excalidraw

1# Excalidraw Subagent Delegation
2 
3## Overview
4 
5**Core principle:** Main agents NEVER read Excalidraw files directly. Always delegate to subagents to isolate context consumption.
6 
7Excalidraw files are JSON with high token cost but low information density. Single files range from 4k-22k tokens (largest can exceed read tool limits). Reading multiple diagrams quickly exhausts context budget (7 files = 67k tokens = 33% of budget).
8 
9## The Problem
10 
11Excalidraw JSON structure:
12- Each shape has 20+ properties (x, y, width, height, strokeColor, seed, version, etc.)
13- Most properties are visual metadata (positioning, styling, roughness)
14- Actual content: text labels and element relationships (<10% of file)
15- **Signal-to-noise ratio is extremely low**
16 
17Example: 14-element diagram = 596 lines, 16K, ~4k tokens. 79-element diagram = 2,916 lines, 88K, ~22k tokens (exceeds read limit).
18 
19## When to Use
20 
21**Trigger on ANY of these:**
22- File path contains `.excalidraw` or `.excalidraw.json`
23- User requests: "explain/update/create diagram", "show architecture", "visualize flow"
24- User mentions: "flowchart", "architecture diagram", "Excalidraw file"
25- Architecture/design documentation tasks involving visual artifacts
26 
27**Use delegation even for:**
28- "Small" files (smallest is 4k tokens - still significant)
29- "Quick checks" (checking component names still loads full JSON)
30- Single file operations (isolation prevents context pollution)
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