# Quiz 1: Subagent Concepts

Test your understanding of subagent patterns, architectures, and when to use them.

## Question 1: What is a subagent?

<Question
  choices={[
    {
      text: "A subagent is a different agent platform (like switching from Claude Code to Codex)",
      explain: "No. A subagent is a child process spawned by a parent agent within the same platform."
    },
    {
      text: "A subagent is a skill that runs in the background while the main agent works on something else",
      explain: "Not quite. Subagents are full agents, not just skills. Skills are reusable workflows."
    },
    {
      text: "A subagent is a child agent process spawned by a parent agent to handle a subtask in isolation, then report results back",
      explain: "Correct! Subagents are independent processes that solve specific subtasks and communicate results to the parent.",
      correct: true
    },
    {
      text: "A subagent is a way to run the same agent twice for redundancy",
      explain: "No. Subagents are for dividing work, not duplicating it."
    }
  ]}
/>

## Question 2: What is the fan-out / fan-in pattern?

<Question
  choices={[
    {
      text: "Fan-out/fan-in spawns multiple subagents, each handling a sequential stage; each stage waits for the previous to finish",
      explain: "That's a pipeline pattern, not fan-out/fan-in. Fan-out/fan-in runs all subagents in parallel."
    },
    {
      text: "Fan-out/fan-in spawns multiple independent subagents in parallel, waits for all to finish, then combines results",
      explain: "Correct! All work happens simultaneously. Perfect for independent tasks.",
      correct: true
    },
    {
      text: "Fan-out/fan-in requires a supervisor agent to coordinate the subagents",
      explain: "Not necessarily. The parent agent can manage it with wait_all() or similar."
    },
    {
      text: "Fan-out/fan-in is the only pattern you should ever use",
      explain: "No. Different patterns suit different task structures. Pipeline and supervisor are also valuable."
    }
  ]}
/>

## Question 3: What is the pipeline pattern?

<Question
  choices={[
    {
      text: "Pipeline pattern runs all subagents in parallel to maximize speed",
      explain: "No, that's fan-out/fan-in. Pipeline runs stages sequentially: output of stage 1 → input of stage 2."
    },
    {
      text: "Pipeline pattern chains subagents sequentially, where each stage's output becomes the next stage's input",
      explain: "Correct! Pipelines are for sequential workflows like design → code → test.",
      correct: true
    },
    {
      text: "Pipeline pattern requires 10+ subagents to be effective",
      explain: "No. Pipelines work with any number of stages, often 3-5 is ideal."
    },
    {
      text: "Pipeline and fan-out/fan-in are the same thing",
      explain: "False. Fan-out/fan-in is parallel. Pipeline is sequential."
    }
  ]}
/>

## Question 4: When should you reach for subagents?

<Question
  choices={[
    {
      text: "Use subagents when you have 10+ files to read or 3+ independent pieces of work",
      explain: "Correct! The blog post identifies these as the strong signals for subagent use.",
      correct: true
    },
    {
      text: "Always use subagents if your task takes more than 1 minute",
      explain: "False. Time doesn't matter. Subagent overhead kills small tasks."
    },
    {
      text: "Use subagents only for parallel work; never for sequential tasks",
      explain: "False. Pipeline pattern uses subagents for sequential work."
    },
    {
      text: "Use subagents for every task; they always make things faster",
      explain: "No. Subagent spawn overhead makes them slower for small tasks."
    }
  ]}
/>

## Question 5: What is the supervisor pattern?

<Question
  choices={[
    {
      text: "Supervisor pattern spawns all subagents in parallel to maximize speed",
      explain: "That's fan-out/fan-in, not supervisor. Supervisor uses specialized agents with different tools."
    },
    {
      text: "Supervisor pattern has a parent agent directing multiple specialist subagents, each with different tools and expertise",
      explain: "Correct! Supervisor is for when you need multiple specialized agents working on the same problem.",
      correct: true
    },
    {
      text: "Supervisor pattern requires more than 10 subagents to be effective",
      explain: "No. Usually 2-5 specialist subagents is ideal with supervisor pattern."
    },
    {
      text: "Supervisor pattern means all subagents have identical tools",
      explain: "False. Supervisor specifically gives each subagent specialized tools for its domain."
    }
  ]}
/>

---

## Summary

If you got 4-5 correct, the core subagent patterns are in place. If not, revisit the patterns lesson before moving into the hands-on workflow.

## Key Takeaways

- Subagents are isolated child agents, not separate platforms or background skills
- Fan-out / fan-in is parallel; pipeline is sequential; supervisor coordinates specialists
- The best signal for subagents is independent or clearly staged work that justifies the coordination overhead

## Next Steps

Next, put these patterns to work in the hands-on multi-agent workflow.