How It Works

A breakdown of every layer Goldilocks puts on your chart — and why.

Session Levels

Goldilocks tracks the previous New York session high and low and plots them as horizontal reference levels. These are the anchors most institutional participants orient around. The NY session window is configurable.

Asia Range

The Asian session (6 PM – 2 AM ET) establishes the overnight range. Goldilocks marks the Asia high and low — levels that frequently act as liquidity targets or containment boundaries during London and New York.

Fair Value Gaps

When price leaves a gap between three consecutive candles, Goldilocks identifies it as a Fair Value Gap. Only gaps that meet a minimum size threshold are shown. FVGs are removed once price fills back to the gap's midpoint (consequent encroachment).

Displacement Detection

Large-body candles that exceed a configurable ATR multiple are flagged as displacement. These candles represent aggressive institutional participation. Goldilocks color-codes them by intensity — stronger displacement gets a more prominent visual.

Liquidity Sweeps

Goldilocks tracks confirmed swing highs and lows using a pivot-based method. When price wicks beyond a swing level but closes back inside it, that is flagged as a liquidity sweep — a sign that resting orders were targeted before a potential reversal.

Swings are also classified as protected or failure based on whether subsequent structure breaks confirm them. This classification feeds directly into the C1/C2/C3 setup scoring.

C1 / C2 / C3 Setups

This is Goldilocks' structured trade-setup detection, built on top of FVGs and swing classification.

C1 (Cause): A displacement candle creates an FVG. If the candle's body exceeds the ATR threshold, C1 is confirmed.
C2 (Retracement): Price retraces back into the FVG zone within a lookback window. The C2 is scored based on whether it sweeps a protected swing (valid), a failure swing (weak), or neither (neutral).
C3 (Continuation): After C2, price closes beyond C2's range in the original displacement direction, confirming continuation.

Each stage is labeled on the chart. C2 labels are color-coded by validity: green for protected, yellow for neutral, red for failure swings.

Opening Range

The first 5, 15, or 30 minutes of the New York session define the opening range. Goldilocks marks the high and low of this window and extends them forward. Breakouts from the opening range often set the directional tone for the session.

Volume Profile (POC / VAH / VAL)

Goldilocks plots a Point of Control using VWAP and derives Value Area High and Low using standard deviation bands. These levels represent where the most trading activity is concentrated and where price is likely to find acceptance or rejection.

Higher Timeframe Levels

The previous candle's high and low from a configurable higher timeframe (default: 60-minute) are drawn on the chart. These levels provide broader structural context and often act as magnets or rejection points.

Session Fibonacci Retracements

Goldilocks automatically draws Fibonacci retracement levels (0, 0.236, 0.382, 0.5, 0.618, 0.786, 1.0) based on the current session's developing high-to-low range. These reset each hour and provide intraday mean-reversion reference points.

Confluence Scoring

Every key level is scored based on how many other levels cluster nearby. Session highs/lows, POC, value area boundaries, Asia range, HTF levels, round numbers, and active FVGs all contribute points. FVGs with confirmed C1/C2 setups receive higher weight based on their validity classification.

Only levels that meet a minimum confluence score are displayed. Higher scores get thicker lines and more prominent colors — gold for the strongest clusters, orange for moderate, gray for baseline.

Info Table

A compact dashboard in the corner of the chart shows the current session, peak volatility status, ATR, previous session levels, POC, Asia range width, active FVG count, confluence zone count, displacement strength, active C1 setups, and the most recent C2 validity status — all at a glance.

What It Does Not Do

Goldilocks does not generate buy or sell signals. It does not predict direction, set targets, or manage risk. It identifies where structural attention is warranted and lets you decide what to do with that information.