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NAG annotation values

annotation NAG = Numeric Annotation Glyph

The PGN-Standard  defines the following NAG values:

Infix annotations:

  1. Good move
  2. Poor move
  3. Very good move
  4. Very poor move
  5. Interesting move
  6. Questionable move

Suffix annotations:

  1. Forced move (all others lose quickly)
  2. Singular move (no reasonable alternatives)
  3. Worst move
  4. Drawish position
  5. Equal chances, quiet position
  6. Equal chances, active position
  7. Unclear position
  8. White has a slight advantage
  9. Black has a slight advantage
  10. White has a moderate advantage
  11. Black has a moderate advantage
  12. White has a decisive advantage
  13. Black has a decisive advantage
  14. White has a crushing advantage (Black should resign)
  15. Black has a crushing advantage (White should resign)
  16. White is in zugzwang
  17. Black is in zugzwang
  18. White has a slight space advantage
  19. Black has a slight space advantage
  20. White has a moderate space advantage
  21. Black has a moderate space advantage
  22. White has a decisive space advantage
  23. Black has a decisive space advantage
  24. White has a slight time (development) advantage
  25. Black has a slight time (development) advantage
  26. White has a moderate time (development) advantage
  27. Black has a moderate time (development) advantage
  28. White has a decisive time (development) advantage
  29. Black has a decisive time (development) advantage
  30. White has the initiative
  31. Black has the initiative
  32. White has a lasting initiative
  33. Black has a lasting initiative
  34. White has the attack
  35. Black has the attack
  36. White has insufficient compensation for material deficit
  37. Black has insufficient compensation for material deficit
  38. White has sufficient compensation for material deficit
  39. Black has sufficient compensation for material deficit
  40. White has more than adequate compensation for material deficit
  41. Black has more than adequate compensation for material deficit
  42. White has a slight center control advantage
  43. Black has a slight center control advantage
  44. White has a moderate center control advantage
  45. Black has a moderate center control advantage
  46. White has a decisive center control advantage
  47. Black has a decisive center control advantage
  48. White has a slight kingside control advantage
  49. Black has a slight kingside control advantage
  50. White has a moderate kingside control advantage
  51. Black has a moderate kingside control advantage
  52. White has a decisive kingside control advantage
  53. Black has a decisive kingside control advantage
  54. White has a slight queenside control advantage
  55. Black has a slight queenside control advantage
  56. White has a moderate queenside control advantage
  57. Black has a moderate queenside control advantage
  58. White has a decisive queenside control advantage
  59. Black has a decisive queenside control advantage
  60. White has a vulnerable first rank
  61. Black has a vulnerable first rank
  62. White has a well protected first rank
  63. Black has a well protected first rank
  64. White has a poorly protected king
  65. Black has a poorly protected king
  66. White has a well protected king
  67. Black has a well protected king
  68. White has a poorly placed king
  69. Black has a poorly placed king
  70. White has a well placed king
  71. Black has a well placed king
  72. White has a very weak pawn structure
  73. Black has a very weak pawn structure
  74. White has a moderately weak pawn structure
  75. Black has a moderately weak pawn structure
  76. White has a moderately strong pawn structure
  77. Black has a moderately strong pawn structure
  78. White has a very strong pawn structure
  79. Black has a very strong pawn structure
  80. White has poor knight placement
  81. Black has poor knight placement
  82. White has good knight placement
  83. Black has good knight placement
  84. White has poor bishop placement
  85. Black has poor bishop placement
  86. White has good bishop placement
  87. Black has good bishop placement
  88. White has poor rook placement
  89. Black has poor rook placement
  90. White has good rook placement
  91. Black has good rook placement
  92. White has poor queen placement
  93. Black has poor queen placement
  94. White has good queen placement
  95. Black has good queen placement
  96. White has poor piece coordination
  97. Black has poor piece coordination
  98. White has good piece coordination
  99. Black has good piece coordination
  100. White has played the opening very poorly
  101. Black has played the opening very poorly
  102. White has played the opening poorly
  103. Black has played the opening poorly
  104. White has played the opening well
  105. Black has played the opening well
  106. White has played the opening very well
  107. Black has played the opening very well
  108. White has played the middlegame very poorly
  109. Black has played the middlegame very poorly
  110. White has played the middlegame poorly
  111. Black has played the middlegame poorly
  112. White has played the middlegame well
  113. Black has played the middlegame well
  114. White has played the middlegame very well
  115. Black has played the middlegame very well
  116. White has played the ending very poorly
  117. Black has played the ending very poorly
  118. White has played the ending poorly
  119. Black has played the ending poorly
  120. White has played the ending well
  121. Black has played the ending well
  122. White has played the ending very well
  123. Black has played the ending very well
  124. White has slight counterplay
  125. Black has slight counterplay
  126. White has moderate counterplay
  127. Black has moderate counterplay
  128. White has decisive counterplay
  129. Black has decisive counterplay
  130. White has moderate time control pressure
  131. Black has moderate time control pressure
  132. White has severe time control pressure
  133. Black has severe time control pressure

Other proposed NAG values are:

Prefix annotations:

  1. With the idea
  2. Aimed against
  3. Better is
  4. Worse is
  5. Equivalent is
  6. Editor's remark

Suffix annotations:

  1. Novelty
  2. Weak Point
  3. Endgame
  4. Line
  5. Diagonal
  6. White has a pair of Bishops
  7. Black has a pair of Bishops
  8. Bishops of opposite color
  9. Bishops of same color

Scidb is defining some more NAG values:

Suffix annotations:

  1. Diagram
  2. Diagram from black's perspective
  3. Isolated pawns
  4. Doubled pawns
  5. Connected pawns
  6. Passed pawn
  7. Hanging pawns
  8. Backward pawns
  9. More pawns
  10. More room
  11. With
  12. Without
  13. Center
  14. File
  15. Rank
  16. See
  17. Various alternatives
  18. Etc.

For the support of commentaries in ChessBase files some more NAG values are required:

  1. Space
  2. Zeitnot
  3. Development
  4. Zugzwang
  5. Time limit
  6. Attack
  7. Initiative
  8. Counterplay
  9. With compensation for the material
  10. Pair of bishops
  11. Kingside
  12. Queenside

Scid and ChessPad define further NAG values (> 190). But these values will be automatically mapped to Scidb specific values during import and database conversion.