Elder-Ray

Indicators · Momentum

Bulls Power / Bears Power vs an EMA reference.

Elder-Ray, from Dr Alexander Elder, x-rays a trend to show the strength of buyers and sellers separately. It splits into Bulls Power (how far buyers can push price above its average) and Bears Power (how far sellers can push it below). Like an x-ray reveals bone beneath skin, Elder-Ray reveals the underlying force beneath price — letting you see, for instance, that even in an uptrend the bulls are weakening before price actually turns.

How it works

The block takes an EMA of close over the Period (13) as the consensus "value," then computes two histograms: Bulls Power = high − EMA (how far above value buyers reached) and Bears Power = low − EMA (how far below value sellers reached). In an uptrend Bulls Power is positive and Bears Power is usually negative but rising toward zero. Both plot as histograms in a sub-pane.

When to use it

Elder uses it within his trading system as a timing and confirmation tool, combined with a trend filter (the EMA's slope). The classic long setup: the trend (EMA) is up, Bears Power is negative but rising (sellers losing grip — a pullback that's ending), and you buy as it ticks up. The mirror applies for shorts. Divergence is key — Bulls Power making lower peaks while price makes higher highs warns the buying force is fading. It's a confirmation overlay on a trend, not a standalone signal.

Example

Elder-Ray on EURUSD · H1

Buy a pullback in an uptrend: require the EMA rising (trend up) and Elder-Ray's Bears Power negative-but-rising (the pullback exhausting) — combine through an And gate into a Buy Signal, entering as Bears Power turns back up. Backtest in the Tester.

Tips & gotchas

• Two forces, read separately — Bulls Power and Bears Power around an EMA reference.
• Use it with the EMA's trend — Elder's method gates entries by trend direction.
• Bears-rising-in-an-uptrend = ending pullback (and mirror) — the core timing cue.
• Divergence warns of a fading force before price turns.

Related blocks

• EMA
• Balance of Power
• Force Index
• Awesome Oscillator

Inputs

Socket	Type	What to wire in
Bars	bars	OHLC bars (high/low/close required)

Outputs

Output	Type	Plots as	Description
Bulls	series	Histogram · sub-pane	high − EMA(close, period)
Bears	series	Histogram · sub-pane	low − EMA(close, period)

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	What it does
Period	number · 2–500	13	EMA window for the reference price
Bulls color	colour	#26a69a
Bears color	colour	#ef5350

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Reference auto-generated from the block catalog · category Indicators.