adolf/qa/scenarios/agents/subagent-handoff.yaml

title: Subagent handoff

scenario:
  id: subagent-handoff
  surface: subagents
  coverage:
    primary:
      - agents.subagents
  objective: Verify the agent can delegate a bounded task to a subagent and fold the result back into the main thread.
  successCriteria:
    - Agent launches a bounded subagent task.
    - Subagent result is acknowledged in the main flow.
    - Final answer attributes delegated work clearly.
  docsRefs:
    - docs/tools/subagents.md
    - docs/help/testing.md
  codeRefs:
    - src/agents/system-prompt.ts
    - extensions/qa-lab/src/report.ts
  execution:
    kind: flow
    summary: Verify the agent can delegate a bounded task to a subagent and fold the result back into the main thread.
    config:
      requiredChannelDriver: qa-channel
      prompt: "Delegate one bounded QA task to a subagent. Wait for the subagent to finish. Then reply with three labeled sections exactly once: Delegated task, Result, Evidence. Include the child result itself, not 'waiting'."

flow:
  steps:
    - name: delegates a bounded task and reports the result
      actions:
        - call: reset
        - call: runAgentPrompt
          args:
            - ref: env
            - sessionKey: agent:qa:subagent
              message:
                expr: config.prompt
              timeoutMs:
                expr: liveTurnTimeoutMs(env, 90000)
        - call: waitForAgentHistoryReply
          saveAs: outbound
          args:
            - ref: env
            - agent:qa:subagent
            - lambda:
                params: [text]
                expr: "(() => { const lower = normalizeLowercaseStringOrEmpty(text); return lower.includes('delegated task') && lower.includes('result') && lower.includes('evidence') && !lower.includes('waiting'); })()"
            - expr: liveTurnTimeoutMs(env, 45000)
            - expr: "env.providerMode === 'mock-openai' ? 100 : 250"
        - assert:
            expr: "!['failed to delegate','could not delegate','subagent unavailable'].some((needle) => normalizeLowercaseStringOrEmpty(outbound.text).includes(needle))"
            message:
              expr: "`subagent handoff reported failure: ${outbound.text}`"
        # Parity gate criterion 2 (no fake progress / fake tool completion):
        # require an actual sessions_spawn tool call. Without this, a model
        # could produce the three labeled sections ("Delegated task", "Result",
        # "Evidence") as free-form prose without ever delegating to a real
        # subagent. The assertion is pinned to THIS scenario by matching the
        # scenario-unique prompt substring "Delegate one bounded QA task"
        # (not a broad /delegate|subagent/ regex) so the earlier
        # subagent-fanout-synthesis scenario — which also contains "delegate"
        # and produces its own pre-tool sessions_spawn request — cannot
        # satisfy the assertion here. The match is also constrained to
        # pre-tool requests (no toolOutput) because the mock only plans
        # sessions_spawn on requests with no toolOutput; the follow-up
        # request after the tool runs has plannedToolName unset.
        - set: subagentDebugRequests
          value:
            expr: "env.mock ? [...(await fetchJson(`${env.mock.baseUrl}/debug/requests`))] : []"
        - assert:
            expr: "!env.mock || subagentDebugRequests.some((request) => !request.toolOutput && /delegate one bounded qa task/i.test(String(request.allInputText ?? '')) && request.plannedToolName === 'sessions_spawn')"
            message:
              expr: "`expected sessions_spawn tool call during subagent handoff scenario, saw plannedToolNames=${JSON.stringify(subagentDebugRequests.map((request) => request.plannedToolName ?? null))}`"
      detailsExpr: outbound.text