Predictive Ranges HTF draws five levels on MT4 and MT5 — a centre, two above, two below — and the interesting thing about them is how rarely they move.
Most level indicators recalculate on every bar, which means the level is following price. This one is built so that it doesn't.
The centre is a ratchet
The centre starts at the current close. After that it only changes when price has moved further than ATR times Factor away from it, and when it does move, it moves by exactly that distance. Not to where price is. By one step.
With the default Factor of 6 and a 200-period ATR, that's a large distance. On most instruments and timeframes the centre stays where it is for days at a time, then steps once, then sits still again.
What you get on the chart is a staircase: long horizontal runs at one price, then a jump. That is what makes the levels usable as references, because a reference that moves every bar isn't one.
The band width is frozen too
When the centre steps, the tool records half the current ATR×Factor and holds it. Every subsequent level is built from that held value:
| Level | Where it sits |
|---|---|
| R2 | centre + 2 × held |
| R1 | centre + 1 × held |
| Centre | the ratchet value |
| S1 | centre − 1 × held |
| S2 | centre − 2 × held |
So the whole structure is frozen at the volatility that existed when the level was established. A quiet week doesn't shrink the bands and one violent hour doesn't blow them out. They change when, and only when, the centre steps.
The two boxes you see are R1-to-R2 and S1-to-S2. The area between R1 and S1 is left clear, which is the zone price spends most of its time in.
Factor is the only setting that matters
Factor at 6 gives you the staircase in the screenshot on the right: a handful of steps over several days. Lower it and the levels track price more closely, step more often, and become less useful as references. Raise it and you'll get one set of levels for a week.
There isn't a right answer, and the comparison image above is the fastest way to pick one: run it at two values on the same chart and see which staircase matches how long you hold a position.
Length sets the ATR period at 200. It's slow deliberately, so the band width reflects the instrument rather than the week.
Higher timeframe
Timeframe runs the whole calculation on a higher series and draws the result on your chart. Daily ranges on an H1 chart is the obvious use, and because the levels are already stable this doesn't create the mess that projecting a fast indicator upward usually does.
Keep history
Keep history level is off by default, which means only the current set of levels is drawn. Every time the centre steps, the previous set is replaced.
Turn it on and each set stays where it was, giving you the full staircase across the chart. That's the setting to use when you're looking back to see how price behaved at previous levels; leave it off for a clean live chart.
What it doesn't do
No alerts. None at all. The tool draws levels and nothing else, so if you want to be told when price reaches R1 you'll need to set that yourself in the terminal.
No indicator buffers, so iCustom gets nothing.
No signals, no zones, no state. Five levels and two boxes.
Where it's weak
No alerts is the real gap. A stable level set is exactly the thing you'd want a price alert on, and this build has no notification system.
The step is symmetric but the market isn't. The centre moves by the same distance whichever way price broke, so after a violent one-way move the new centre can sit well behind price rather than near it.
Held width can be stale. The band width is frozen at the step. If volatility collapses after a step, the levels stay wide until the next one, which on a high Factor can be a long time.
The first value is seeded from the current close. On a freshly loaded chart the first centre is wherever price happened to be, so the earliest levels on the left edge aren't meaningful. Give it some history.
The higher-timeframe series has to be loaded. Ask for D1 levels on a symbol whose daily bars aren't in the terminal and nothing is drawn. Open a D1 chart once and refresh.
Questions you'll have
Does Predictive Ranges HTF repaint? The current level set extends to the right while it's live, and is replaced when the centre steps. With Keep history level off, previous sets are removed rather than redrawn, which is the setting doing what it says. Turn it on and nothing is ever removed.
Why don't the levels move with price? Because the centre only steps when price has travelled ATR times Factor away from it. That's the whole design. If you want them to follow price, lower Factor.
What's the difference between R1 and R2? R1 is one held-width above the centre, R2 is two. The shaded box between them is the upper range zone.
How do I get daily levels on an intraday chart? Set Timeframe to D1. The calculation runs on that series.
Does it have alerts? No. This build draws only.
Can an EA read the levels? No. There are no indicator buffers; everything is a chart object.
What Factor should I use? Compare two values on your own chart. Higher means fewer, longer-lasting level sets. Six is the default and suits swing timeframes.
MT4? Both platforms are included, one download each. Same ratchet, same five levels, same higher-timeframe option.
Support
Message me through the site with a screenshot, the symbol and the timeframe, and I can tell you when the centre last stepped and why. Updates are included for as long as your subscription runs.
Analysis tool. It places no trades and makes no profitability claim. Past price behaviour is not a guide to future price behaviour.