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Missing required field

Some fields have no sensible default — a vspace with no size says nothing, a set with no mark marks nothing, an ifdef with no symbol gates nothing. Omitting one is a hard error, caught while shortcuts expand, before any format is written.

What it looks like

::: {.vspace}
:::

ERROR: shortcut 'vspace' requires size
  │ ::: vspace
  Set it as an attribute.
  See https://keystone.knight-owl.dev/errors/missing-required-field/

The same shape applies to any required field — for example a set with no mark:

ERROR: shortcut 'set' requires mark
  │ [John Keats]{.set}
  Set it as an attribute.
  See https://keystone.knight-owl.dev/errors/missing-required-field/

What it means

The field is the instruction: the size is the whole point of a vspace, the mark is the whole point of a set. There is nothing safe to fall back to, so a missing required field stops the build, as a refused value on one does.

Supply the attribute the message names

Each shortcut's required fields are listed in the system shortcut reference. For a shortcut of your own, an interface entry can mark a field required: true or give it a default.

::: {.vspace size="medium"}
:::