An indicator that shows, as a single number, how widely recent closes are scattered around their average. The larger it is, the harder the price is swinging.
- Weapon tier
- Advanced
- Slots used
- Sub-charts 1/2
Concept
Two lines are drawn in a lower panel. The value line is the standard deviation of the last 20 closes, and the stdSignal line is the average of that value over the last 50 candles.
What rises and falls here is not the price’s direction but “how big the shaking is”. Whether the price jumps up or plunges, the value grows. Think of it as the very number that sets the band width of Bollinger Bands, pulled out as its own line.
- value
- stdSignal
Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™
80 candles with volume, and the value and stdSignal lines in a lower panel. From candle 1 to candle 59 (shaded), the value line stays low under the stdSignal line and the price moves in a narrow range. At candle 60 (yellow vertical line) the value line rises above the stdSignal line, the price moves sharply, and the value grows several times larger before shrinking again. Keyboard: ←/→ to move, +/− to zoom, 0 to see the whole chart.
The shading is where the shaking was smaller than usual, and the yellow vertical line is the candle where it rose above its usual level. In this chart the price moved up, but a growing value alone does not tell you the direction. Drag the chart sideways with a finger or the mouse to move it, and pinch with two fingers to zoom in. With a keyboard, click the chart, then use ←/→ to move and +/− to zoom.
How it is calculated
Find the average of the last 20 closes.
Measure how far each close is from that average, square it, average those squares and take the square root. That is the standard deviation (value). Its unit is the same as the price.
stdSignal = the simple average of value over the last 50 candles. This period is fixed and cannot be changed.
Parameters
| What it sets | Name in the game | Default | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Candles used for the standard deviation | period | 20 | 2 – 200 |
Trading ideas
Movement after quiet: when value has stayed well below stdSignal for a long time and then rises above it, it is commonly read as a quiet price starting to move. The chart on this page shows that scene. Read the direction separately from the price trend (lesson 2).
Caution when the shaking is large: after value spikes, some traders treat it as a rough, back-and-forth period and avoid rushing in.
Common traps
- A larger value does not mean the price will rise. It grows just the same in a sharp fall.
- Its unit is the price, so the more expensive the stock, the larger the number. Do not compare the numbers across stocks; only look at how high or low it is within the same chart.
- None of these are sure signals. Read them together with the trend and volume.
In the game
- “Standard Deviation” is an “Advanced” weapon and uses 1 of the “Sub-charts” panels (limit 2). Volume in the starting setup already uses 1, so adding it brings it to 2 (0 left).
- The crossing of the two lines does not mean a direction. Even for players who own the shop’s “Markers”, this indicator’s crossings show as ○ rather than arrows — a sign that the shaking has started to grow (or shrink) compared with usual.
Related indicators and lessons
- Bollinger Bands — An indicator that uses three lines, a moving average in the middle and a band above and below it, to show how much the price is swinging compared with usual.
- ATR — An indicator that shows, in price units, how much a single candle usually moves. It does not say which way; it only measures the size of the swings.
- Envelope — An indicator that draws lines a “fixed percentage” above and below a moving average, to show how far the price has moved away from the average.
- Keltner Channels — An indicator that puts an exponential moving average in the middle and draws two lines above and below it, set apart by the usual daily range (ATR), to show the price’s “normal range”.
- Donchian Channel — An indicator that traces the highest and lowest prices of a recent period, showing the moment the price leaves its “range so far”.
- Chaikin Volatility — A volatility indicator that shows, as a % change, how much the gap between each candle’s high and low has been widening (or narrowing) lately.
- 3. Moving averages