You failed because:
> One is counterfeit and is either heavier or lighter
It turned out the counterfeit was lighter and you discarded it after the first weighing.
Re:Negative Base
by gkfasdfasdf on Thursday June 28, 2018 @12:41PM
(#17418426)
Ahhhh... hmm. I thought it seemed too easy.
Move 1: weigh 6 coins vs 6 coins. Isolate the heavier set for the next move. Move 2: weigh 3 coins vs 3 coins. Isolate the heavier set for the next move. Move 3: weigh any two of the 3 remaining coins. If one is heavier, that is the counterfeit. Otherwise (if coins are equal in weight) the remaining coin is counterfeit.