Module 1 — Rails & Scroll Line

Quick Mode — 90-Second Version

Watch once, then follow the bullets and click next.

Mark PDH / PDL / OPEN.
Box the session window 7–10 ET.
Scroll Line = first 30-minute close of your window.
Closes › wicks: bodies decide, not shadows.

Set up the Rails ↓ Next: Continuation vs Reclaim →

1. The Session Window — Why 7–10 ET

We trade inside a defined session because that’s where liquidity concentrates, structures are clean, and probabilities are repeatable. The 7–10 ET overlap is where London hands the book to New York—often the day’s clearest impulse→pullback→decision prints.

Discipline: execute in-window; observe outside.
Clarity: fewer false reads; closes matter more.
Repeatability: same window, same behavior → skill compounds.

Session Map — 7–10 ET (TZ-aware) Timezone

ET is the logic baseline; convert to your local execution.

The Three Rails — Your Daily Map

The rails are the fixed references that shape the day’s story. They don’t predict— they give you context for every push and pull: continuation above PDH, failure beneath PDL, and the OPEN as the daily anchor.

PDH — Prior Day High (continuation line)
PDL — Prior Day Low (failure floor)
OPEN — Today’s open (context anchor)

Manual setup (TradingView)

Switch to M5 or M1. Draw horizontal rays at exact High and Low of prior day.
Mark today’s Open (be consistent with venue/00:00).
Style: width 2–3, extend right, label each rail (PDH/PDL/OPEN).

Advanced: auto-draw with our Pine

Pine Editor → paste → save → add to chart.

▼ Show / hide Pine script

//@version=6
indicator("Three Rails — Daily (PDH/PDL/Open + optional history)", overlay=true, shorttitle="Three Rails — Daily+H")

// ─── Inputs
grpRails     = "Rails & Labels"
showPDH      = input.bool(true,  "Show PDH (prior day high)", group=grpRails)
showPDL      = input.bool(true,  "Show PDL (prior day low)",  group=grpRails)
showOPEN     = input.bool(true,  "Show OPEN (today)",         group=grpRails)
showLabels   = input.bool(true,  "Show labels (tags)",        group=grpRails)   // NEW
showPx       = input.bool(true,  "Show price in labels",      group=grpRails)   // QoL from updated version
pxFormat     = input.string("mintick", "Price format",
                 options=["mintick","0.0","0.00","0.000","0.0000"], group=grpRails)
extendRight  = input.bool(true,  "Extend today’s rails to the right", group=grpRails)
lineWidth    = input.int(3, "Line width (today)", minval=1, maxval=7, group=grpRails)

grpColors    = "Colors"
colPDH       = input.color(color.green,  "PDH color",  group=grpColors)
colPDL       = input.color(color.red,    "PDL color",  group=grpColors)
colOPEN      = input.color(color.yellow, "OPEN color", group=grpColors)

grpHistory   = "History"
showHistory  = input.bool(false, "Show history (prior days)", group=grpHistory)
historyDays  = input.int(3, "How many prior days", minval=1, maxval=15, group=grpHistory)
histWidth    = input.int(2, "History line width", minval=1, maxval=5, group=grpHistory)
histAlpha    = input.int(55, "History opacity (0–100)", minval=0, maxval=100, group=grpHistory)

// ─── Helpers
fmt(x) =>
    pxFormat == "mintick" ? str.tostring(x, format.mintick) : str.tostring(x, pxFormat)

// ─── Daily series (lookahead_on so values stay constant within a day)
pdhSeries = request.security(syminfo.tickerid, "D", high[1], gaps=barmerge.gaps_off, lookahead=barmerge.lookahead_on)
pdlSeries = request.security(syminfo.tickerid, "D", low[1],  gaps=barmerge.gaps_off, lookahead=barmerge.lookahead_on)
openSeries= request.security(syminfo.tickerid, "D", open,    gaps=barmerge.gaps_off, lookahead=barmerge.lookahead_on)

// Today’s rails
pdh    = pdhSeries
pdl    = pdlSeries
oToday = openSeries

newDay = ta.change(time("D")) != 0
ext    = extendRight ? extend.right : extend.none

// ─── Handles (today)
var line  lPDH = na
var line  lPDL = na
var line  lOPN = na
var label tPDH = na
var label tPDL = na
var label tOPN = na

// ─── History storage
var line[] histLines = array.new_line()
f_clear_history() =>
    while array.size(histLines) > 0
        ln = array.pop(histLines)
        if not na(ln)
            line.delete(ln)

// ─── Label de-overlap
tick     = syminfo.mintick
offUp    = 3.0 * tick
offDown  = 3.0 * tick
closePHO = math.abs(pdh - oToday) <= 2.5 * tick
closePHP = math.abs(pdh - pdl)    <= 2.5 * tick
closeHLO = math.abs(oToday - pdl) <= 2.5 * tick
yPDH  = pdh    + ((closePHO or closePHP) ? offUp   : 0)
yOPEN = oToday
yPDL  = pdl    - (closeHLO ? offDown : 0)

// ─── Factory helpers
make_line(float y, color c, int w) =>
    line.new(bar_index - 1, y, bar_index + 1, y, xloc=xloc.bar_index, extend=ext, color=c, width=w)
make_label(float y, string txt, color bg, color fg) =>
    label.new(bar_index + 1, y, txt, xloc=xloc.bar_index, yloc=yloc.price, style=label.style_label_right, color=color.new(bg, 20), textcolor=fg)
delete_line(line h) =>
    if not na(h)
        line.delete(h)
delete_label(label lb) =>
    if not na(lb)
        label.delete(lb)

// Track setting changes
var bool prevShowHistory = false
var int  prevHistDays    = 0
var int  prevHistWidth   = 0
var int  prevHistAlpha   = 0
var bool prevShowLabels  = true   // NEW

needRebuild = barstate.isfirst or newDay or
              (prevShowHistory != showHistory) or
              (prevHistDays    != historyDays) or
              (prevHistWidth   != histWidth)   or
              (prevHistAlpha   != histAlpha)   or
              (prevShowLabels  != showLabels)  // NEW

// ─── Rebuild on first load / new day / settings change
if needRebuild
    // wipe today
    delete_line(lPDH)
    delete_line(lPDL)
    delete_line(lOPN)
    delete_label(tPDH)
    delete_label(tPDL)
    delete_label(tOPN)

// today’s rails
    if showPDH and not na(pdh)
        lPDH := make_line(pdh, colPDH, lineWidth)
        if showLabels
            tPDH := make_label(yPDH, "PDH" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(pdh) : ""), colPDH, color.white)
    if showPDL and not na(pdl)
        lPDL := make_line(pdl, colPDL, lineWidth)
        if showLabels
            tPDL := make_label(yPDL, "PDL" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(pdl) : ""), colPDL, color.white)
    if showOPEN and not na(oToday)
        lOPN := make_line(oToday, colOPEN, lineWidth)
        if showLabels
            tOPN := make_label(yOPEN, "OPEN" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(oToday) : ""), colOPEN, color.black)

// History (timezone-safe; correctly bounded)
    f_clear_history()
    if showHistory
        tz = syminfo.timezone
        for k = 1 to historyDays
            // Window for day k ago: [start(k+1), start(k))
            t1 = time("D", "", tz)[k + 1]
            t2 = time("D", "", tz)[k]
            if not na(t1) and not na(t2)
                t2_in = t2 - 1
                pdh_k = pdhSeries[k]
                pdl_k = pdlSeries[k]
                opn_k = openSeries[k]
                if not na(pdh_k) and not na(pdl_k) and not na(opn_k)
                    ln1 = line.new(t1, pdh_k, t2_in, pdh_k, xloc=xloc.bar_time, extend=extend.none, color=color.new(colPDH, histAlpha), width=histWidth)
                    ln2 = line.new(t1, pdl_k, t2_in, pdl_k, xloc=xloc.bar_time, extend=extend.none, color=color.new(colPDL, histAlpha), width=histWidth)
                    ln3 = line.new(t1, opn_k, t2_in, opn_k, xloc=xloc.bar_time, extend=extend.none, color=color.new(colOPEN,histAlpha), width=histWidth)
                    array.push(histLines, ln1)
                    array.push(histLines, ln2)
                    array.push(histLines, ln3)

// remember settings
    prevShowHistory := showHistory
    prevHistDays    := historyDays
    prevHistWidth   := histWidth
    prevHistAlpha   := histAlpha
    prevShowLabels  := showLabels

// ─── Keep today’s rails flat and labels in sync (only if labels are shown)
if not na(lPDH)
    line.set_y1(lPDH, pdh)
    line.set_y2(lPDH, pdh)
    line.set_x2(lPDH, bar_index + 1)
    line.set_extend(lPDH, ext)
    if showLabels and not na(tPDH)
        label.set_x(tPDH, bar_index + 1)
        label.set_y(tPDH, yPDH)
        label.set_text(tPDH, "PDH" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(pdh) : ""))

if not na(lPDL)
    line.set_y1(lPDL, pdl)
    line.set_y2(lPDL, pdl)
    line.set_x2(lPDL, bar_index + 1)
    line.set_extend(lPDL, ext)
    if showLabels and not na(tPDL)
        label.set_x(tPDL, bar_index + 1)
        label.set_y(tPDL, yPDL)
        label.set_text(tPDL, "PDL" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(pdl) : ""))

if not na(lOPN)
    line.set_y1(lOPN, oToday)
    line.set_y2(lOPN, oToday)
    line.set_x2(lOPN, bar_index + 1)
    line.set_extend(lOPN, ext)
    if showLabels and not na(tOPN)
        label.set_x(tOPN, bar_index + 1)
        label.set_y(tOPN, yOPEN)
        label.set_text(tOPN, "OPEN" + (showPx ? " " + fmt(oToday) : ""))

Download .pine

Scroll Line — The Day’s Axis

The Scroll Line is the close of the first 30 minutes of your active window (e.g., inside 7–10 ET). We wait for the close because closes carry authority; wicks are only probes.

How to set it

Box your window (e.g., 7–10 ET).
Let the first 30m candle complete. Use its closing price as the Scroll Line.
Treat the Scroll Line as the axis for continuation or reclaim tests.

Example: If the first 30m candle closes at 3.5572, that’s your Scroll Line for the day.

Closes Decide — Not Wicks

Close = authority. Probes (wicks) don’t decide; closes do.

Candle Anatomy — Open, Close, and Wicks Optional helper

Bodies decide. Wicks are probes. We trade the close.

Open/Close: The body’s endpoints. Bull: open at bottom, close at top. Bear: open at top, close at bottom.

Quick rule

Closes > Wicks: bias shifts on closes, not touches.
Scroll Line: first 30m close of your window (Module 2 uses it for continuation/reclaim).

Checklist

Have I marked PDH/PDL/OPEN and boxed 7–10 ET?
Did I wait for the first 30m close to set the Scroll Line?
Am I making decisions on closes, not wicks?
Ready to apply the two-close rule in Module 2?