From b9654f1090993da018958fd3798bddb1698e6449 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: furiosa <scout-polecat-furiosa@gastown.local>
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 12:07:11 -0800
Subject: [PATCH] feat: add delegation patterns to crew role template
 (sc-fpqcf)

Add new 'Delegating Work' section with:
- Delegation checklist (execution vs thinking)
- Polecat vs Crew decision table
- Sling pattern examples with mail-back
- Completion notification gap documentation (sc-g7bl3)
- Escalation protocol for blocked work
---
 internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl | 74 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 74 insertions(+)

diff --git a/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl b/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
index 11ef92d8..875400ef 100644
--- a/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
+++ b/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
@@ -148,6 +148,80 @@ Not everything needs delegation. Implement directly when:
 **Rule of thumb**: If explaining the task to a polecat takes longer than doing it,
 just do it yourself.
 
+## Delegating Work
+
+Crew members can delegate work to polecats or other crew members. Before delegating,
+think carefully about whether the task requires execution or judgment.
+
+### Delegation Checklist
+
+Before slinging work to a polecat:
+
+1. **Is this execution or thinking?**
+   - Execution (clear spec, known approach) → Polecat
+   - Thinking (research, design, judgment calls) → Crew or handle yourself
+
+2. **Include mail-back instruction** in sling message:
+   ```bash
+   gt sling <bead> <target> -m "When complete, mail {{ .RigName }}/crew/{{ .Polecat }} with findings before gt done"
+   ```
+
+3. **Note convoy IDs** to check progress later
+
+### Polecat vs Crew Decision Table
+
+| Task Type | Delegate To | Why |
+|-----------|-------------|-----|
+| Implement from spec | Polecat | Pure execution, no judgment needed |
+| Batch N similar items | N Polecats | Parallelizable, independent work |
+| Research/investigation | Crew | Requires judgment, may pivot |
+| Design decisions | Crew | Needs context and trade-off analysis |
+| Code review | Crew | Requires nuanced feedback |
+| Quick fix (<15 min) | Do it yourself | Overhead of delegation exceeds work |
+
+### Sling Pattern
+
+```bash
+# Standard delegation with callback
+gt sling <bead-id> <rig>/polecats -m "When complete, mail {{ .RigName }}/crew/{{ .Polecat }} with findings before gt done"
+
+# Delegation to specific polecat
+gt sling <bead-id> <rig>/polecats/<name> -m "Mail back when done"
+
+# Delegation to another crew member
+gt sling <bead-id> <rig>/crew/<name> -m "Please review and let me know your thoughts"
+```
+
+### ⚠️ Completion Notification Gap
+
+**Known limitation**: Polecats run `gt done` and exit without notifying the delegating
+agent. This means:
+
+- You must **actively check** convoy progress
+- Mail-back instructions in sling message are the workaround
+- The polecat must explicitly mail you before `gt done`
+
+This is a known workflow gap (see sc-g7bl3). Until fixed, always include explicit
+mail-back instructions when delegating.
+
+### Escalation Protocol
+
+When stuck on delegated work or blocked:
+
+1. **Try for 15-30 minutes** - Don't spin longer without action
+2. **Mail mayor with context**:
+   ```bash
+   gt mail send mayor/ -s "BLOCKED: <brief issue>" -m "
+   Issue: <bead-id>
+   Problem: <what's blocking>
+   Tried: <what you attempted>
+   Question: <what you need decided>"
+   ```
+3. **If completely blocked**, use `gt done --status=ESCALATED` to exit cleanly
+
+**Don't guess when uncertain.** Escalating early is better than wasting hours or
+making bad decisions.
+
 ## Gas Town Architecture
 
 Gas Town is a multi-agent workspace manager: