Editing Unwritten: System Reference Document/Discovery and Investigation (section)

===The Process of Deduction===
* Frame the deduction
* Establish the participants
* Initial round of consideration
* Next round of consideration
* Final round of consideration
* Reveal the truth

====Frame the deduction====

To start off, you need to frame the deduction by clarifying what the question is, and then deciding who will be involved in the deduction.

The question itself should be stated simply, such as “How does this strange contraption work?” or “What is the explanation for all of the weird phenomena we have been experiencing?” Write it down. 

Now, each character who wants to be involved in the deduction presents a reason they can contribute to the deduction. Usually this will be an aspect, but anything that makes sense will do.

====First round of consideration====

Next, everyone involved choose a skill and rolls against a passive opposition of Good (+3). The character that succeeds at the roll by the highest amount has won the round. 

First, record progress on the deduction:

* If the winner excelled on their roll, then record two points of progress.
* If the winner succeeded, then record one point of progress.
* If the winner tied, record one point of progress and the group pays a minor cost.

Now, the winner declares a situation aspect as a fact. This fact is now absolutely true. It must derive from the skill the winner used, relate clearly to the situation, and must be stated as an objective piece of information. It may or may not be something that has been previously established in the game so far.

The fact should not be a potential answer to the question, however. Rather, it’s one of the steps toward the answer.

If two or more characters tie for the highest total, each gets to establish a fact, but only one records points of progress.

If no one wins the first roll, no facts are established and no progress made.

====Next round of consideration====

The discussion on the question continues and proceeds much like the previous step did: everyone picks a skill (either the same skill or a new one as makes sense) and makes a roll. 

This time, the passive opposition of this roll is the result that won the previous round. So if the previous winner rolled a Great (+4) for their win, then that is the passive opposition this round. If no one won the first round, then the opposition remains Good (+3).

The winner of this round records progress and establishes a fact just like in the previous round.

====Final round of consideration====

This last round runs like the previous one, now with the passive opposition as the winning result from the previous round, or Good (+3) if there was none. 

====Reveal the truth====

If the characters have made at least three points of progress, then someone has divined the truth. All who are involved pick a skill and roll one last time. Whomever rolls the highest (no opposition) wins.

The winner devises an answer to the question that takes into account all of the established facts. The answer is now true and becomes an aspect. The three established fact aspects are subsumed into this new one. 

The new aspect gets a number of free invokes depending on the progress made during the deduction:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 3 points || no free invokes
|-
| 4 - 5 points || one free invoke
|-
| 6  points || two free invokes
|}

If the characters have not made at least three points of progress, then the question remains unanswered. Any established facts cease to be aspects.

No matter what happens (a successfully answered question or not), the established facts remain true—they are just no longer aspects.