/assign - Task Assignment to Workers

Version: 4.0.0 | Model: opus Pipeline: /orchestrate -> [/assign] -> /worker EFL: P1-P6 Complete

---

1. Purpose

Task Assignment Agent that:

1. Assigns Native Tasks to terminals via

   TaskUpdate(owner=...)

2. Updates workload-scoped

   _progress.yaml

3. Supports manual and auto-assignment modes
4. Validates dependencies before assignment
5. Enables Sub-Orchestrator mode for hierarchical decomposition

---

2. Task API Integration

Assignment Pattern

// Manual assignment
TaskUpdate({
  taskId: taskId,
  owner: terminalId,
  metadata: {
    hierarchyLevel: 0,
    subOrchestratorMode: isSubOrchestrator,
    canDecompose: isSubOrchestrator
  }
})

// Auto assignment - all tasks get Sub-Orchestrator mode
const unassigned = TaskList().filter(t => !t.owner)
for (let i = 0; i < unassigned.length; i++) {
  TaskUpdate({
    taskId: unassigned[i].id,
    owner: `terminal-${String.fromCharCode(98 + i)}`
  })
}

Progress File Update

Updates

_progress.yaml

with:

• Terminal status (idle/working/completed)
• Assigned task ID and phase
• Sub-Orchestrator mode flag
• Hierarchy level

---

3. Invocation

# Manual assignment
/assign 1 terminal-b              # Assign Task #1 to Terminal B
/assign 2 terminal-c --sub-orchestrator  # With decomposition ability

# Auto assignment (Sub-Orchestrator default)
/assign auto                      # Assigns all unassigned tasks

# Workload-specific
/assign --workload {slug} auto

---

4. Execution Protocol

Manual Assignment Flow

function manualAssign(taskId, terminalId, options = {}) {
  // 1. Validate task exists
  const task = TaskGet({taskId})
  if (!task) return error(`Task #${taskId} not found`)

  // 2. Check if already assigned
  if (task.owner) {
    const confirm = askUser(`Reassign from ${task.owner}?`)
    if (!confirm) return
  }

  // 3. Warn about blockers (but allow assignment)
  if (task.blockedBy?.length > 0) {
    warn(`Task blocked by: ${task.blockedBy.join(', ')}`)
  }

  // 4. Update task owner
  TaskUpdate({
    taskId: taskId,
    owner: terminalId,
    metadata: {
      subOrchestratorMode: options.subOrchestrator || false
    }
  })

  // 5. Update _progress.yaml
  updateProgressFile(taskId, terminalId, task)
}

Auto Assignment Flow

function autoAssign() {
  // 1. Get unassigned tasks
  const unassigned = TaskList().filter(t => !t.owner)

  // 2. Prioritize unblocked tasks
  const unblocked = unassigned.filter(t => !t.blockedBy?.length)
  const blocked = unassigned.filter(t => t.blockedBy?.length > 0)

  // 3. Assign to available terminals
  const terminals = ['terminal-b', 'terminal-c', 'terminal-d']
  let assignments = []

  for (let i = 0; i < unblocked.length; i++) {
    assignments.push({
      taskId: unblocked[i].id,
      terminalId: terminals[i % terminals.length],
      canStart: true
    })
  }

  // 4. Execute assignments with Sub-Orchestrator mode
  for (const a of assignments) {
    TaskUpdate({
      taskId: a.taskId,
      owner: a.terminalId,
      metadata: { subOrchestratorMode: true }
    })
  }
}

---

5. Sub-Orchestrator Mode

When assigned with

--sub-orchestrator

, workers can:

• Decompose their task into subtasks
• Run

  /orchestrate

  to create child tasks
• Assign subtasks to themselves or other terminals

Hierarchy Levels

Level 0 (Main):       /orchestrate by Main Agent
    |
    +-- Task #1 -----> terminal-b (--sub-orchestrator)
        |
        +-- Level 1:  terminal-b runs /orchestrate
            +-- Subtask #1.1
            +-- Subtask #1.2

---

6. Output

Summary Format

=== Assignment Summary ===
Total assigned: 3
Can start now: 1
Blocked: 2

Ready to Start:
  terminal-b: /worker start -> Task #1

Blocked:
  terminal-c: Task #2 (blocked by #1)
  terminal-d: Task #3 (blocked by #2)

Worker Instructions

terminal-b:
  /worker start
  -> Task #1: {subject}

terminal-c:
  (Wait for blockers)
  -> Task #2 blocked by: 1

---

7. Error Handling

Error	Recovery
Task not found	Show available tasks via TaskList
Invalid terminal ID	Warn about naming convention
Progress file conflict	Regenerate from TaskList

---

8. Handoff Contract

handoff:
  skill: "assign"
  workload_slug: "{slug}"
  status: "completed"
  next_action:
    skill: "/worker"
    arguments: "start"
    reason: "Tasks assigned, workers can start"

---

9. Version History

Version	Changes
4.0.0	Deduplicated, V2.1.19 frontmatter, Task API patterns
3.0.0	Full EFL P1-P6 implementation
2.1.0	Sub-Orchestrator mode added
1.0.0	Initial task assignment

End of Skill Documentation