Treat the report as four questions

The report in Somatry asks you to identify the killer, the method, the motive and the moment. A convincing suspect is only part of the explanation. You need a theory that accounts for all four answers using the records in the case file.

Try stating each answer on its own before joining them together. Which record supports the person you have identified? What establishes how it happened? What evidence supports the reason? What fixes the time? This keeps a strong answer to one question from hiding an unsupported answer to another.

Look for the record your theory struggles with

Once you favor an explanation, reread the evidence most likely to challenge it. A theory becomes more useful when it accounts for awkward details instead of ignoring them. If your explanation requires a character to do something that no record supports, treat that as a question to resolve.

Do not add imaginary events to rescue a suspect choice. Every Somatry case is solvable with the clues in its file. The task is to connect those clues, not to invent a missing scene.

Before you submit

Only flagged evidence can go into your report. Return to the source records and make sure the details you intend to use have been flagged. Then check whether your explanation remains consistent when read as one sequence.

I can point to a record for each of the four answers.
My explanation does not depend on an invented event.
The time sequence fits the records I am relying on.
The evidence I need has been flagged.

Use feedback without turning the case into guesswork

The Bureau tells you how many answers are right, never which ones. That total is feedback on the report; it does not identify the mistaken answer. Revisit the part of your reasoning with the weakest support before changing an answer simply to try something else.

Keep track of why you revised your theory. A different answer is useful when it explains evidence your previous answer could not. A new guess with the same unresolved contradiction has not moved the investigation forward.

When to use a Consult

Each case includes three Consults with a colleague, never for sale. If rereading the file leaves you circling the same assumption, a Consult can be your next step. Return to the evidence afterward and connect the guidance to a specific part of the record.

This guide deliberately gives no case solutions. If you need help with progress, a purchase or a technical problem, use the Support page. For terminology such as motive, moment and flagged evidence, keep the glossary nearby.