Press 
to block and reduce damage from physical attacks by 80%. You need to press 
and 
for the Magic Guard skill to block magical attacks. However, the All Guard skill can block both physical and magical attacks at once. A successful block of either type recovers 2% of your max TP. If your Guarding Strength is reduced to 0, your blocks will fail and you’ll be momentarily vulnerable to enemy attack. So it’s important to use a mix of guarding and quick-step evasion. Your Guarding Strength regenerates whenever you’re not taking damage, even if you’re still guarding. Note that the skill Impregnable Guard makes your guarding unbreakable.
Recovery and Get-Up Attacks
When you’re knocked away by an enemy attack, press 
to recover and avoid a knockdown. You can do this at any point in the fall. If you are knocked down, you can cancel your rising animation and use a normal attack or arte instead. Use this to counterattack when a foe is nearby.