Skill: wanikua/art-of-war (version 2.0.1)

--- name: art-of-war description: Apply Sun Tzu's Art of War principles to AI agent organization and task orchestration. Use when planning multi-agent workflows, evaluating whether to deploy agents, assessing task complexity, or optimizing agent collaboration strategies. Maps all 13 chapters to practical agent patterns. --- # Art of War Apply **Sun Tzu's 13 chapters** to AI agent organization and orchestration. This skill provides a framework for strategic decision-making about when, how, and which agents to deploy for maximum effectiveness with minimum waste. ## Core Principles ### 知彼知己 (Know Enemy, Know Yourself) - **知彼**: Understand the task deeply — requirements, constraints, success criteria - **知己**: Know your agents' capabilities, limitations, and costs - **百战不殆**: With both, every agent deployment is calculated, not hopeful ### 上兵伐谋 (Best Strategy Attacks Plans) - Planning > Execution. Invest in task analysis before spawning agents - A well-planned single agent beats three confused agents - "Win before fighting" — structure the problem so the solution is obvious ### 奇正相生 (Orthodox + Unorthodox) - **正**: Standard workflows, proven patterns, reliable agents - **奇**: Creative approaches, novel combinations, experimental agents - Use 正 for reliability, 奇 for breakthrough. Never rely on 奇 alone. ### 速战速决 (Speed is Essential) - Prolonged agent runs waste tokens and drift from intent - Set clear termination conditions upfront - If an agent isn't making progress in 2-3 iterations, reassess ### 先胜后战 (Victory Before Battle) - Ensure conditions favor success before deploying agents - If you can't articulate what "winning" looks like, don't start - Retreat is better than wasting resources on unwinnable tasks --- ## 开工前自检（必用） **每次部署 agent 前，填这个表。填不完别发。** ``` ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ 五事自检 FIVE CONSTANTS │ ├────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ 道：这任务值得做吗？对齐目标吗？ │ │ □ 是 □ 否 □ 不确定 │ │ │ │ 天：现在是时候吗？依赖准备好了吗？ │ │ □ 是 □ 否 □ 不确定 │ │ │ │ 地：数据/上下文/工具齐了吗？ │ │ □ 是 □ 否 □ 不确定 │ │ │ │ 将：有合适的 agent 吗？能力匹配吗？ │ │ □ 是 □ 否 □ 不确定 │ │ │ │ 法：流程清楚吗？什么叫"做完"？ │ │ □ 是 □ 否 □ 不确定 │ │ │ │ 得分：___/5 │ │ ≥4: 可以发 | 3: 先补弱点 | <3: 别发 │ └────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ ``` **三反验证（输出事实前必做）** ``` 要验证的事实：________________ □ 来源 1（Agent 内部知识）：________________ □ 来源 2（外部搜索/API）：________________ □ 来源 3（用户上下文/文档）：________________ 一致 → 信 | 不一致 → 查 ``` **信号监控（迭代中盯这些）** ``` ⚠ 问同样的问题第二次 → 缺上下文，补 ⚠ 输出越来越长 → 在填充，停 ⚠ 过度自信 → 要来源，验 ⚠ 回避问题 → 不会，直说 ⚠ 循环论证 → 卡住，重定向 看到任一信号 → 立刻干预，别等第 5 次 ``` **迭代限制（写死）** ``` 最大迭代次数：3 次（默认） Token 预算：_______ 超时：_______ 分钟 到限不出结果 → 强制结论，停 ``` --- ## The Thirteen Chapters → Agent Patterns ### 1. 始计篇 (Laying Plans) — Task Assessment **Before deploying any agent, run the Five Constants + Seven Metrics:** **五事 (Five Constants):** 1. **道 (Wisdom)**: Does this task align with overall goals? 2. **天 (Timing)**: Is now the right time? Dependencies ready? 3. **地 (Environment)**: Do we have the right context/data/tools? 4. **将 (Capability)**: Which agent(s) have the right skills? 5. **法 (Process)**: What's the workflow? Success criteria? **七计 (Seven Metrics):** - Which side has better task clarity? - Which side has more capable agents? - Which side has better context/data? - Which side has clearer success criteria? - Which side has better tool access? - Which side has more disciplined execution? - Which side will waste fewer resources? **Decision**: If you can't answer these, don't deploy. Plan first. ### 2. 作战篇 (Waging War) — Cost Awareness **Agent runs cost tokens. Treat them like war costs:** - **速战速决**: Set iteration limits. Force conclusions. - **因粮于敌**: Use existing outputs/data; don't regenerate what exists - **胜久则钝**: Long-running agents lose focus and waste tokens - **预算先行**: Estimate token cost before starting; track as you go **Rule**: If a task can be done in 1 agent iteration, don't use 3. ### 3. 谋攻篇 (Attack by Stratagem) — Planning Over Force **Hierarchy of agent deployment:** 1. **上策**: Restructure the problem so it solves itself (no agent needed) 2. **中策**: Single focused agent with clear instructions 3. **下策**: Multiple agents in complex orchestration **Avoid siege warfare**: Don't throw more agents at a poorly-defined problem. **全胜思维**: The best outcome is winning without fighting — automate or eliminate the task entirely. ### 4. 军形篇 (Tactical Dispositions) — Defense First **Before offense, ensure defense:** - What can go wrong? (Hallucination, outdated info, tool failures) - What's the rollback plan if the agent makes things worse? - What guardrails prevent catastrophic outputs? **先为不可胜**: Make yourself undefeatable first — have validation, version control, and undo capability. **以待敌之可胜**: Then wait for the opportunity — deploy when conditions are favorable. ### 5. 兵势篇 (Energy/Impetus) — Momentum & Combination **Create unstoppable momentum:** - **势 (Shi)**: Build configurations where each agent output naturally triggers the next - **奇正**: Combine standard agents (正) with creative approaches (奇) - **节 (Timing)**: Release agents in waves, not all at once **Example pattern**: Research agent → Synthesis agent → Critique agent → Final polish Each builds on the previous, creating momentum. ### 6. 虚实篇 (Weak Points & Strong) — Strategic Targeting **Avoid strength, attack weakness:** - Identify the **critical bottleneck** in the task - Don't waste agent capacity on parts you can handle yourself - Deploy agents where they have **comparative advantage** **避实击虚**: If an agent struggles with nuance, handle the nuance yourself; let it handle the bulk work. **致人而不致于人**: Control where the agent focuses; don't let it drift. ### 7. 军争篇 (Maneuvering) — Indirect Approaches **The longest path may be fastest:** - Sometimes 2-3 focused agents beat 1 generalist agent - Sometimes doing background research first saves 10 iterations later - "Appear weak when strong" — let the agent explore naive approaches first, then guide **以迂为直**: A seeming detour (extra planning, extra validation) often reaches the goal faster. ### 8. 九变篇 (Nine Variations) — Adaptability **Agents must adapt to changing conditions:** - Have **contingency plans**: If agent A fails, what's plan B? - **将在外，君命有所不受**: Give agents autonomy within boundaries - Recognize when to **change strategy** mid-execution **Five dangerous agent faults:** 1. Reckless iteration (burns tokens) 2. Excessive caution (never completes) 3. Quick temper (argues with user) 4. Over-optimization (loses the goal) 5. Blind compliance (no pushback on bad instructions) Watch for these; intervene early. ### 9. 行军篇 (Marching) — Environmental Awareness **Read the signals:** - **相敌 (Observing the enemy)**: Watch agent outputs for drift, hallucination, confusion - **信号 (Signals)**: Repeated questions = unclear instructions; circular reasoning = stuck - **地形 (Terrain)**: Some tasks are "difficult ground" — high uncertainty, need more oversight **When to intervene:** - Agent asks the same question twice - Output quality degrades over iterations - Agent is confident but wrong ### 10. 地形篇 (Terrain) — Task Classification **Six terrain types → Six task types:** | 地形 | 任务类型 | Agent 策略 | |------|---------|-----------| | 通形 (Accessible) | 清晰定义的任务 | 直接部署，标准流程 | | 挂形 (Entangling) | 容易陷入细节的任务 | 设时间限制，强制输出 | | 支形 (Stalemate) | 信息不足的任务 | 先收集信息，再决策 | | 隘形 (Narrow) | 高约束任务 | 精确指令，严格验证 | | 险形 (Dangerous) | 高风险任务 | 多重验证，保守策略 | | 远形 (Distant) | 长链条任务 | 分阶段，设检查点 | ### 11. 九地篇 (Nine Grounds) — Commitment Levels **Match resource commitment to task importance:** | 地 | 任务重要性 | Agent 投入 | |---|-----------|-----------| | 散地 (Home ground) | 日常任务 | 轻量 agent，快速迭代 | | 轻地 (Light ground) | 低价值任务 | 最小可用方案 | | 争地 (Contentious) | 竞争/时间敏感 | 优先资源，快速部署 | | 交地 (Open ground) | 多方协作 | 明确接口，文档先行 | | 衢地 (Intersecting) | 多目标 | 平衡资源，避免偏废 | | 重地 (Serious) | 高价值任务 | 多 agent 协作，充分验证 | | 圮地 (Difficult) | 信息不足 | 先探索，后投入 | | 围地 (Desperate) | 受约束 | 创造性方案，突破限制 | | 死地 (Death) | 背水一战 | 全力以赴，不留退路 | **Most tasks are 散地 or 轻地 — don't over-invest.** ### 12. 火攻篇 (Fire Attack) — Tool Usage **Fire = powerful tools (code execution, API calls, external data):** - **五种火 (Five fires)**: 1. 人火 (Human fire): User-provided data/context 2. 积火 (Accumulated fire): Cached/prepared resources 3. 辎火 (Supply fire): Tool/API access 4. 库火 (Arsenal fire): Code execution 5. 队火 (Unit fire): Multi-agent collaboration **用火的时机 (When to use fire):** - 行必有备 (Always prepared): Have fallback if tool fails - 发火有时 (Right timing): Don't use tools prematurely - 发火在早 (Early): Use tools early to validate direction **Warning**: Fire can burn you. Validate tool outputs; don't trust blindly. ### 13. 用间篇 (Spies) — Information Gathering **Five types of intelligence sources:** | 间 | Agent 应用 | |---|-----------| | 因间 (Local spies) | 利用现有文档/代码库 | | 内间 (Inside spies) | 访问内部系统/数据库 | | 反间 (Double agents) | 交叉验证多个信息源 | | 死间 (Doomed spies) | 一次性查询（搜索、API） | | 生间 (Living spies) | 持续监控（RSS、警报） | **关键原则:** - **三反**: Cross-verify with 3+ independent sources - **不可偏信**: Never trust a single source - **先知**: Gather intelligence before making decisions --- ## Quick Decision Tree ``` Task arrives ↓ Can I do this myself in <5 min? ├─ Yes → Do it (don't deploy agent) └─ No → Continue ↓ Is the task clearly defined? ├─ No → Plan first (始计篇) └─ Yes → Continue ↓ What's the token budget? ├─ Low (<10k) → Single focused agent (谋攻篇) └─ High → Multi-agent OK (兵势篇) ↓ What's the risk if wrong? ├─ High → Defense first (军形篇), multiple validation └─ Low → Speed优先 (作战篇) ↓ Deploy with clear success criteria ↓ Monitor for drift (行军篇) ↓ Validate output (用间篇 - cross-check) ``` --- ## Usage Examples ### Example 1: Should I use an agent for this? **User**: "I need to research competitors for our new product launch" **Apply 始计篇**: - 道: Aligns with business goals ✓ - 天: Launch is in 3 weeks, timing is good ✓ - 地: Need market data, competitor websites, reviews ✓ - 将: Research agent + synthesis agent ✓ - 法: Research → Synthesize → Present findings ✓ **Decision**: Deploy, but start with 因间 (existing reports) before 死间 (new searches). ### Example 2: Agent is stuck in loops **User**: "The agent keeps asking me the same questions" **Apply 行军篇**: This is a signal (信号). The agent is on 挂形 (entangling ground). **Action**: 1. Intervene early 2. Provide missing context 3. Set iteration limit: "Answer in 2 iterations max" 4. If still stuck, switch strategy (九变篇) ### Example 3: Multi-agent orchestration **User**: "I need to build a complete market analysis report" **Apply 兵势篇** (create momentum): 1. Research agent (收集情报) 2. Analysis agent (分析数据) 3. Critique agent (找出漏洞) 4. Writing agent (生成报告) 5. Validation agent (交叉验证) Each output feeds the next, creating 势 (momentum). --- ## Remember > 兵者，国之大事，死生之地，存亡之道，不可不察也 > > "War is a matter of vital importance to the State; the province of life or death; the road to survival or ruin. It is mandatory that it be thoroughly studied." **Agent deployment is the same.** Treat it seriously. Plan thoroughly. Execute decisively. Review honestly.


Security scan verdicts — ClawScan: clean | static analysis: clean | VirusTotal: clean | SkillSpector: clean (LOW)