# Finding 6: Single agent can't handle 1000+ line document generation (confirmed pattern)

**Date:** 2026-04-26
**Task:** DDD v2 forge analysis drafting
**How we used them:** Single Sonnet/Opus sub-agents given full research
material (~3,874 lines of research notes) + outline + instructions to write
complete document. Very rich context (all research), very large output
requirement (1000+ lines).

- Five single-agent attempts died (OOM, disconnect, timeout) trying to write
  full documents
- Sectional approach (5 parallel Sonnet subagents, ~500-700 lines each)
  succeeded immediately — each got same research but only their section's
  outline
- Same pattern when Claude Code attempted full Part V rewrite — died
- Three agents × ~320 lines each worked first try
- **Takeaway:** This is a confirmed, repeatable limit for generation tasks.
  Not model-specific — it's a context/output length problem. Rich input
  context is fine; it's the output length that kills. Break output into
  sections, keep input context rich, draft in parallel, assemble.