10. Candle & Entry Logic

10.1 C1 / C2 / C3

Community insight

• GxT continuation sequence: a new HTF (4H) candle opens within an LTF (1H/30m) C3, regardless of how the HTF candle itself closes. — Garrett — "4H PO3 Made Mechanical", 01:29
• Not every swing point is a simple C2 closure — if candle 1 hits a key level but its wick is too large to support expansion, wait for candle 3 to open instead of forcing the trade on a candle that can't expand. — Garrett — "4H Profiling", 0:24

C2 Reversal Candle EQ

When using the second candle of a sequence for entry, choose the EQ based on the C2 close:

• If C2 closes in the old trend direction:
  • use Wick EQ.
• If C2 closes in the new direction:
  • use Full Candle EQ.

C2 Reversal Trading Conditions

The only valid ways to trade a C2 reversal:

• gap + SMT; or
• 2-stage PSP.

If C1 engages a key level but does not reverse, C2 can reverse and expand.

Two Ways to Trade a 4H C2

There are two ways to trade a 4H C2, and the trade does not necessarily need to wait for the candle to close:

1. Small wick

   • If C2 forms with a small wick and supports the reversal / continuation narrative, it can be traded earlier.

2. Large wick back to open

   • If C2 creates a large wick but trades back to the open, this can provide an actionable entry condition.

Both cases still require the broader narrative, key level, CiC, and LTF signature to support the trade.

---

10.2 C3 Filter

• Anticipate C3 of 30m / 1H / 4H.
• But if C2 has already expanded, do not trade C3.
• Do not trade C4+ candle.

---

10.3 CiC / CISD / FVG

Community insight

• A "true CISD" is a closure through the single candle that itself formed the sequential SMT — a tighter, more specific entry trigger than a generic multi-candle CISD. — Afyz — trade recap, 5.5R YM short, 19:12
• When marking a change in state of delivery against a single opposing candle, use its open. But when there's a series of consecutive opposing candles instead, don't use the extreme one's open — use the open of the candle in that series with the least extreme close (e.g. for a bearish CISD off a series of up-close candles, use the lowest-closing up candle's open, not the highest), then wait for a close through it. — AM — "Reversals" (Phases of Price Delivery pt. 2), 1:07

LTF Execution

Community insight

• For NY traders, if the daily low/high was put in during the Asia or London session, confirm it with a 30m/1H CISD. Non-NY traders can use a 15m/30m CISD. Around drivers, an LTF CISD is acceptable. — Garrett — "GxT Invalidations | Continuations", 11:40

• V-shape CISD: enter on the first CISD.
• Non-V-shape: wait for gap / displacement.
• Best CISD = CISD with a gap.
• Prefer a bulky-bodied CiSD.
• If the ideal CiSD is too far away, a failure-swing CiSD may be used if it fits the failure-swing model.
• If you do not trust the first CISD, wait for the second.
• Only trade the first two CISDs.
• Optimal entry: first CISD on continuation, second CISD on reversal.
  • For continuation, the first CISD is preferred because the market should already have direction and should continue efficiently.
  • For reversal, the second CISD is often cleaner because reversal requires stronger confirmation after the initial character shift.
• Prefer entries near new 90m / 4H / 6H openings.
  • New 90m / 4H / 6H opens often provide cleaner timing windows.
  • If entry is far from the HTF open, stronger displacement / gap / SS is required.

Clean 30m / 1H Price Action Requirement

Execution should not jump straight from HTF narrative to 3m / 5m.

The cleaner path:

1. Daily narrative is clear;
2. 4H / 6H profile supports it;
3. 30m / 1H price action is clean;
4. 3m / 5m CISD / FVG triggers entry.

If 30m / 1H price action is messy, reduce setup quality or wait.

Trail Stop

• Trail stop only under universal sequence.
• When price expands from entry, protect the wick within the first CISD EQ discount / premium as the trailed SL.

Scale In

• Scaling in at the second CSD is optional.
• Scaling is easier if the first entry was at the first CSD.

Stop-Loss Placement by Candle Type

Community insight

• Don't size a stop against the top of a large reversal wick before its candle closes — price can't expand past the opening price, so the wick's final extent isn't known yet. Confirm the wick is actually forming a relevant, protected low/high first, then place the stop as close to it as possible. — Garrett — Q&A stream, 12:09
• How tight a stop can be depends on the shape of the confirming opposing candle: mostly body means the stop can sit at the body's low, but a candle that's roughly half wick needs the stop at the actual swing low or EQ of the wick, since a body-low stop there would get clipped by an ordinary retest. — Garrett — Entries lecture, 22:37

• If the candle you are entering on is an expansion candle, mark its EQ and keep the stop on that candle’s discount side (the half you expect to hold), since opposing candles should support price from there — this is a positional-entry-style invalidation level, not just a wick stop.
• If the candle is a reversal candle with a large wick, do not place the entry, or size the stop, against the top of the wick before the candle closes — price cannot expand past the opening price, so the wick’s final extent is still unknown. Confirm the wick is actually forming a relevant, protected low/high first; only once that is established should the stop sit as close to the wick as possible.
• The confirming opposing candle’s own shape decides how tight the stop can be: if that candle is mostly body, the stop can sit at the body’s low, since a retest deep enough to reach the full wick low is unlikely. If the candle is roughly half wick, the stop needs to sit at the actual swing low (or EQ of that wick) instead — a body-low stop would get clipped by an ordinary retest.

10.4 Trade Management

Community insight

• Take partial profit at relevant levels that are at least 2R away on the path to the overall draw, not at an arbitrary fixed-R distance with nothing structural there — only fall back to a fixed-R partial when the range genuinely has no relevant level to partial at. — Garrett — Entries lecture, 35:17
• Rather than taking one full-size entry, take a partial entry first, then add more each time price confirms a new continuation signature — each add trails the stop to that signature's invalidation point, which pulls the average entry price down toward the new stop. This builds a larger position without increasing the dollar risk if stopped out, since the average keeps moving to sit near the trailed stop rather than the original entry. — AM — Weekly trade review, 15:06
• When the day's range has already run well beyond the average daily range by the time a major timing window (like 9:30) arrives, that window becomes the deciding line for whether the range extends further or gets capped. Manage a trade into that window by scaling out into the push (selling into strength) rather than trailing the stop — it captures more value than risking a full trailed exit at a swing low if the range instead reverses. — AM — Friday continuation trade recap, 10:56
• Stay fully hands-off on a new position until it either stops out at the pre-set invalidation or reaches a defined R:R threshold (1R-1.5R) — resist reacting to the market ranging around the entry in between, since that's the window where premature exits before a trade plays out actually happen. — AM — 4-Step Trade Framework, 15:03
• Before entering a further continuation, compare the range already covered so far in the day to the typical range on similar continuation days (the ADR). If prior continuation days have run ~300 points and today has only covered ~150, there's still statistical room to justify pushing for another leg rather than assuming the move is exhausted. — AM — Live backtest session, 43:54

• Enter the first CSD when possible: it rarely gets missed, and it lets you move the stop sooner and more aggressively than waiting for a second CSD.
• Trail the stop to the most recent invalidation level as price confirms it (e.g. once price trades out of the first CSD’s range), then go to break-even — this is not the same as trailing into profit, which should be done sparingly.
• If no CSD/order block forms above entry to trail to and price simply expands, use a mechanical 2R break-even rule instead.
• Before trusting a retracement order block enough to trail a stop to it (or enter off it), check where it sits using premium/discount of the leg from reversal to the first retracement: an order block at or below EQ/discount is well-priced and unlikely to be revisited; one still high in premium should only be trusted once price has already run at least 1R from it, since it may just be a lower-timeframe gap’s low rather than a genuinely protected level.
• Take partial profit at relevant levels that are at or beyond 2R on the way to the overall draw liquidity — not at an arbitrary fixed-R distance with nothing structural behind it. Only fall back to a fixed-R partial (e.g. 2R) when there is no relevant level inside that range to partial at. Take roughly half off at a time, holding a runner to the final target.

---