Quick answer
PGN Tag Pairs is a notation skill: the legal-move test. Work from the first evidence position for PGN Tag Pairs, and begin by testing Ke8.
Begin from Ke8 in 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8 b - - 2 2. List the fields needed to reconstruct the board and distinguish a position snapshot from a complete game record. The evidence answer is: PGN Tag Pairs: identify checks, captures, pins and king safety before accepting a move as legal. Candidate line: Ke8.
In the PGN Tag Pairs example, notice: side Black; pieces Black king d8, White pawn e3, White king e2; legal first moves Ke8, Ke7, Kd7, Kc7, Kc8. Read those squares as a snapshot of this single board, not as a standing rule you can copy into every game.
What the record contains
The first evidence board tests the legal-move test; the second board tests the legal-move test. Construction note: A = direct FEN setup; B = direct FEN setup. Rebuild each board before comparing labels. For glossary entries nearby, open the Chess Wiki plus the Notation And Tools hub. Then compare Notation with Fen Castling Field, Pgn Movetext, Eco Opening Codes around the field boundary in the record.
The two inventories make the distinction concrete. A contains side Black; pieces Black king d8, White pawn e3, White king e2; legal first moves Ke8, Ke7, Kd7, Kc7, Kc8; B contains side Black; pieces Black king d8, White pawn e3, White king e2; legal first moves Ke8, Ke7, Kd7, Kc7, Kc8. Compare the side to move before comparing the labels in the context of the disambiguation character.
Topic dossier for this page and board pair r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8 / r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8: start with the field boundary in the record; then test the disambiguation character; keep a snapshot versus a game separate from move-number semantics; use SAN versus long algebraic form as the transfer check; and reserve the descriptive limit of an ECO code for the exception.
Reconstruction test
On the first board, calculate Ke8 after Ke8 and write down the opponent's best reply around the field boundary in the record. On the second board, calculate Ke8 after Ke8 and check the disambiguation character. Use the notation to preserve state, not to infer history that the record does not contain. In this case the useful condition is the descriptive limit of an ECO code.
Key claim: PGN Tag Pairs is illustrated here by the legal-move test; the first concrete test is Ke8. The board anchor is 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8; the example is intentionally narrower than the topic label and should not be generalised without checking the surrounding position..
Practical boundary: To answer “How can a player read pgn tag pairs accurately and reconstruct the position or game record it describes?”, compare the recorded setup with Ke8 and the opponent's reply. The decision is useful only when the stated condition survives that concrete test on board 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8. The evidence records The position tests the stated rule or record field; verify the relevant source when a procedural decision matters and the second board signature r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8. The false-positive test is whether a snapshot versus a game appears without move-number semantics, so the conclusion is useful only when the stated condition survives that concrete test.
Evidence positions
example-1: the legal-move test
Show answer
PGN Tag Pairs: identify checks, captures, pins and king safety before accepting a move as legal. Candidate line: Ke8.
Why this position is here: PGN Tag Pairs is represented by the legal-move test. This is a direct FEN setup with board anchor 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8; no opening history is inferred from the diagram.
FEN: 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8 b - - 2 2
Question: What is the first concrete decision in this pgn tag pairs position?
Answer cue: PGN Tag Pairs: identify checks, captures, pins and king safety before accepting a move as legal. Candidate line: Ke8. The first candidate to test is Ke8. Replay Ke8 on board anchor 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8 and write down what changes after it.
Evidence boundary: The position tests the stated rule or record field; verify the relevant source when a procedural decision matters.
Reading the record
Read the first example (id example-1) as a complete record: continuation Ke8, source fide-laws. This is a direct FEN setup with board anchor 3k4/8/8/8/8/4P3/4K3/8; no opening history is inferred from the diagram. If A does not expose the legal-move test, correct the evidence before relying on the prose.
Read the second example (id example-1) separately: continuation Ke8, source fide-laws. Its feature is the legal-move test; inventory side Black; pieces Black king d8, White pawn e3, White king e2; legal first moves Ke8, Ke7, Kd7, Kc7, Kc8. Compare what changes between Ke8 and Ke8.
Missing information
The main mistake to avoid with PGN Tag Pairs is treating a compact notation field as if it encoded history or context that it does not actually contain. In A, the missing condition must be located in r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8 after Ke8; in B, test it against r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8 after Ke8.
For PGN Tag Pairs, the first board's evidence boundary (after Ke8) is The position tests the stated rule or record field; verify the relevant source when a procedural decision matters. The second board's evidence boundary for PGN Tag Pairs is The position tests the stated rule or record field; verify the relevant source when a procedural decision matters. If a trusted source or careful calculation changes the conclusion around SAN versus long algebraic form, update both the evidence record and this article.
Practice protocol
decode one record at a time, reconstruct the board, and deliberately test one malformed or incomplete input. Start with A's side to move and r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8; record two candidates, the reply to Ke8 and the correction. Repeat with B's side to move and r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8; the changed board tests transfer rather than diagram memory.
After the drill, compare your notes with Fen Castling Field, Pgn Movetext, Eco Opening Codes through move-number semantics. Keep A's rejected alternative beside B's chosen line Ke8; this shows whether the conclusion survived a new board signature.
Sources and scope
Sources for PGN Tag Pairs: Portable Game Notation Specification, 1chess.online editorial scope, FIDE Laws of Chess. Source ids are pgn-specification, original-analysis, fide-laws. Primary evidence hook: fide-laws. Comparisons and practice notes are editorial. Evidence revision: 2026-08-remediation-r2.
Scope note for board pair r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8 / r1:3k4 | r2:8 | r3:8 | r4:8 | r5:8 | r6:4P3 | r7:4K3 | r8:8: this page does not claim that Ke8 is an engine principal variation, that an exact endgame result is verified when the evidence says it is not, or that a tool output replaces human calculation. The conclusion is limited to the recorded boundary and the exception a snapshot versus a game.