GhostLimit

A resting order that isn't on the book. Drag a trigger line and an entry line onto your NinjaTrader 8 chart, arm it, and nothing is sent to the exchange. The moment price touches the trigger, GhostLimit submits the real Stop or Limit entry with a native ATM template attached — brackets included.

Why it exists

A conventional sell limit fills the moment price reaches it — usually mid-push, right before the move that takes out your stop. What actually worked for me was waiting for price to tap a level (a VWAP, a prior high) and entering on the way back. Doing that by hand means staring at the screen with the mouse hovering over the DOM.

GhostLimit is that pattern as an indicator: the level is armed, the order stays invisible until the tap, and then it goes in as a stop entry on the pullback.

How it works

Trigger line (orange, dashed)	the price that wakes the order up
Entry line (blue)	where the order is actually placed
Entry type	Stop (default) or Limit
Brackets	always a native NT8 ATM template — no hand-rolled OCO
Lifecycle	one shot per arm: DISARMED → ARMED → TRIGGERED → POSITION OPEN

Both lines are draggable. On load they appear 50 points apart, 25 either side of price, so there is room to place them before arming.

Fail-closed by design. If, at the instant of the trigger, the order would be invalid or immediately marketable (a "limit" that would fill instantly at the wrong price), nothing is sent — the state goes to ERROR and says why. Cancellation is surgical, by order reference: CancelAllOrders is never called, because in NinjaTrader it cancels orders across every account, not just yours.

Install

1. Copy src/GhostLimit.cs to Documents\NinjaTrader 8\bin\Custom\Indicators\GhostLimit.cs
2. In NinjaTrader press F5 (compiling from the NinjaScript editor is what builds it — a machine restart is not enough).
3. Add GhostLimit to a chart. The DISARMED state shows a version stamp; check it after every recompile so you never test a stale binary.
4. Set the parameters: AccountName (default SimBot — change it to your own sim account first), AtmTemplate, EntryType, Quantity, PlaySoundOnTrigger.

The ATM template name must match a file in Documents\NinjaTrader 8\templates\AtmStrategy\ exactly — the ... in names like 60 . . . 40 are literal characters.

Requirements: NinjaTrader 8, an ATM template, and an account you're willing to send orders from. Test on a simulation account first.

Tests

The pure decision logic lives in GhostLimitRules — no state, no NinjaTrader types — so it can be tested with the market closed and NinjaTrader shut:

powershell -File tests\correr_pruebas_ghostlimit.ps1

20 cases (full truth table for the marketable/invalid guard, plus touch detection across gaps). Exit 0 green, 1 a failing test, 2 a compile error. tools\compilar_ninjascript.ps1 compile-checks any NinjaScript file against the real NinjaTrader DLLs.

Two gotchas that cost me hours

• The order's name must be exactly "Entry". With any other name, AtmStrategy.StartAtmStrategy fails silently: the order sits in Initialized forever, shows on the chart as an uncancellable working order, and never reaches the simulator.
• Recompiling does not reload the instance on your chart. The old instance stays alive and can still fire with the previous binary. Disarm before pressing F5, and check the version stamp afterwards.

Known limitations (v1)

State advances on the next incoming tick (polled in OnMarketData); removing the indicator while an order is working does not cancel it (it stays as a manual order with its ATM); dragging the entry line after the trigger does not re-quote; an armed state does not survive a NinjaTrader restart — by design.

License

MIT — see LICENSE. Trading software provided as-is, with no warranty: it sends real orders, and you are responsible for every one of them. Nothing here is financial advice.

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Español

Una orden en reposo que no está en el libro. Arrastras una línea de gatillo y una de entrada sobre tu gráfica de NinjaTrader 8, armas, y no se manda nada al mercado. En el momento en que el precio toca el gatillo, GhostLimit envía la entrada real —Stop o Limit— con una plantilla ATM nativa: brackets incluidos.

Por qué existe. Un sell limit convencional se llena justo cuando el precio llega, en plena subida, y el siguiente empujón te toca el stop. Lo que sí funcionaba era esperar a que el precio tocara el nivel (una VWAP, un máximo previo) y entrar en el regreso — pero eso exige estar pegado a la pantalla con el mouse sobre el DOM. GhostLimit convierte ese patrón en un indicador.

Cómo funciona. Línea de gatillo (naranja, punteada) = el precio que despierta la orden; línea de entrada (azul) = donde se coloca de verdad. Stop (default) o Limit. Brackets siempre por ATM nativo. Un disparo por armado: DISARMED → ARMED → TRIGGERED → POSITION OPEN. Las dos líneas son arrastrables y nacen a 50 puntos de distancia, 25 a cada lado del precio.

Fail-closed. Si al momento del disparo la orden sería inválida o marketable, no se envía nada: estado ERROR y el motivo. La cancelación es quirúrgica por referencia de orden; jamás CancelAllOrders, que en NinjaTrader cancela en todas las cuentas.

Instalación. Copia src/GhostLimit.cs a Documents\NinjaTrader 8\bin\Custom\Indicators\, presiona F5 en NinjaTrader, agrega GhostLimit a una gráfica y ajusta AccountName (default SimBot: cámbialo por tu cuenta de simulación), AtmTemplate, EntryType, Quantity. El nombre de la plantilla ATM debe coincidir con el archivo en templates\AtmStrategy\ (los ... son literales).

Pruebas. powershell -File tests\correr_pruebas_ghostlimit.ps1 corre 20 casos con el mercado cerrado y NinjaTrader apagado (las reglas puras viven en GhostLimitRules).

Dos trampas que costaron horas. El name de la orden debe ser exactamente "Entry" o StartAtmStrategy falla en silencio y la orden queda Initialized para siempre. Y recompilar no recarga la instancia de tu gráfica: desarma antes del F5 y verifica el sello de versión.

Limitaciones v1. El estado avanza con el siguiente tick; quitar el indicador con una orden viva no la cancela; arrastrar la línea azul después del disparo no re-cotiza; el armado no sobrevive a un reinicio de NinjaTrader (a propósito).

Licencia MIT. Software de trading tal cual, sin garantía: manda órdenes reales y tú eres responsable de todas. Esto no es asesoría financiera.