DARKINV™ · 3ATM Framework™ · Rainbow Engine v4
RAINBOW ENGINE
Reference Card
Complete Signal Guide · Candle Colors · Scorecard · HTF Bias · Entries & Exits
"If the candle says it, this card explains it. Simple as that."
— Coach K. McGill · DARKINV™
01
Candle Color Meanings
▲ Entry Signal
BRIGHT GREEN — Call Signal!
body · border · wick = neon green
All conditions aligned — MACD crossed up, ADX lifting, DI+ above DI-, RSI bullish, volume surging, HTF confirms. This is your GO signal for a call entry.
👉 Look for a call entry right now
▼ Entry Signal
BRIGHT RED — Put Signal!
body · border · wick = neon red
All conditions aligned bearish — MACD crossed down, ADX lifting, DI- above DI+, RSI below 50, volume surging. This is your GO signal for a put entry.
👉 Look for a put entry right now
⚠ Warning
YELLOW — Warning!
body · border = gold · wick = orange
You are in a trade and the candle just flipped against your direction. The move might be slowing or reversing. WAIT — do not enter new trades on yellow.
👉 Stay alert — watch if next candle recovers
◆ Exit Signal
ORANGE — Exit Time!
body · border · wick = warm amber/orange
Momentum ran out. ADX peaked, DMI bending against the trade. The engine is done with this trade. Do not hold through orange hoping it recovers.
👉 Close your trade — don't wait
◆▲ Reversal Forming
BLUE + RED BORDER — Reversal Call
body = electric blue · border = neon red · wick = blue
A downtrend exhausted — ADX peaked and is now ticking down, MACD freshly crossed bullish. Not in a trade yet. The engine spotted a potential bull reversal forming.
👉 Potential call coming — wait for green to confirm
◆▼ Reversal Forming
RED + GREEN BORDER — Reversal Put
body = crimson red · border = neon green · wick = red
An uptrend exhausted — ADX peaked and is now ticking down, MACD freshly crossed bearish. Not in a trade yet. The engine spotted a potential bear reversal forming.
👉 Potential put coming — wait for red to confirm
▲ In Trade — High Volume
TEAL + PURPLE BORDER — Strong Call Move
body = emerald teal · border = violet purple · wick = teal
You are in a call trade AND volume is surging above the SMA. Price is moving with you AND the energy behind it is confirmed. The move has fuel. Stay in.
👉 Hold your call — strong move in progress
▼ In Trade — High Volume
ROSE + PURPLE BORDER — Strong Put Move
body = brick rose · border = violet purple · wick = rose
You are in a put trade AND volume is surging. The drop has energy and confirmation. This is the kind of move you stay in — not the time to take early profits.
👉 Hold your put — strong move in progress
▲ In Trade — Normal Vol
SOFT TEAL — Holding Long
body · wick = muted teal (lower opacity)
In a call trade and candle is moving WITH you (bullish) but volume is not surging above the SMA. Trade is still alive and healthy — no alarm, no exit signal. Hold.
👉 Stay in — no exit signal yet
▼ In Trade — Normal Vol
SOFT ROSE — Holding Short
body · wick = muted rose/red (lower opacity)
In a put trade and candle is moving WITH you (bearish) but volume is normal. The drop is happening but not with explosive volume yet. Stay in and manage.
👉 Stay in — manage your trade
— No Signal
BLACK + WHITE BORDER — No Signal
body = near black · border = white · wick = white
Nothing happening. The engine is watching but not firing. Market is neutral or conditions are not aligned. This is a valid state — flat is a position.
👉 Wait — don't trade this candle
-1
▼
-T
▼-T Trail Exit Marker
PURPLE ▼-T ARROW — Trailing Stop Fired
Chart overlay marker — not a candle body color
This is a TradingView strategy marker, not a candle color. It appears as a purple downward arrow with a T beside it on the bar where the trailing stop order executed. The number above it (e.g. -1) is TradingView's internal trade label — it does not mean a 1-point loss.

When does it appear? After price moves past the Profit Target ATR multiple (default 2.0×ATR), the trail activates at 1.5×ATR behind the best price. When price pulls back that distance, the ▼-T fires and your position is closed automatically.

What to do: Nothing. The trade is already closed. Check your scorecard — OVERALL BIAS will return to NEUTRAL and POSITION will show FLAT. Wait for the next signal.
👉 Position closed automatically — wait for next ENGINE signal
02
All Entry & Exit Types
▲ ▼ Entry Types — All Signals
▲
CALL Entry
Full bullish alignment. MACD crossed up (within 20 bars), ADX lifting, DI+ above DI-, RSI above 50, volume above SMA, momentum positive, HTF confirms. Bar closes confirmed. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ▲ | NQ1!
▼
PUT Entry
Full bearish alignment. MACD crossed down (within 20 bars), ADX lifting, DI- above DI+, RSI below 50, volume above SMA, momentum negative, HTF confirms. Bar closes confirmed. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ▼ | NQ1!
◆▲
Reversal CALL Entry
Prior downtrend exhausted. ADX peaked above threshold then ticked down. MACD now freshly crossed bullish. NOT in a trade — watching for the flip. Wait for a confirmed green candle before entering. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ▲ REV | NQ1!
◆▼
Reversal PUT Entry
Prior uptrend exhausted. ADX peaked above threshold then ticked down. MACD now freshly crossed bearish. NOT in a trade — watching for the flip. Wait for a confirmed red candle before entering. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ▼ REV | NQ1!
SW▲
Swing CALL Entry
A standard call trade has been held for the minimum swing bars (default 5) and qualifies as a swing trade. Target and stop levels are plotted. Best on 5-min or higher timeframe. Alert: SWING ENTRY CONFIRMED [OPT-CALL]
SW▼
Swing PUT Entry
A standard put trade has been held for the minimum swing bars and qualifies as a swing trade. Target and stop levels are plotted on the chart. Alert: SWING ENTRY CONFIRMED [OPT-PUT]
BRK▲
Channel Break UP
Price broke above the upper channel band AND volume expanded above the channel volume multiplier. Confirms bullish breakout from consolidation. Alert: CHANNEL BREAK UP [VOL]
BRK▼
Channel Break DOWN
Price broke below the lower channel band with volume expansion confirmed. Confirms bearish breakout from consolidation. Alert: CHANNEL BREAK DOWN [VOL]
○ ◆ ◆◆ Exit Types — All Signals
○
Reversal Exit
Price crossed the ATR buffer against the trade direction AND the candle closed opposite. For longs: price below entry minus ATR buffer on a bearish close. For shorts: price above entry plus ATR buffer on a bullish close. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ○ | NQ1!
◆
Early Exit (ADX Peak)
ADX peaked above the threshold in the last N bars and is now ticking down. DMI is bending against the trade (DI+ falling on a long, DI- falling on a short). Trend momentum is exhausting — get out before the reversal completes. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ◆ | NQ1!
◆◆
ADX Exit (Confirmed)
ADX has been declining for 3+ bars from its peak OR has been peaked for 7+ bars without recovery. This is the confirmed momentum exhaustion exit — a stronger signal than the early exit (◆). Do not overstay. Alert: Darkinv Rainbow ◆◆ | NQ1!
▼
Trailing Stop Exit — ▼-T (Purple Arrow)
What you see on the chart: A purple downward arrow with the letter T beside it and a number above it (e.g. -1). This is TradingView marking that the trailing stop order fired and closed the position.

How it works: Once price moves in your favor past the Profit Target ATR Multiple (default 2.0×ATR), the trailing stop activates. It then follows price at a distance of the Trailing ATR Multiple (default 1.5×ATR). If price reverses that far, the trail fires and exits the trade automatically.

The number above the arrow (e.g. -1) is TradingView's bar count or trade number — it does NOT mean a loss. It is just TradingView's strategy labeling.

No Pine Script alert fires for trail exits — the position is closed by the strategy exit order directly. You will see the purple ▼-T on the chart and the position will show FLAT on the scorecard.
SESS
Session Close Exit
When "Avoid Last N Minutes Before Close" is enabled, the engine goes flat N minutes before session end (default 15 min for futures, 30 min for options). Prevents holding through session close. Configurable per market type in the script settings.
TIGHT
Tight Channel — No New Entries
Not an exit — but if "Suppress Signals When Channel Tight" is ON, all new entries AND exits are blocked while the channel is in a TIGHT state. Channel range is below 1.5× ATR. Sit on your hands until the channel breaks or widens. Alert: CHANNEL TIGHT
LOCK
Options Gridlock — No Entries
NQ and YM are both within a 40-60 point spread — no commitment from either market. For options traders with the DOW/NASDAQ correlation filter ON, all entries are blocked. Gridlock = market confusion = no trade. Alert: OPTIONS GRIDLOCK (40-60pt spread)
03
Scorecard — Every Row Explained
Row 1 · MACD
SIGNAL
The MACD line vs signal line. This tells you which direction the engine's momentum is pointing at this moment. Together with MACD Memory it forms your directional gate.
▲ CALL
MACD line above signal line — bullish bias. Call conditions active.
▼ PUT
MACD line below signal line — bearish bias. Put conditions active.
— —
No confirmed signal. Waiting for conditions to align.
Row 2 · CANDLE STATE
CANDLE
The current candle's color state from the Rainbow system. This mirrors what you see on the chart and tells you the full picture in one label.
▲ GREEN
Call signal candle — all conditions aligned, entry active.
▼ RED
Put signal candle — all conditions aligned, entry active.
YELLOW
Warning — candle flipped against your trade direction.
ORANGE
Exit candle — momentum exhausted, get out now.
BLUE/RED
Reversal call forming — blue body with red border.
NEUTRAL
No signal — black body, white border. Wait.
Row 3 · REVERSAL WATCH
REVERSAL
Tracks reversal signal conditions — ADX peak exhaustion + fresh MACD cross in new direction. Fires when the engine detects a trend flip forming while you are flat.
◆▲ CALL
Reversal call forming. Prior downtrend exhausted, MACD flipping up.
◆▼ PUT
Reversal put forming. Prior uptrend exhausted, MACD flipping down.
WATCH
In a trade — monitoring for exit reversal conditions.
○ EXIT
Reversal exit triggered against current trade. Close now.
◆ EXIT
Early exit triggered. ADX peaked, DMI bending against trade.
Row 4 · NQ/YM REGIME
NAS / DOW
Real-time NQ (NASDAQ futures) vs YM (DOW futures) correlation. Measures the point move from the previous close to classify the regime. Applies to options traders with the correlation filter ON.
GREEN ▲▲
Both NQ and YM above +100 pts. Buyers aligned. Prime calls.
MG ▲
Both positive, one under +100. Bullish lean developing.
RED ▼▼
Both NQ and YM below -100 pts. Sellers aligned. Prime puts.
MR ▼
Both negative, one above -100. Bearish lean building.
MIXED
One positive, one negative. Disagreement. No options entries.
GRIDLOCK
Both within ±40 pts. No commitment. No options entries.
✓ SYNC
Entry signal fired — markets were aligned at time of signal.
Row 5 · CHANNEL STATE
GRIDLOCK
Tracks the channel detection engine AND options gridlock condition. Shows when price is ranging, breaking out, or when NQ/YM spread is too tight to trade options.
🔒 LOCK
Options gridlock — NQ/YM both within 40-60 pt spread. No entries.
TIGHT
Channel tight — range below 1.5× ATR. No entries if suppress ON.
ACTIVE
Channel detected — price ranging between upper/lower bands.
BREAK ▲
Channel break up with volume — bullish breakout confirmed.
BREAK ▼
Channel break down with volume — bearish breakout confirmed.
CLEAR
No gridlock, no channel detected. Normal trending conditions.
Row 6 · 2-BAR ROC
MOMENTUM
2-bar Rate of Change (ROC) of price. Positive = price moving up. Negative = price moving down. When the momentum filter is ON this must agree with the entry direction for a signal to fire.
▲ BULL
2-bar ROC positive — price accelerating upward. Required for call entries.
▼ BEAR
2-bar ROC negative — price accelerating downward. Required for put entries.
FLAT
ROC near zero — price not accelerating in either direction.
PEAKED
Momentum peaked and turning — appears during exit conditions.
Row 7 · VOLUME SMA
VOLUME
Current bar volume vs the 20-period volume SMA. When the volume filter is ON, entries require volume above the SMA. Purple border on chart candle = high-volume confirmation in trade.
▲ SURGE
Volume above SMA on a bullish candle. Energy confirmed upside.
▼ SURGE
Volume above SMA on a bearish candle. Energy confirmed downside.
RISING
Volume increasing bar over bar — building toward surge level.
FADING
Volume declining — momentum losing energy. Watch exits.
AVG
Volume below SMA — normal activity, no confirmation surge.
Row 8 · MASTER CONDITION
OVERALL BIAS
The master condition row. This is the bottom line — the ENGINE's final verdict on what to do. When this row says CALL or PUT, everything has aligned. This is your action card.
★▲ CALL
FIRE a call. All gates open. Full signal confirmed on bar close.
★▼ PUT
FIRE a put. All gates open. Full signal confirmed on bar close.
EXIT NOW
Exit your current trade. Any of the exit conditions fired.
▲ REV
Reversal call forming. Not in a trade — waiting for confirmation.
▼ REV
Reversal put forming. Not in a trade — waiting for confirmation.
CHANNEL
Channel detected — in tight suppress or breakout watch mode.
WAIT
Gridlock or mixed regime. No entries. Stay flat.
NEUTRAL
No active condition. Flat. Waiting for conditions to build.
Row 9 · DIRECTION GATE
L / S GATE
Shows which direction gate is open. Long gate (▲) requires MACD memory + ADX lift + DI+ above DI- + RSI bull + vol filter + momentum filter + HTF confirm. Short gate same in reverse.
▲:ON ▼:--
Long gate fully open. Call conditions met. Short not ready.
▲:-- ▼:ON
Short gate fully open. Put conditions met. Long not ready.
▲:-- ▼:--
Neither gate open. Conditions not fully aligned in either direction.
Row 10 · TIMING
WINDOW
Tracks the current minute within each 10-minute cycle (0–9). Anchor minutes (0, 1, 8) are optimal entry windows. Exit zone minutes (0, 3, 7) are optimal exit/management windows.
ANCHOR
Minutes 0, 1, or 8 — best entry timing. Signals here carry extra weight.
EXIT ZONE
Minutes 0, 3, or 7 — optimal exit/management zone. Manage your trade.
2m, 4m...
Current minute in the 10-min cycle. Neither anchor nor exit zone.
Chart Marker · PURPLE ARROW
▼-T Trail Exit
The purple ▼-T arrow appears on the chart when the trailing stop order fires and closes your position. This is NOT a signal card row — it is TradingView's strategy marker showing the trade was closed by the trail.
▼-T FIRED
Trailing stop hit. Price reversed past the trail distance from peak. Position automatically closed. Look for FLAT on scorecard.
-1 / +1 label
The number above the purple arrow is TradingView's trade counter or bar offset. It does NOT indicate profit or loss — it is just a chart label.
No Alert
No Pine Script webhook alert fires on a trail exit. Position shows FLAT. Scorecard OVERALL BIAS returns to NEUTRAL.
Row 11 · SESSION
SESSION
Whether the current time is inside the configured session window for your selected market type. When session filter is ON, signals only fire during the approved session window.
FUT: IN SESS
Futures session active — RTH 9:30–4:00 ET or Globex if enabled.
OPT: IN SESS
Options session active — 9:30 am–3:30 pm ET (30 min before close).
FUT: OUT
Outside configured session window. No new signals will fire.
04
HTF Confirmation Bias
What Is HTF Confirmation and Why It Matters
HTF stands for Higher Time Frame. When you trade on a 1-minute chart, the engine can look at the 5-minute chart and only allow signals to fire when both timeframes agree. This filters out weak signals that go against the bigger picture.

Think of it this way: the 5-min chart is the boss. The 1-min chart is where you time your entry. If the boss says "we are going up" and your 1-min entry says "call" — both agree — you take it with confidence. If the boss says "going down" but your 1-min says "call" — the engine blocks the signal. You do not take it.

The HTF uses three indicators pulled from the selected higher timeframe: MACD position relative to signal, EMA slope (rising or falling), and RSI level (above or below 50). All three must agree for the HTF gate to open.
▲
HTF LONG CONFIRMED — ▲ CONF
All 3 higher timeframe indicators agree — bullish
MACD Above
HTF MACD line is above the HTF signal line. The 5-min (or selected HTF) has bullish MACD momentum. This is the trend direction indicator.
EMA Rising
The 20-period EMA on the HTF is pointing upward — current bar EMA above previous bar EMA. The trend on the higher chart is up.
RSI Bull
HTF RSI is at or above 50. The higher timeframe is in a bullish RSI environment. All three conditions met = ▲ CONF fires. Call entries allowed.
▼
HTF SHORT CONFIRMED — ▼ CONF
All 3 higher timeframe indicators agree — bearish
MACD Below
HTF MACD line is below the HTF signal line. The 5-min has bearish MACD momentum. Trend direction on the higher chart is down.
EMA Falling
The 20-period EMA on the HTF is pointing downward — current bar EMA below previous bar EMA. The HTF trend is down.
RSI Bear
HTF RSI is below 50. The higher timeframe is in a bearish RSI environment. All three aligned = ▼ CONF fires. Put entries allowed.
⏸
HTF WAIT — Misaligned or Mixed
HTF indicators are not all pointing the same direction
MACD Mixed
MACD and signal near each other or recently crossed. HTF momentum is transitioning — not yet committed to a direction.
EMA Flat
HTF EMA slope is near horizontal — the higher timeframe trend is in a consolidation or transition phase.
RSI ~50
RSI near the 50 level — neither bullish nor bearish environment confirmed on the higher timeframe. Engine blocks both entries.
⚙
HTF Setup Guide — Which TF to Use
Match your chart timeframe to the right HTF setting
1-min chart
Set HTF Confirmation Timeframe to 5. The 5-min drives entries on the 1-min. Best for scalping NQ options.
5-min chart
Set HTF to 15. The 15-min confirms entries on the 5-min. Standard for intraday swing trades.
15-min chart
Set HTF to 60. The 1-hour chart confirms entries on the 15-min. Best for longer intraday holds.
HTF OFF
When "Require HTF Confirmation" is OFF, the gate always passes. Useful on higher timeframes where HTF is redundant. More signals, less filtering.
05
NQ / YM Market Regime Grid
▲▲
GREEN
NQ +100 pts · YM +100 pts
Both NQ and YM pushing hard above +100 points from the previous close. Buyers fully committed on both markets. This is the highest-confidence bullish regime.
✅ Prime Calls — Full Strength
▲
MIX GREEN (MG)
Both positive · one under +100
Both markets positive but at least one is not yet above +100 pts. Bullish lean is developing but not at full commitment. Calls are okay but not prime strength.
⚠ Calls OK — Developing
▼▼
RED
NQ -100 pts · YM -100 pts
Both NQ and YM pushing hard below -100 points from the previous close. Sellers fully committed on both markets. Highest-confidence bearish regime.
✅ Prime Puts — Full Strength
▼
MIX RED (MR)
Both negative · one above -100
Both markets negative but at least one has not yet reached -100 pts. Bearish lean developing but not at full commitment. Puts okay but reduced strength.
⚠ Puts OK — Developing
↕
MIXED
One positive · one negative
NQ and YM are moving in opposite directions. The markets disagree — one is bullish, one is bearish. This is market confusion. No options entries should be taken.
○ No Entries — Wait It Out
—
GRIDLOCK
Both within ±40 pts
Neither NQ nor YM is moving more than 40 points from the previous close. Nobody is committing. The market is sitting on its hands. Gridlock = no fuel for a move.
○ No Entries — Too Quiet
06
The 5 Rules — Read Before You Trade
1
Green Candle = Call Signal
Don't overthink it. If the candle is bright green and the scorecard OVERALL BIAS says ★▲ CALL — that is your entry. Everything aligned on bar close. Take it.
2
Red Candle = Put Signal
Same thing but down. If the candle is bright red and OVERALL BIAS says ★▼ PUT — that is your put entry. All bearish conditions confirmed on bar close. Take it.
3
Yellow Means Watch — Not Act
You are already in a trade and something changed. The candle just moved against your direction. Do NOT enter new trades on yellow. Wait and see what the next candle does before making any decision.
4
Orange Means Get Out NOW
The engine is done with this trade. Momentum ran out. ADX peaked. Do not hold through orange hoping it recovers — it usually does not. Exit clean and move on.
5
Black Means Sit on Your Hands
No signal. No trade. Black body with white border means the engine is watching but not firing. Waiting is a position. The best traders know when to do absolutely nothing.