The HP Gauge is located at the top of the screen, one for each fighter, and represents his/her remaining stamina or vitality. The HP bar has been a constant among the Soul series, and has appeared in each game since Soul Edge. Each successful hit on the opponent lowers the HP Gauge by a fixed amount, known as damage, which varies depending on the move. Attacks which force an opponent into a wall deal additional damage. When a fighter's HP Gauge is depleted, he is defeated (K.O.'d), and the battle ends. Ring Outs immediately deplete a fighter's HP Gauge, but the battle ends in a Ring Out instead of a K.O. The HP Gauge indicates a player's HP in green, with black being what damage he has suffered. If a character's health exceeds 100% (such as through the use of certain clothing or versus settings), the extra health is represented by a blue bar which overlaps the green bar.
A few characters have moves which regenerate HP, most notably Yoshimitsu and the Dancer class of custom character from Soul Calibur III.
A skill, as well as a few weapon effects, grants the user HP absorption--he gains a fixed percent of Damage in HP with each successful attack.