/agent-orchestrate — Situation-Aware Agent Orchestration

Analyze the user's task, recommend the best orchestration pattern, and execute it upon approval.

4 Orchestration Patterns

Phase 1: Task Analysis

When the user provides a task (as argument or in conversation):

1.1 Extract Signal

Read the task description and identify:

signals = {
  step_count:      how many distinct steps/subtasks?
  dependencies:    are steps dependent (A→B) or independent (A∥B)?
  parallelizable:  how many tasks can run simultaneously?
  roles_needed:    does the task need distinct roles (designer, implementer, reviewer)?
  inter_comm:      do workers need to communicate with each other mid-task?
  done_criteria:   is there a clear, binary definition of done?
  iterative:       does the task likely need multiple passes to get right?
}

1.2 Pattern Selection Logic

The key insight: check structural signals (parallelism, roles) first, then refinement signals (iteration). Ralph is for tasks where the primary challenge is "getting it right" through iteration, not for any task that happens to have success criteria.

recommend_pattern =
  IF parallelizable >= 2 AND no inter_comm needed:
    "Parallel Subagent"
  ELIF roles_needed >= 2 AND inter_comm needed:
    "Team Mode"
  ELIF step_count >= 2 AND all dependencies are sequential (A→B→C):
    "Sequential Pipeline"
  ELIF done_criteria is clear AND iterative AND step_count <= 2:
    "Ralph Loop"
  ELIF step_count == 1:
    "Sequential Pipeline"  # simplest default for single task
  ELSE:
    "Parallel Subagent"    # safe default for multi-task

Why Ralph is checked later: Most multi-step tasks benefit from structural parallelism even if they have clear done-criteria. Ralph shines when the task is focused (1-2 subtasks) but needs iterative refinement to meet quality — e.g., "이 버그 고쳐서 테스트 통과시켜", "성능 200ms 이하로 만들어".

Phase 2: Propose to User

Present the recommendation using AskUserQuestion. Include:

1. Why this pattern — 1-2 sentence reasoning based on signals
2. Execution plan preview — what agents/tasks will be created
3. All 4 options — let the user override

AskUserQuestion Format

question: "이 작업에 '{recommended}' 패턴을 추천합니다. {reason}. 어떤 패턴으로 진행할까요?"
header: "패턴 선택"
options:
  - label: "{recommended} (Recommended)"
    description: "{why this fits}"
  - label: "{2nd best}"
    description: "{when this would be better}"
  - label: "{3rd}"
    description: "{description}"
  - label: "{4th}"
    description: "{description}"

After pattern selection, present the execution plan preview:

question: "실행 계획입니다. 진행할까요?"
header: "실행 확인"
options:
  - label: "진행"
    description: "{plan summary}"
  - label: "수정 후 진행"
    description: "계획을 조정하고 싶어요"

"수정 후 진행" 선택 시: AskUserQuestion으로 "어떤 부분을 수정할까요?"를 열린 질문으로 물어본다. 사용자 피드백을 반영해 실행 계획을 재구성한 뒤, 다시 실행 확인을 제시한다. 패턴 자체를 바꾸고 싶다면 Phase 2의 패턴 선택으로 돌아간다.

Phase 3: Execute by Pattern

Pattern A: Sequential Pipeline

1. Parse task into ordered steps
2. FOR each step:
     TaskCreate(title=step.name, description=step.detail)
3. FOR each task in order:
     Execute the task directly (read, write, bash, etc.)
     TaskUpdate(status="completed")
4. Output: summary of all completed steps

Key rule: Each task must complete before the next begins. Pass outputs forward as context.

Pattern B: Parallel Subagent

1. Parse task into independent subtasks
2. Spawn Agent per subtask (all in ONE message for true parallelism):
   Agent(
     description="subtask summary",
     prompt="full context + specific subtask + output format",
     subagent_type=<appropriate type or general-purpose>
   )
3. Collect all agent results
4. Synthesize/merge results into final output
5. Present unified result to user

Key rule: All agents must be spawned in a single message. The main agent does the synthesis — never delegate merging to a subagent.

Pattern C: Team Mode

1. Define roles from task analysis (e.g., designer, implementer, reviewer)
2. TeamCreate with role-based agents:
   TeamCreate(
     agents=[
       {name: "role-1", description: "...", tools: [...]},
       {name: "role-2", description: "...", tools: [...]}
     ]
   )
3. Orchestrate via SendMessage:
   - Kick off first role's work
   - Route outputs between roles
   - Coordinate handoffs
4. TeamDelete when complete
5. Present final result

Key rule: Define clear handoff points. The orchestrator (you) coordinates — agents talk through you or directly via SendMessage.

Pattern D: Ralph Loop

Do NOT reimplement ralph. Activate the existing skill.

1. Formulate the task as a ralph-compatible request:
   - Clear goal statement
   - Implicit or explicit done-criteria the user provided
2. Invoke: Skill(skill="hoyeon:ralph", args="{task description with context}")
3. Ralph handles the rest:
   - Phase 1: DoD proposal + user confirmation
   - Phase 2: Work + Stop hook verification loop

Key rule: Pass through all relevant context (file paths, requirements, constraints) in the args so ralph has full picture. Do not pre-define DoD — let ralph propose it.

Phase 4: Report

After execution completes (regardless of pattern), output a brief summary:

## Orchestration Complete

**Pattern**: {chosen pattern}
**Tasks**: {count} completed
**Result**: {1-3 sentence summary of what was done}

Rules

1. Always ask before executing — never skip Phase 2 confirmation
2. Ralph is a skill call, not a reimplementation — use Skill(skill="hoyeon:ralph")
3. Parallel agents in one message — don't spawn sequentially
4. Match pattern to situation — don't force a pattern; if the task is trivial, sequential is fine
5. Pass context forward — each step/agent needs enough context to work independently
6. Keep proposals concise — the user wants a recommendation, not an essay