Trade Construction Reference
A side-by-side reference for reading what the bot detects, what passes each gate, and what each operator-facing alert represents. The worked examples below originate from the prior zone strategy; a BOS-specific rewrite is in progress for the next release.
NOTE: The six worked examples below are illustrative — they describe the shape of a clean, ambiguous, or unsafe BOS setup so the operator can pattern-match against live ones. Real annotated trades from the bot's journal will replace these as the live demo collects them.
These are the setups where every BOS criterion lines up — clean swing break, daily alignment, qualifying retrace zone, RRR above the 2.0 floor, all 17 gates clearing. When the dashboard's BOS PLANNED row matches what one of these describes, you're looking at the cleanest expression of the strategy. Stay close to the screen.
Every criterion clean. When the 🎯 BOS PLANNED Telegram lands, the setup is one retrace away from firing. Watch for the ✅ RETRACE CONFIRMED — then the order is at OANDA.
The rare case where the aggressive 2/2 path may fire — two positions on the same setup, doubled risk for a clean signature. The bot only takes this when score, group cap, and direction all line up.
These BOS setups can still fire — the criteria pass the minimum bar — but one or two signals are softer than ideal. The bot may take them; the operator should be ready for a wider range of outcomes and not chase if the next signal weakens.
Acceptable but not elite. The bot will take it if all 17 gates pass. Operator should expect a wider range of outcomes here than on a clean break with a 3:1 setup.
Structure and zone are right; timing is not. The bot does not gate purely on time-of-day, but the operator's eye on the retrace candle quality matters more here than on a 09:00 setup.
These BOS conditions are exactly what the bot was designed to reject. The Active BOS Detections row may or may not even appear — what's certain is no PLANNED row publishes and no order ever reaches OANDA. Trust the bot. The temptation to override on a "feels right" gut read is the precise bias the strategy was built to remove.
The single most common losing trade across all timeframes: a clean break against the daily direction. Stage 2's hard filter is doing exactly its job. Do not override.
The 2:1 minimum is the single non-negotiable parameter of the strategy. If RRR is below 2.0 the bot will not publish a plan, won't fire an order, won't pretend the setup exists. Mirror the bot's discipline.
After a BOS forms, price usually pulls back toward the broken level before continuing. The depth of that retrace into the planned demand or supply zone changes the character of the entry. Five tiers, each with a different meaning for fill probability and follow-through.
Once a BOS PLANNED row is live, the next question is how price is moving relative to the retrace zone. The dashboard's Active BOS Detections row shows distance to entry — and the rate that distance is closing or widening tells you whether to expect a fill imminently, an expired window, or no entry at all.
Price falling fast into the planned demand zone. Distance to entry closing rapidly. Stay at screen — RETRACE CONFIRMED is imminent.
Drifting toward the zone. May or may not reach it before the BOS window expires (M5: 4h, M15: 8h, H1: 24h). Monitor.
No movement either way. Watch the window countdown — if it ticks to zero with price still flat, the BOS expires and the PLANNED row disappears.
Price continuing in the BOS direction without retracing. Fill probability dropping. Often the BOS plays out without ever offering an entry — and that's fine.
Strong continuation away from the zone. Entry will not fire on this BOS. Do not chase a runaway with a manual order.
Price rising fast into the planned supply zone. Same urgency as the bullish-retrace fast case. RETRACE CONFIRMED is imminent.
The one-page check. When in doubt, scan these two lists — if more greens than reds line up on a card, trust the bot. If reds dominate, the bot will protect you at the gate; your job is to not override it.
The dashboard surfaces everything. The bot's gate decides. This playbook helps you read the dashboard the way the gate reads it — so the two of you arrive at the same conclusion in real time.