# VASSAL Reference Manual Home > Module > Game Piece Palette > Game Piece > Text Label
## Text Label
This trait displays a text label on or near the piece. The text of the label can be fixed or specifiable by a player at game time. Description: A description of the purpose of this label that is displayed in the Piece Definer. Text: The starting value for the label text. Properties of the piece can be substituted with $..$ notation, as in a Message Format. By enclosing the text within tags, you can use simple HTML format to specify various colors, fonts and sizes. Example: <html><b>Bold text</b><p>with a line break<p>and <font color=red>different</font> <font color=blue>colors</font></html> will display as:
| Bold text with a line break and different colors
Name Format: A Message Format that specifies how the name of this piece will be reported: pieceName is the name of the piece excluding the label, label is the value of the label text (including, unfortunately, HTML tags). If the label is empty, then the default name of the piece is always used. Menu Command: If not blank, gives the text of the corresponding menu item in the piece's right-click context menu, selection of which will result in the text of the label being updated. Menu key command: If blank, the text of the label is permanent. If set, then gives the key command or Named Key Command to update the text of the label. Font: The Text Label is drawn using this font. Font size / Bold / Italic: The Text Label is drawn at this size, optionally in bold or italics. Text Color: The Text Label is drawn using this color. Background Color: The Text Label is drawn within a solid rectangle of this color. Click Select and then Cancel to use a transparent background. Vertical Position: Draw the Text Label with the given offset from the top, bottom, or center of the piece. Horizontal Position: Draw the Text Label with the given offset from the left, right, or center of the piece. Vertical justification: Whether the top edge, bottom edge, or center of the Text Label will be drawn at the Horizontal Position specified above. Horizontal justification: Whether the right edge, left edge, or center of the label will be drawn at the Vertical Position specified above. Rotate Text: The text will be rotated clockwise by this angle. Rotation is performed after the horizontal/vertical justification and positioning specified above. Property Name: The value of this label will be exposed as a Property with the given name. |  |