ACT: Alignment-Colored Trend

ACT: Alignment-Colored Trend colors candles by trend direction, then shades them by how much of the market agrees with the move: how far up a ladder of timeframes a breakout holds, and whether related indexes are breaking with it. It applies TheStrat methodology (developed by Rob Smith), and many of its underlying concepts come from TheStrat: the 1, 2 and 3 bar types, Failed 2s, timeframe continuity, and simultaneous breaks across related markets.

WHAT IT DOES

Each candle is read against a ladder of five timeframes (Trigger, State 1, State 2, Direction 1, Direction 2) and against three related indexes. The Direction timeframes set the color. The shade, from faint to solid, adds up how many ladder timeframes are breaking with the trend, on the chart symbol and on the indexes. A badge names the ladder in use, and an optional dashboard, alignment dots, two alerts and four data-window values show the same reading in detail. The indicator is display only: no orders, entries or strategy.

HOW IT WORKS

Candle Colors

Green / red: bull / bear. Price is above (below) both Direction timeframe opens.
Faint to solid: the shade, 0 to 11 points of confirmation.
Lime / pink: peak, shade 10 or more by default. A related index holds a Direction 1 breakout, and both State timeframes break with the trend.
Blue / purple: counter-trend. The two Direction timeframes disagree, and a State 2 breakout sets the direction.
Grey: no trend. The Direction timeframes conflict, are both inside, or are failing.

Shade

Cascade: the highest ladder timeframe at which any of the three related indexes holds a break of its prior bar in the trend direction. Direction 1 = 7, State 2 = 3, State 1 = 1.
State 2 on the chart symbol: +2 for a break with the trend (for bulls, a 2u or a Failed 2d), +1 for an outside bar closing with it, 0 for an inside bar, -1 against or failing.
State 1 on the chart symbol: +1 breaking with the trend, -1 against.
Counter-trend: +1 when the cascade reaches State 2 or higher.

Related Indexes
Auto picks the set from the chart symbol: ES/NQ/RTY/YM for futures, SPY/QQQ/IWM/DIA for ETFs, BTC/ETH/SOL/XRP for crypto, with the chart's own ticker left out. Stocks and other symbols compare against the ETFs. Custom takes any three symbols.

Ladders
Each ladder is five steps of the Strat timeframe list (1m 5m 15m 30m 1H 4H D W M Q Y), in order: Trigger, State 1, State 2, Direction 1, Direction 2.

Scalp: 15m, 30m, 1H, 4H, D. Auto under 1 minute.
Day Trade: 30m, 1H, 4H, D, W. Auto from 1 minute to 1 hour.
Swing: 4H, D, W, M, Q. Auto above 1 hour to 1 day.
Position: D, W, M, Q, Y. Auto above 1 day to 1 week.

The colors come from the ladder. Inside one ladder, a 1m and a 5m chart show the same reading, and the 1m updates more often. Locking a ladder keeps one reading across charts. Above its State 1 timeframe, a locked ladder stands down and the badge turns orange.

Stance and Grade
Stance is Watch while the trend is on, and turns Active once the prior Trigger bar's high or low breaks behind a ladder-timeframe breakout. Stand Aside means no trend. Grade adds index sync to the shade: a simultaneous break of the prior chart bar by all three indexes adds 4, by two of them adds 2. A+ at 10, A 7, B 5, C 3, D 1. Stance and grade are readouts in the dashboard and the detailed alert, and they never change the paint.

IMPLEMENTATION DETAILS

Timeframe-continuity candles show whether price is above or below the higher-timeframe opens. ACT starts from that direction and adds the following.

Breakouts on the ladder: the shade also counts whether price is breaking prior bars on the State timeframes.
Breadth across indexes: the cascade checks the related indexes on each ladder timeframe. On a Day Trade chart, a green ES candle starts at 7 of 11 points while NQ, RTY or YM holds a daily breakout, and at 3 or less when none does.
Index sets by market: Auto matches the index family to the chart symbol and follows each market's sessions, including CME 4-hour windows for futures and midnight-ET windows for crypto.

HOW TO USE IT

Setup
Add ACT to any chart up to 1 week. Auto picks the ladder and the index set. Pick a ladder under Timeframes to lock it, or Custom under Indexes to choose three symbols. Turning off Grey When No Trend leaves no-trend candles in the chart's own colors.

Reading the Display

Badge (on by default): the ladder in use, with each State and Direction timeframe green or red against its open.
Dashboard (off by default): trend and its source, stance and why, grade, the Trigger bar, the indexes, and each ladder timeframe's bar type.
Alignment dots (off by default): one per Trigger, State 1, State 2 and Direction 1 timeframe. Bright when the chart and all three indexes hold beyond that timeframe's prior high (bull) or low (bear) at the same time, dim at three of four.
Data window: Trend, Shade, Score and Stance.

Alerts
Create an alert on ACT and pick "ACT: Trend On" (grey to colored) or "ACT: Trend Off" (colored to grey). Both fire once, on bar close. For one alert that covers both, turn on Detailed Alert Message and pick "Any alert() function call". The message carries direction, source, grade and stance.

DOES IT REPAINT?

No. Closed candles don't change. Higher timeframes come from completed bars and period opens, and every forming higher-timeframe range is rebuilt from chart bars. The live candle's color updates while it forms, by design.

DEFINITIONS

1: inside bar, within the prior bar's range.
2u / 2d: broke the prior high (low) and holds beyond it.
3: outside bar, broke both sides of the prior bar.
Failed 2: broke one side of the prior bar and closed back inside its range.
Timeframe continuity: price on the same side of the open on several timeframes.
Simultaneous break: related markets breaking the same side of their prior bar at the same time.
Trigger, State, Direction: the ladder's five timeframes, lowest to highest.
Cascade: the highest ladder timeframe at which a related index holds a break with the trend.

KNOWN LIMITATIONS

ACT runs on charts up to 1 week. A locked ladder runs on charts up to its State 1 timeframe.
When the chart timeframe doesn't divide every ladder timeframe evenly (45m, for example), some ranges are approximate and the badge shows ≈.
The first bars on a chart can read low until each ladder timeframe has a completed prior bar.
ACT reads three related symbols. If their data is delayed on your plan while the chart is real-time, the index reads lag the chart.

OPEN SOURCE

The complete source is published under the Mozilla Public License 2.0. The repository link is in the signature below.

Trading involves risk. This is a charting tool, not financial advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

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