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Strategy parameters

This page walks through sections 3 (Schedule), 4 (FVG Detection), 5 (FVG Selection), and 7 (Multi-Entry) of the Config page — everything that controls when and where the bot enters trades.

Stops, take-profit, breakeven, and trailing all live in the risk block — see Risk parameters.

For deeper background on why the strategy is structured this way, see Strategy → How it works. This page is the dry reference; that page is the conceptual explanation.

Pro-only edits

All fields on this page require a Pro license to edit. Basic licenses see the active preset's values, locked.

Trading schedule (section 3)

All times are Eastern Time (ET) — the schedule fields don't have a timezone selector; they always mean ET.

FVG detection start

The earliest the bot will start scanning the chart for fair value gaps. Default 9:30 AM ET (US equity index open).

Why it's separate from the trade window: the bot needs at least two candles to identify an FVG, so detection has to start before entries can fill. The 9:30 candle itself can be the first candle of a pattern, but the second candle (the one that creates the gap) can't be — it has to form after open.

Trade window start

The earliest a trade entry can fill. Default 9:33 AM ET (three minutes after detection starts, leaving room for the first plausible FVG to form and a limit order to rest).

Trade window end and Extend to end of day

The latest a new entry can fill.

  • Extend to end of day off — new entries cut off at Trade window end (default 3:30 PM ET). Trades already in progress continue to manage themselves until they hit TP, SL, or end-of-day.
  • Extend to end of day on — new entries are allowed all the way up to End of day. This is what both shipping presets use.

End of day

The hard close. All open positions are flattened at this time regardless of where they're sitting in their TP/SL range. Default 4:00 PM ET (US equity futures cash session close).

The bot then transitions to DAY DONE state and waits for the next trading session.

Check interval seconds

Only matters when the bot is in DAY DONE (idle, waiting for the next session). Controls how often it wakes up to check the clock. Active trading states use much faster, state-specific polling — this value does not throttle signal detection.

FVG detection (section 4)

Candle timeframe minutes

The candle size the bot uses for FVG detection. Options: 1, 2, or 3 minutes. Default 1.

This applies to FVG identification specifically. The bot still uses real-time tick data for entries, exits, and price tracking.

Min FVG size points

Smallest gap the bot will consider trading. Gaps narrower than this are ignored entirely. Default 5.0 points on /NQ.

Set this with the contract's volatility and your stop size in mind. A gap smaller than your stop produces a poor risk-to-reward — the gap isn't big enough to justify the entry.

FVG entry point

Where within the gap the limit order rests.

Option Where it sits
Aggressive One tick inside the FVG edge closest to price
50% Middle of the gap
Conservative Deep inside the gap, farthest from current price

Aggressive fills more often but with less of a retrace. Conservative needs a deeper retrace to fill but you get a better entry price when it does. 50% is the balanced default.

Inverse trades

Off by default. When on, the bot trades against the FVG direction — a bullish gap is shorted, a bearish gap is bought.

Inverse recalculate

Only matters when Inverse trades is on.

  • Off — the stop and TP simply swap positions. What was the TP becomes the SL and vice versa.
  • On — the stop and TP are recalculated fresh for the inverted direction, using the same Stop loss type and Take profit type configured in the risk section.

FVG selection (section 5)

Max FVGs to find

How many "primary" FVGs the bot scans for per day. Primary FVGs are eligible to start a new trade. Range 1-5; default 3.

When the bot finds this many FVGs, scanning for new primary FVGs stops for the day — but scanning for add-on-only FVGs continues if Max FVGs for addon is higher than this.

Max FVGs for addon

How many total FVGs the bot scans for, counting both primary and add-on-only. Must be at least equal to Max FVGs to find. FVGs beyond the primary count can only contribute as add-ons to an already-running trade — they can't start a new one.

Example: Max FVGs to find = 3, Max FVGs for addon = 5. The bot will trade FVGs 1, 2, and 3 as primary entries. FVGs 4 and 5 are add-on-only — they pyramid onto an existing trade in their direction, but won't start a new one.

Set equal to Max FVGs to find to disable add-on-only scanning.

Omit FVG numbers

Skip specific FVG numbers entirely. Comma-separated list.

  • [] (empty) — trade all
  • [1] — skip the first FVG of the day
  • [1, 3] — skip the first and third

Useful if backtesting suggests certain numbered FVGs in your session perform poorly (e.g. the very first one in the open volatility).

Trade first FVG entry (entry mode)

How the bot handles multiple valid FVGs.

  • On — "first hit" mode. The bot monitors all valid FVGs at once and enters whichever triggers first. Required for multi-entry / pyramiding.
  • Off — sequential mode. FVG 1 has to fill or expire before the bot looks at FVG 2. Multi-entry is not supported in sequential mode.

Default on. Both shipping presets use this.

Multi-entry (pyramiding) — section 7

The bot can add contracts to an existing same-direction trade when another FVG triggers in the same direction. Each fill is called an add-on.

How a pyramid behaves at a high level:

  • First entry uses Default contracts from position sizing
  • Same-direction FVG triggers → add-on contracts join the position
  • The take-profit stays frozen at the first-entry TP
  • The stop is recomputed per Addon SL mode (see Risk parameters → Add-on stop loss mode)
  • The breakeven flag resets on each add-on
  • All contracts exit together (TP, SL, breakeven, or EOD)
  • The whole pyramid counts as one trade for the daily caps
  • Opposite-direction FVGs during a trade are invalidated

Enable multi-entry

Master switch. Off = single-entry only, even if Trade first FVG entry is on.

Max addon entries

How many add-ons (not counting the first entry) are allowed in one trade. Range 0-2; cap of 2.

  • 0 = single entries only (equivalent to disabling multi-entry)
  • 1 = up to 2 total entries
  • 2 = up to 3 total entries

Addon quantity 2nd / Addon quantity 3rd

Contracts per add-on. The first entry always uses Default contracts. The 1st add-on uses Addon quantity 2nd; the 2nd add-on uses Addon quantity 3rd. Both default to 1.

Multi-entry only in profit

If on, an add-on only fills when the position is currently in profit versus the existing average entry. If price has fallen back below the average (long) or risen back above (short), the add-on FVG is skipped.

Default off. Turning it on filters out add-ons that would average into a losing trade.

Addon entry point

Where within the FVG add-on limit orders rest.

  • None — use the same depth as the primary entry (FVG entry point above)
  • Aggressive / 50% / Conservative — use a different depth for add-ons than primaries

Both shipping presets set this to Aggressive: the primary rests at 50% and needs a deeper retrace to confirm, but once a same-direction trade is in flight you want add-ons to fill more easily.

Addon SL mode

Covered in detail in Risk parameters → Add-on stop loss mode. Quick version:

  • EQUAL_RISK (default) — recompute SL so total dollar risk stays equal to the original entry
  • KEEP_ORIGINAL — all contracts share the original stop level; risk scales with size

Where to go next