An h1 header

Paragraphs are separated by a blank line.
2nd paragraph. Italic, bold, monospace . Itemized lists look like:

this one

that one

the other one

Note that --- not considering the asterisk --- the actual text content starts at 4-columns in.
Block quotes are written like so.
They can span multiple paragraphs, if you like.
Use 3 dashes for an em-dash. Use 2 dashes for ranges (ex. "it's all in chapters 12--14"). Three dots ... will be converted to an ellipsis.

An h2 header

Here's a numbered list:

first item

second item

third item

Note again how the actual text starts at 4 columns in (4 characters from the left side). Here's a code sample:

# Let me re-iterate ...
for i in 1 .. 10 { do-something(i) }

As you probably guessed, indented 4 spaces. By the way, instead of indenting the block, you can use delimited blocks, if you like:

define foobar() {
    print "Welcome to flavor country!";
}

(which makes copying & pasting easier). You can optionally mark the delimited block for Pandoc to syntax highlight it:

import time
# Quick, count to ten!
for i in range(10):
    # (but not *too* quick)
    time.sleep(0.5)
    print i

An h3 header

Now a nested list:

First, get these ingredients:

carrots

celery

lentils

Boil some water.

Dump everything in the pot and follow this algorithm:

find wooden spoon
uncover pot
stir
cover pot
balance wooden spoon precariously on pot handle
wait 10 minutes
goto first step (or shut off burner when done)

Do not bump wooden spoon or it will fall.

Notice again how text always lines up on 4-space indents (including that last line which continues item 3 above). Here's a link to a website. Here's a link to a local doc. Here's a footnote [1].
Tables can look like this:
size material color
9 leather brown 10 hemp canvas natural 11 glass transparent
Table: Shoes, their sizes, and what they're made of
(The above is the caption for the table.) Here's a definition list:
apples : Good for making applesauce. oranges : Citrus! tomatoes : There's no "e"in tomatoe.
Again, text is indented 4 spaces. (Alternately, put blank lines in between each of the above definition list lines to spread things out more.)
Inline math equations go in like so: $\omega = d\phi/dt$. Display math should get its own line and be put in in double-dollarsigns:
$$I =\int\rho R^{2} dV$$
Done.

Footnote text goes here. ↩