Art of War

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.

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

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开工前自检（必用）

每次部署 agent 前，填这个表。填不完别发。

text

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 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）

text

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）

text

⚠ 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）

text

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

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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

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Quick Decision Tree

text

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)

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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).

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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.