Multi-Agent Coordination

Establish effective coordination between multiple agents working on complex tasks, ensuring proper communication, resource sharing, and conflict resolution.

Agent Spawning Guidelines

Mandatory Limits (ENFORCED)

Constraint	Value	Enforcement
Minimum Agents	3 per complex task	Hook-enforced
Maximum Agents	13 per task	Hard limit
Recommended	5-7 agents	Optimal performance

When to Spawn Agents

Always spawn agents for:

• Tasks requiring more than 3 steps
• Work spanning multiple files/components
• Tasks requiring diverse expertise
• Parallel workstreams

Single agent sufficient for:

• Simple file edits
• Quick lookups
• Straightforward questions

Agent Layer Architecture

Organize agents into functional layers for clear responsibility separation:

Strategic Layer

• Role: High-level planning and decision-making
• Agents: master-strategist, architect-supreme, risk-assessor
• Output: Plans, architectural decisions, risk assessments

Tactical Layer

• Role: Coordination and resource management
• Agents: plan-decomposer, resource-allocator, conflict-resolver
• Output: Task breakdowns, schedules, conflict resolutions

Operational Layer

• Role: Direct implementation work
• Agents: coder, tester, reviewer, debugger
• Output: Code, tests, reviews, fixes

Quality Layer

• Role: Validation and documentation
• Agents: test-strategist, security-specialist, documentation-expert
• Output: Test plans, security audits, documentation

Parallel Execution Strategy

Level-Based Parallelization

Level 0: [Agent A] [Agent B] [Agent C]  ← Execute in parallel
         ↓         ↓         ↓
Level 1: [Agent D] [Agent E]            ← Wait for L0, then parallel
         ↓         ↓
Level 2: [Agent F]                       ← Wait for L1

Dependency Rules

1. Agents at same level execute concurrently
2. Level N+1 waits for all Level N completion
3. Independent agents always run in parallel
4. Shared resources require coordination

Communication Patterns

Message Types

Type	Purpose	Priority
TASK	Assign work to agent	High
STATUS	Progress updates	Medium
RESULT	Completed work output	High
HANDOFF	Transfer context to next agent	Critical
ERROR	Failure notification	Critical

Handoff Protocol

When transferring work between agents:

1. Context Package

   • Task description and objectives
   • Files modified/created
   • Decisions made and rationale
   • Known issues or blockers

2. State Transfer

   • Current phase and progress
   • Pending tasks
   • Dependencies resolved/pending

3. Verification

   • Receiving agent confirms context
   • Missing information requested
   • Handoff logged for audit

Conflict Resolution

Resource Conflicts

When multiple agents need the same resource:

1. Priority-Based: Higher-layer agents get priority
2. Time-Based: First requester wins
3. Merge-Based: Combine compatible changes
4. Escalation: Strategic layer decides

Decision Conflicts

When agents disagree on approach:

1. Document both positions
2. Escalate to strategic layer
3. Strategic agent decides with rationale
4. Decision logged for learning

Agent Lifecycle

Spawning

1. Define clear scope and objectives
2. Assign layer and role
3. Provide initial context
4. Set success criteria

Monitoring

• Track progress against objectives
• Monitor resource usage
• Detect stuck/blocked states
• Log all significant actions

Completion

1. Verify deliverables against objectives
2. Package outputs for next phase
3. Document lessons learned
4. Clean up resources

Best Practices

DO:

• Spawn minimum 3 agents for complex tasks
• Use parallel execution for independent work
• Include quality layer agents in every task
• Document all handoffs
• Set clear success criteria

DON'T:

• Exceed 13 agents per task
• Skip testing agents
• Allow single agent for complex work
• Ignore conflicts between agents
• Lose context during handoffs

Additional Resources

Reference Files

• references/agent-layer-details.md - Detailed layer specifications
• references/communication-protocols.md - Message format specifications

Examples

• examples/parallel-execution.json - Sample parallel execution plan
• examples/handoff-package.json - Sample context handoff structure