Inspired by the 'mentfx Structure' indicator created by Anton (mentfx) on TradingView, I have developed my own unique version of the market structure indicator, enhancing it with features that resonate with my personal trading style and offer additional insights into market behaviour.
In the spirit of Anton's original concept, my indicator incorporates the fundamental idea of "sells before buys" for bullish ranges and "buys before sells" for bearish ranges. This methodological approach is designed to mirror the activities of large market participants who typically offload positions before accumulating again in a bullish context, and accumulate before offloading in a bearish context. The "ranges" displayed on the chart represent historical and updated highs and lows, reflecting the structural delivery of price across any timeframe. This approach assumes that in a bullish range, the market is likely to sustain upward momentum until it reaches a new high or experiences a significant "sell before buy" scenario, and conversely in a bearish range.
Key Enhancements and Features:
Immediate Break of Structure (BOS) Recognition: This feature promptly updates the high/low to the candle that triggers a BOS, providing a more agile response compared to the original mentfx Structure's approach of waiting for a swing high/low to set the range. This adaptation allows me for quicker adaptation to the market's unfolding narrative.
Market Stage Visualization: By seamlessly integrating with the structure tracking, my indicator presents the current 'Market Stage,' offering a clear stage of the current market's phase, which is crucial for informed trading decisions. The core methodology for determining market stages is derived from the foundational concepts established by mentfx.
Moving Average Integration: The inclusion of a Moving Average (MA) within the indicator adds a layer of trend confirmation, reinforcing decisions based on market structure with established trend analysis techniques. You can use EMA or SMA.
Customizable Session Settings: Tailor the indicator to focus on specific market hours, enhancing its utility for session-based trading strategies and backtesting efficiency.
Triple M: The Triple-M feature is also included in this indicator, which provides a visual representation of the market's momentum and potential reverse.
ATR: Utilizes the Average True Range (ATR) to estimate stop loss levels, providing a data-driven method to manage risk in accordance with current market volatility.
Watermark: Displays the name of the ticker and the current timeframe directly on the chart for easy reference, ensuring clarity and orientation when analyzing multiple instruments or timeframes.
How It Works: When a range is assigned as being bullish, it will continue updating the high until a new high is created after the bos (= the new high of the range) and will not update or change until a candle's body, open's or close's above it - which will re-update the high and update the low. The low will be updated based on the last time price had a candle (open or closure) below a previous candle low, and then will find the lowest low after the rule was met to assign a low (the idea here is to locate the last major "sell before buy" and showcase that range. And this will occur vice versa, where: when a range is assigned as bearish, it will continue updating the low until a true low is created (=low of the range) and will not update or change until a candle's body, open's or close's below it - which will reupdate the low and update the high. The high will be updated based on the last time price had a candle (open or closure) above a previous candle high, and then will find the highest high after the rule was met to assign a high (once again, the idea being to locate the last major "buy before sell" and showcase price as existing in that range.) A high is considered as a high that has a lower high to its left and to its right. And a low is considered as a low that has a higher low to its left and to its right. These high and low are used to determine the final high or low of a Bullish or Bearish range (respectively).
Range Determination: The indicator assesses the market momentum and assigns a Bullish or Bearish state based on the most recent directional break.
High/Low Rules Adaptation: In a Bullish range, indicator updates the high if a candle's body, not just the wick, exceeds the current high. This subtle yet significant change allows for a more conservative and potentially more accurate portrayal of bullish sentiment.
Dynamic Updating: As the market evolves, the indicator recalibrates the high and low lines based on the latest price movements, ensuring that you always have the most current and relevant data.
The indicator is not merely a trend-following or scalping tool. It leverages a distinct interpretation of market behavior, focusing on the last major "sell before buy" in Bullish ranges and "buy before sell" in Bearish ranges. By doing so, it aims to pinpoint the true sentiment behind price movements, offering traders a more grounded basis for anticipating market trends.
Of course, a special acknowledgment is due to Anton for his foundational work and the insightful knowledge he's giving day-by-day. The principles of his structure tracking method and market approach have significantly influenced the creation of this indicator, which now carries those insights forward, adapted through the lens of my personal trading philosophy.
Release Notes
Update Note: New customization options added for watermark and ATR text colours to enhance chart visibility and user experience.
Release Notes
Structured indicator settings for improved clarity and ease of use.
Enhanced MA functionality with support for multiple moving averages and individual settings.
Implemented minor bug fixes and performance improvements.
Release Notes
Added support for two additional Moving Averages (MAs) in the indicator
Release Notes
Fixed a bug with colour application for the 4th and 5th MAs.
Release Notes
v1.02 - Refactored indicator's core logic for better performance and clarity - Added MB counting functionality - Added option to display MB count near current market stage labels
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