink in size by one portion, thus making it possible for guard-heavy players to be unable to block at all eventually.

A parry-like mechanic exists alongside this system; if the player guards as soon as an attack comes out (as opposed to doing so before hand), the meter will not decrease as much.