Pattern Cheatsheet
One-page quick reference for all orchestration patterns
Architecture Patterns
| Pattern |
Topology |
Applicable Scenarios |
Representative Project |
| Dual-Agent Loop |
A↔B |
Small projects, tight coupling |
Claude Code |
| Three-Layer Hierarchy |
O→PM→E |
Multi-task parallelism |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| Multi-Stage Pipeline |
Linear 7 stages |
Quality-first workflows |
agency-agents-zh |
| Orchestrator-Worker |
1:N |
Framework-based orchestration |
Composio |
| Coordinator Tree |
Root→Lead→Worker |
Large-scale, hierarchical |
Overstory |
| Layered Watchdog |
4-layer daemon |
Production-grade fault tolerance |
Overstory |
Fault Tolerance Patterns
| Pattern |
Mechanism |
Recovery Speed |
Applicable Scenarios |
| Self-Scheduling |
nohup+sleep loop |
Slow (minutes) |
Simple, single-agent |
| Built-in Watchdog |
Heartbeat check + nudge |
Fast (seconds) |
Medium projects |
| Dual-Layer Watchdog |
Inner loop + systemd outer |
Very fast (15s) |
Critical projects |
| Tiered Watchdog |
Bash timer + AI triage |
Adaptive |
Complex multi-agent |
| Progressive Remediation |
4-level escalation (nudge→restart→AI triage→human) |
As needed |
General purpose |
| Checkpoint Resume |
Save/restore state on crash |
Instant |
Long-running pipelines |
Communication Patterns
| Pattern |
Reliability |
Latency |
Complexity |
Representative Project |
| send-keys |
Low |
Low |
Low |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| bracket-paste |
Medium |
Low |
Medium |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| Shared Files |
Medium |
Medium |
Low |
Composio |
| SQLite Mail |
High |
Medium |
High |
Overstory |
| MCP Memory |
Medium |
High |
Medium |
agency-agents-zh |
| Event Store |
High |
Low |
High |
Overstory |
Isolation Patterns
| Pattern |
Isolation Strength |
Complexity |
Representative Project |
| Prompt Specification |
Weak |
Low |
agency-agents-zh |
| Role Division |
Medium |
Low |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| File Assignment |
Medium |
Medium |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| Session Isolation |
Medium |
Low |
All tmux projects |
| Git Worktree |
Strong |
High |
Overstory / Composio |
Knowledge Accumulation Patterns
| Pattern |
Structured |
Queryable |
Auto-Extract |
Representative Project |
| Natural Language Docs |
Low |
No |
No |
Tmux-Orchestrator (LEARNINGS.md) |
| Feature Tracking |
Medium |
No |
No |
Tmux-Orchestrator (FEATURES.md) |
| MCP Memory Service |
High |
Yes (semantic) |
No |
agency-agents-zh |
| Structured Knowledge Base |
High |
Yes (query) |
Partial |
Overstory (Mulch) |
| Event Store |
High |
Yes (time-series) |
Yes |
Overstory |
Dispatch Patterns
| Pattern |
Coupling |
Scalability |
Representative Project |
| Manual Assignment |
Tight |
Poor |
agency-agents-zh |
| Script-Based Dispatch |
Medium |
Medium |
Tmux-Orchestrator |
| Capability-Based Dispatch |
Loose |
Good |
Overstory |
| Market-Based Bidding |
Very Loose |
Excellent |
(theoretical) |
Merge Patterns
| Pattern |
Conflict Handling |
Automation Level |
Representative Project |
| No Merge (single writer) |
None needed |
N/A |
agency-agents-zh |
| Manual Merge |
Human resolves |
None |
Composio (basic) |
| Auto + AI-Assisted Merge |
4-level strategy |
High |
Overstory |
Anti-Pattern Quick Reference
| Anti-Pattern |
One-Liner |
Fix |
| No Watchdog |
Automation ≠ Reliability |
Add Watchdog |
| Self-Modifying Rules |
Agents are not trustworthy |
External daemon |
| Single-Point Orchestrator |
One failure kills all |
Layering / Self-Scheduling |
| Natural Language Communication |
Messages will be lost |
Structured protocol |
| Infinite Retry |
429 loop of death |
Progressive Remediation |
| Shared Space |
File conflicts inevitable |
Physical isolation (worktree) |
| Context Waste |
Tokens burning money |
Layered context / overlay injection |
| Stateless Restart |
Repeated work after crash |
State persistence |
| Over-Engineering |
Harder to maintain than the Agents |
Progressive enhancement |
| Capability Coupling |
Hard-coded agent assignments |
Capability-based dispatch |
| Knowledge Amnesia |
Every session starts from zero |
Structured knowledge base |