Proto Man

Proto Man, also known as Blues in Japan, is the mysteriously masked and red-clad big brother of Mega Man. Like his blue baby brother, Proto Man has a charge mechanism for his Proto Buster, along with the ability to slide. However, something about that prototype, nuclear-powered body just doesn't work as well as the current stuff. Thus, he is a bit less durable, lacks a double charge shot, and can't wall kick. To compensate, he comes packing his signature shield, a mid-charge in the form of a flurry of bullets, and the option to drop the shield for mixing up the opponent. Combined with his Copy Class capabilities and the fact that his buster pellets go faster, overall, this creates a more defensive variant of Mega Man, with less mobility and power, but with more ways to stop an advance. If you enjoy:

-High damage

-The ability to fight safely from far away or around corners

-Hit and Run playstyles

Then Proto Man might be the hero for you!

Overview
Proto Man has 5 less health than his younger brother, and can't wall kick. This puts him in a disadvantage in his ability to play aggressively, somewhat discouraging a hit and run play style. However, in every other factor, he moves the same speed as Mega Man, and jumps as high as him. To give him a bit of an advantage in the battlefield, he carries his trusty Proto Shield, capable of blocking shots in front of him. This allows him to advance against straight-shooters, though it is put away any time he decides to fire his buster.

When picking up Copy Class upgrade, gets a new move call Proto Strike.

Main
Proto Buster

Proto Man's Proto Buster is a lot like his younger blue brother's, with a charge capability along with good rate of fire when spammed. Of note, his shots fly faster than Mega Man's, giving him a major advantage in the ranged game.

When partially charged, instead of firing a half-charge shot, his instead lets out a flurry of bullets from right to left. This midcharge charges fast, and can easily be spammed. It can also be used as a shotgun.

When fully charged, he lets loose a large green charge shot. It goes extremely fast and can be used for sniping down enemies. Unlike Mega Man's fully charged shot, you don't get to double up on this. If you have the upgrade, pressing Altfire with a full charge will instead result in a Proto Strike, a short range shot that goes through walls.

Alt
Shield Bash/Slide

Proto Man dashes forwards with the Shield Bash, has knockback on hit.

If his shield is away, (see Item,) he instead performs a Slide.

Item
Shield Toss

Proto Man is capable of dropping and recalling his Proto Shield with the Item button. Shooting the shield with a charged shot will redirect the charged shot towards the nearest enemy. The shot will deal less damage, however.

Basic Tips & Strategy
General strategy

Gondola V1.8

 * Proto Shield bounce no longer uses 180 degree LOS, now deflects in a 360 degree radius

Gondola V2.4

 * Midcharge powerprotected shot damage 2 > 3
 * Fully charged animation updated ported from classes-v9fh.pk3
 * New chargeshot/chargeshot FX sprites by Hansungkee
 * Chargeshot scale 2.5 > 2
 * Chargeshot FX now uses renderstyle add
 * Chargeshot FX scale 2.7 > 1.5

Gondola V2.4.1

 * Updated to V6 skin
 * Ported shieldless skinsprites from classes-v9fh.pk3
 * Uncharged/midcharge buster impact VFX added

Gondola V2.4.1H

 * Better slide animation by Great Glass
 * Fixed slide ammo disappearing from HUD while using Copyweapons

Gondola V2.6

 * Dash count 5 > 3
 * New HUD by Lamp
 * Added back Proto Strike
 * Shield Redirect Shot rescripted, now correctly functions with sv_shootthroughallies on or off
 * Fixes 2.5 bug where shield would lose the ability to rebound and could be picked up by enemy players
 * Visuals cleaned up by Trillster, cooldown now displays gradually

Trivia

 * Fun fact! There's a band based on this character called The Protomen. The band's music overall is based on an alternate telling of Mega Man's story.
 * Tossing the shield, dying, and selecting a different character before it automatically returns to you allows you to use a bug which lets other classes shoot the Proto Shield.