session-flow: reconcile orchestrate's token-multiplier figures and annotate the condensed-return norm

[claude]

Context

Signed-off candidate C8 of the context-engineering integration contract (2026-09-01): the
orchestrate skill already states a compressed-verdict return norm; the corpus adds the
1,000-2,000-token condensed-return figure (Anthropic context-engineering post, byte-verified
slice) and the multi-agent research post's economics (~4x chat tokens per agent, ~15x
multi-agent, token usage explaining most eval variance). Devils-advocate flagged a numeric
conflict to resolve first: orchestrate's existing line says "Multi-agent costs 3-10x the
tokens".

Proposed work

• Reconcile the 3-10x line with the ~15x source figure (cite both, or bound the range with
  provenance) inside plugins/session-flow/skills/orchestrate/SKILL.md.
• Annotate the compressed-verdict line with the 1-2k condensed-return norm and its citations
  (the engineering post's sub-agent section; the multi-agent post's economics).
• Keep the edit small; this is an annotation, not a rewrite.

Acceptance criteria

• No two token-multiplier figures in the skill without provenance distinguishing them.
• The condensed-return norm carries its two citations.

References

• docs/topics/context-engineering-integration/PLAN.md (C8 constraints)
• plugins/session-flow/skills/orchestrate/SKILL.md:44,149-154

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[kyle-sexton]

Done in #3588, merged to main as ae3aa802. Both acceptance criteria are satisfied.

The 3-10x line is no longer a bare figure: it is labelled as this plugin's own operating figure
and as a floor rather than a ceiling, with the upstream measurement cited beside it (~4x a chat
interaction per agent, ~15x multi-agent, token usage explaining most of the performance variance
regressed), plus the instruction to size research-shaped fan-outs against the higher number. So
the two figures now carry the provenance that distinguishes them.

The compressed-verdict line carries the 1,000-2,000 condensed-return shape with its citation, and
the caveat that it is a target shape rather than a budget to spend up to — the return norm was
otherwise unfalsifiable. The multi-agent economics citation sits on the multiplier line above it,
so both sources are present with attribution.

The edit stayed an annotation, as asked; the only other change to the file was rewrapping a
paragraph the inserted citation had turned into a run-on line.

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