Bach

Two-tier agent orchestration for Claude Code. A Manager decomposes complex tasks and delegates to specialist Workers.

The Pattern

User Request
     ↓
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    MANAGER                    │
│  • Analyze objectives                         │
│  • Decompose into subtasks                    │
│  • Delegate to workers                        │
│  • Synthesize results                         │
│  • Never does the work                        │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────┘
       ↓                ↓                ↓
┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐
│  RESEARCHER │  │    CODER    │  │   REVIEWER  │
│ Investigate │  │  Implement  │  │   Evaluate  │
│  Recommend  │  │    Test     │  │   Approve   │
└─────────────┘  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘
       ↓                ↓                ↓
       └────────────────┴────────────────┘
                        ↓
                 Final Result

Project Structure

bach/
├── .claude-plugin/
│   └── plugin.json                  # Plugin metadata
├── agents/
│   └── architect.md                 # CC agent: design authority
├── commands/
│   ├── orchestrate.md               # /orchestrate — single-pass decomposition
│   └── mission.md                   # /mission — multi-phase lifecycle
├── skills/
│   ├── orchestrating-work/
│   │   ├── SKILL.md                 # Core two-tier orchestration pattern
│   │   └── workers/
│   │       ├── architect-prompt.md  # Design and phase planning template
│   │       ├── coder-prompt.md      # Implementation task template
│   │       ├── researcher-prompt.md # Investigation task template
│   │       ├── reviewer-prompt.md   # Code review task template
│   │       └── tester-prompt.md     # Test writing task template
│   ├── lifecycle/
│   │   ├── SKILL.md                 # Multi-phase orchestration with gates
│   │   └── reference/
│   │       ├── phase-gates.md       # Gate pattern reference
│   │       └── dependency-waves.md  # Wave algorithm reference
│   └── creating-workers/
│       └── SKILL.md                 # Guide to adding custom workers
├── README.md
└── LICENSE

Installation

# Clone to your plugins directory
git clone https://github.com/tslateman/bach ~/.claude/plugins/bach

Or add to an existing project:

git clone https://github.com/tslateman/bach .claude-plugins/bach

Quick Start

Single-Pass: /orchestrate

For tasks that decompose into a few subtasks without phase boundaries:

/orchestrate Add input validation to the user registration form

The Manager analyzes, decomposes, dispatches workers, and synthesizes results in one pass.

Multi-Phase: /mission

For projects that span multiple phases with review gates:

/mission Build a CLI tool with auth, config management, and plugin system

The Manager dispatches an architect to plan phases, creates tasks with phase prefixes and gate barriers, executes each phase via the two-tier pattern, and gates transitions with reviewer approval.

Usage

Commands

Command	Pattern	Use When
/orchestrate	Single-pass	3+ subtasks, no phase boundaries
/mission	Multi-phase	Distinct phases, dependencies, review gates

Skills

bach:orchestrating-work — Core skill teaching the two-tier delegation pattern

bach:lifecycle — Multi-phase orchestration with architect planning and review gates

bach:creating-workers — How to create custom specialist workers

Worker Prompt Templates

• bach:orchestrating-work/workers/architect-prompt.md
• bach:orchestrating-work/workers/coder-prompt.md
• bach:orchestrating-work/workers/researcher-prompt.md
• bach:orchestrating-work/workers/reviewer-prompt.md
• bach:orchestrating-work/workers/tester-prompt.md

When to Use

Good fit for /orchestrate:

• Complex tasks with 3+ distinct parts
• Tasks needing different skills (research, code, review)
• Quality benefits from focused attention
• You want structured delegation

Good fit for /mission:

• Multi-phase projects (design → build → integrate)
• Phase dependencies (phase 2 needs phase 1's output)
• Quality gates between phases matter
• Architect planning adds value

Not a good fit:

• Simple tasks (just do them)
• One-line fixes
• Exploratory investigation (don't know scope yet)

Core Workers

Worker	Specialty
architect	Plan phases, design systems, define interfaces, resolve disputes
researcher	Investigate options, analyze trade-offs, recommend approaches
coder	Implement features, write tests, fix bugs
reviewer	Evaluate quality, find issues, approve/reject, gate reviews
tester	Write tests, find edge cases, verify behavior

Creating Custom Workers

See bach:creating-workers for the full guide. Save worker templates to bach/skills/orchestrating-work/workers/[role]-prompt.md.

Philosophy

Manager mindset:

• Plan, don't execute
• Delegate, don't implement
• Verify, don't assume
• Synthesize, don't just collect

Worker mindset:

• Focus on your specialty
• Report INCAPABLE honestly
• Return structured results
• Don't scope creep

Integration

Works well with:

• superpowers:writing-plans — For larger initiatives
• superpowers:test-driven-development — Workers follow TDD
• superpowers:dispatching-parallel-agents — Independent subtasks

Related

• duet — Git workflows, reflection, code quality commands

License

MIT