What is Power of Three?
Power of Three, also called AMD, is ICT's three-part story of a move. Accumulation is a range where orders build up on both sides. Manipulation is the first move out of it, which takes the stops of whoever positioned for that side and comes back. Distribution is the real move, a close through the other side of the range.
The script draws the shape when all three parts have happened in order, as three boxes labelled A, M and D. It marks the pattern exactly and leaves the reading of intent to the trader.
This is a closed-source premium script. It runs on Altrady's servers, so only its output reaches your chart and its code is not published.
How to use Power of Three
- The sweep. The manipulation box shows where the stops were taken. A sweep of the lows followed by an up move is the bullish case.
- The distribution. The close through the opposite side of the range is the move the pattern is about. Its direction is the colour of the D box.
- Early warning. The amd_swept alert fires at the sweep, before the pattern is complete, so you can watch for the distribution as it happens.
- Breakouts are not AMD. A range that breaks in the direction of its first move is a breakout, not this pattern, and the script ignores it.
Settings
Accumulation
| Setting | Default | Range | What it changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timeframe | Chart | Chart, 15m, 30m, 1h, 4h, 1D | Read the whole pattern from a higher timeframe while trading a lower one. The chart's own period must divide it exactly. |
| Efficiency Length | 20 | 2 to 200 | The window the efficiency ratio is measured over, as in Range / Chop Detection. Both tools share the engine, so a range here is a range there. |
| Max Efficiency | 0.15 | 0 to 1 | Below this the window is ranging. See Range / Chop Detection's header for the measured trade-off behind the default. |
| Min Bars | 10 | 2 to 500 | A range must last this long to be worth sweeping. Shorter ones are noise, and a pattern built on noise is noise with three boxes around it. |
Pattern
| Setting | Default | Range | What it changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweep Within (bars) | 10 | 1 to 200 | How long after the range ends a sweep still counts as manipulation OF that range. Zero is allowed in effect: the sweep usually lands on the very bar that ends it. |
| Break Within (bars) | 30 | 1 to 500 | How long after the sweep a close through the opposite side still counts as the distribution. A move that takes far longer is a different move. |
Display
| Setting | Default | Range | What it changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Setups | 10 | 1 to 100 | The oldest setup's three boxes are removed past this. |
| Show Phase Boxes | On | The three boxes. With this off the tool is alerts and the state pane only. | |
| Show Labels | On | A, M and D on their boxes. | |
| Show Border | On | ||
| Label Size | Small | Tiny, Small, Normal, Large, Huge | |
| Show State Pane | Off | A sub-pane giving the phase the tool is waiting in and pulsing on each completed setup. The tool's internal state, and what the automated checks read. |
Colours
| Setting | Default | Range | What it changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accumulation | #787b86 | The range the pattern builds in. | |
| Manipulation | #ff6d00 | The sweep: the move that took the stops. | |
| Distribution Up | #089981 | A distribution that broke upward: the bullish case. | |
| Distribution Down | #f23645 | A distribution that broke downward. | |
| Label | #b0b3b8 |
Alerts: amd_swept, amd_complete.
How it works
The range is found the same way as in Range / Chop Detection, with the efficiency ratio. A stretch where price covered ground without getting anywhere, for at least Min Bars bars, counts as accumulation.
After the range ends, the script waits for a sweep of one side, a wick through it and a close back inside, within Sweep Within bars. The sweep can land on the very bar that ends the range, which is the common case. It then waits for a close through the other side within Break Within bars. A close beyond the swept side first kills the setup.
The setup completes on the distribution bar, and that is when all three boxes are drawn and amd_complete fires. Nothing repaints, because the range is over, the sweep has closed and the break is a close.
Limitations
- Drawn after the fact. The boxes appear only once the distribution close has happened. The tool tells you about the move once it is under way.
- Intent is not visible. The pattern is a shape. Whether anyone was actually accumulating or manipulating is a reading, not a measurement.
- Defaults were measured on one market. The range thresholds and bar windows came from testing on one market. Other markets and timeframes may need different values.
- Rare by design. Three conditions in order within limited windows do not line up often. Some charts show no setups for long stretches.
- Higher timeframes need a matching chart. When reading the pattern from a higher timeframe, the chart's own period must divide it exactly.
Get Power of Three
Premium scripts are a one-time purchase in the Altrady marketplace and need a paid Altrady plan to run.
- Power of Three / AMD $7 This script on its own.
- SMC / ICT bundle $35 7 premium scripts, Power of Three included.
- Altrady Complete Suite $109 All 36 premium scripts.
Frequently asked questions
An ICT model of a move in three parts. Accumulation builds a range, manipulation sweeps one side of it, and distribution is the real move through the other side.
No. A setup is drawn only when it is complete, on the distribution bar, and every part of it is already closed by then.
A close beyond the swept side, which is a breakout in the direction of the first move, or running out of time. The sweep must come within Sweep Within bars of the range ending and the break within Break Within bars of the sweep.
Two. amd_swept fires at the sweep, with a message saying which side was taken and which move to watch for, and amd_complete fires when the distribution close completes the pattern.
Yes. Power of Three / AMD is a closed-source premium script. It runs on Altrady's servers, so only its output reaches your chart and the code is never shared. You buy it once in the Altrady marketplace, on its own, in the SMC / ICT bundle or in the Altrady Complete Suite, and it needs a paid Altrady plan to run. It is also included with your first annual Premium subscription.
Use the Get it in Altrady button on this page to open its listing in the Altrady marketplace. Once it is in your account, open the indicator picker on any chart in Altrady Charts and add Power of Three / AMD like any other indicator. Its settings are in the indicator's settings panel.