Fractal Chaos Bands build a channel from swing points rather than from every bar. A fractal high is a bar whose high is above the highs of the bars on either side, and a fractal low is a bar whose low is below both neighbours. A fractal is known one bar after it forms.
The study carries the latest fractal high and the latest fractal low forward, starting from the first bar's own high and low. The upper band is the highest of those carried fractal highs over the last period bars, and the lower band is the lowest of the carried fractal lows, using every bar so far while the window fills.
With Show Fractal Points switched on, each fractal is marked on the bar that printed it, one bar back from the bar that confirmed it.
How to read Fractal Chaos Bands (FCB)
The bands mark the most extreme swing points of the period, so they step rather than slide. A close above the upper band breaks the highest recent swing high, and a close below the lower band breaks the lowest recent swing low. While price stays inside, the market is trading within its recent swing structure.
Flat bands for a long stretch mean no new swing has exceeded the old extremes. The fractal marks show where each swing was set; some traders place a stop just beyond the latest one.
Settings
- Period
- The number of bars the highest fractal high and lowest fractal low are taken over. Longer periods hold old swings longer.
- Show Fractal Points
- Mark each fractal high and fractal low on the bar that printed it.
Frequently asked questions
Why are the fractal marks one bar behind?
A three-bar fractal needs the bar after the middle bar to confirm it. The test runs on that confirming bar, and the mark is drawn one bar back, on the middle bar, at its high or low.
Why do the bands stay flat?
They follow the most extreme swing in the window. Until a new fractal exceeds it or it leaves the window, the band does not move.
How is this different from a plain high and low channel?
Only swing points count. A single tall bar that is not higher than its neighbours on both sides does not move the band.
