val tagClass: Int,
  /** The tag this adapter expects, or -1 to match any tag. */
  val tag: Long,
  /** Encode and decode the value once tags are handled. */
  private val codec: Codec<T>,
  /** True if the default value should be used if this value is absent during decoding. */
  val isOptional: Boolean = false,
  /** The value to return if this value is absent. Undefined unless this is optional. */
  val defaultValue: T? = null,