The Black Sheep v1.0

Black Sheep v1.0 is a comprehensive, multi-signal indicator designed to identify statistically significant market anomalies that often signal the activity of institutional traders or "smart money." The core principle is that institutional footprints are visible not in typical price action but in the unusual and statistically improbable events that deviate from the norm.

This indicator does not provide simple buy or sell signals. Instead, it acts as a powerful scanner, alerting you to moments of potential market manipulation, absorption, exhaustion, or stealth accumulation. Each signal is grounded in a statistical comparison of the current bar's price range and volume against a recent baseline, making it adaptive to any market and timeframe.

The name "Black Sheep" reflects the indicator's purpose: to find the bars that stand out from the flock—the anomalies that tell a deeper story about market dynamics.

Features
8 Unique Signals: Identifies distinct market phenomena, from stop hunts to absorption events.

Statistically Driven: Uses standard deviations for volume and range to define "unusual" activity, adapting automatically to changing market volatility.

Fully Customizable: Every parameter for every signal can be tweaked, allowing you to fine-tune the indicator's sensitivity to your specific trading instrument and style.

Clear Visual Alerts: Signals are plotted as clean, non-intrusive labels on the chart for immediate recognition.

Comprehensive Tooltips: Every setting is explained directly in the indicator's menu, making configuration intuitive.

The Signals Explained
Each of the 8 signals is designed to detect a specific type of market behavior.

1. Ghost Spike (Stop Hunt)

Concept: A sharp, sudden spike that breaks a recent high or low, only to reverse quickly. Crucially, this move happens on low volume, suggesting it lacks genuine market conviction. This is the classic signature of a stop hunt, designed to trigger stop-loss orders and trap retail traders.

Logic: Identifies bars with a very large range, a tiny body (wick-dominated), and volume that is statistically lower than average.

2. Absorption Candle (Iceberg Order)

Concept: Indicates a major battle between buyers and sellers at a key price level. This candle is characterized by massive volume but a very small body. It suggests a large passive order (an "iceberg order") is absorbing all the aggressive market orders, preventing price from moving. This is a sign of a strong support or resistance level being defended.

Logic: Detects bars with statistically massive volume but a price range that is mostly wicks.

3. VWAP Slingshot

Concept: The Volume-Weighted Average Price (VWAP) is a key benchmark for institutional traders. This signal identifies a sharp, high-volume rejection from the VWAP line. It signifies that price tested this important level and was forcefully "slingshotted" away, validating its importance as a dynamic support/resistance zone.

Logic: Triggers on a bar that touches the VWAP, has a long rejection wick (measured in ATRs), and is accompanied by high volume.

4. Session Close Markup

Concept: Highlights aggressive, high-volume buying or selling that occurs in the final minutes of a major trading session (e.g., the NYSE close). This can indicate institutions "marking up" or "marking down" the closing price for portfolio management or positioning themselves for the next session.

Logic: Fires within a user-defined window before the session close on candles with a large, decisive body and high volume.

5. Dawn Raid (Pre-Market Spike)

Concept: A "Dawn Raid" is a sudden burst of high-volume activity during the typically quiet and illiquid pre-market session. This is often the first sign of significant interest in an asset, usually triggered by news, an earnings release, or a large fund building a position before the market opens.

Logic: Detects candles in the pre-market session with volume that is multiple standard deviations above the average pre-market volume.

6. Liquidity Vacuum

Concept: Identifies periods of extremely low volume and price volatility. In these "vacuums," the market is thin, and even small orders can cause disproportionate price movement. These periods often precede explosive, high-volume breakouts, acting as the "calm before the storm."

Logic: Flags candles where both volume and range are a small fraction of their recent averages (ATR and average volume).

7. Delta Divergence

Concept: A classic pattern that signals weakening momentum. A bearish divergence occurs when price makes a higher high, but the candle's body ("delta") fails to confirm it, suggesting the upward thrust is losing power. A bullish divergence occurs when price makes a lower low, but the delta shows less downward conviction.

Logic: Compares recent price pivot highs/lows with the corresponding pivots of the candle's delta (close - open).

8. Fake Breakout (High Volume)

Concept: This signal captures a failed breakout attempt that occurs on high volume. Unlike the low-volume Ghost Spike, this pattern shows that there was a genuine attempt to break a level, but it was met with even stronger opposing force. This creates a powerful trap and often leads to a strong reversal.

Logic: Identifies a large-range breakout candle with a small body and high volume.

How to Use
The Black Sheep indicator should be used as a confluence tool, not a standalone system. The signals it generates are points of interest that warrant further investigation. Use them to:

Confirm or deny a trade thesis based on your existing strategy.

Identify potential market tops and bottoms.

Spot institutional trapping and positioning.

Understand the context behind price movements.

For best results, combine these signals with analysis of market structure, support/resistance levels, order flow, and other contextual clues. Adjust the input settings for each signal to match the volatility profile of the asset you are trading.