First Candle Rule

Learn the First Candle Rule: A 5-minute and 1-minute price action day trading strategy using the first candle's range and Fair Value Gaps for entry.

Published · Updated · Methodology: Price Action

Part of: Fair Value Gap (FVG)

  • Methodology: Price Action
  • Content type: strategy
  • Timeframes: 5-minute, 1-minute

Indicators used

  • Fair Value Gap (FVG)

Source video

Decoded from: I Trade This Simple Method Everyday (Repeatable) by Casper SMC — watch the original

Key timestamps:

  • 0:17 - Introduction to the First Candle Rule
  • 0:23 - Marking the first 5-minute candle
  • 0:30 - Dropping to the 1-minute chart and waiting for a break
  • 0:33 - Confirming a good break with a fair value gap
  • 0:44 - Entry and stop loss placement
  • 0:48 - Take profit target

Strategy overview

A fair value gap (FVG) is the imbalance left on a chart when price moves so fast that it prints an untraded gap between candle wicks. In Casper SMC's video "I Trade This Simple Method Everyday (Repeatable)", that gap is not the centerpiece — it is the confirmation step inside a fixed opening routine the channel calls the First Candle Rule, a method deliberately pitched as simple enough to repeat every session.

The distinctive angle here is the anchor. Rather than treating a whole overnight session or a top-down timeframe cascade as the reference, this method starts from a single candle: the first 5-minute candle of the window is marked, and the analysis then drops to the 1-minute chart to wait for price to break that candle's range. The fair value gap only enters at that moment — as the tell that the break is a genuine displacement rather than a wick through the level — before the routine turns to entry, stop, and target placement.

That ordering is what sets this entry apart from other FVG material: the gap is subordinated to a time-and-structure anchor (one candle, one lower-timeframe break) instead of acting as the primary trigger, and the whole sequence is framed around everyday repeatability rather than a single perfect setup. This page pairs the fair value gap concept with the source video so you can see how Casper SMC positions the FVG as the confirmation filter in a mechanical, session-open routine.

Topics

first candle rule · price action strategy · day trading strategy · fair value gap · 1 minute strategy · 5 minute strategy · trading strategy · pine script · tradingview strategy · scalping strategy · smc strategy · ict trading

Frequently asked questions

What is the First Candle Rule?

It is a price-action method that marks the first 5-minute candle of the session and treats a break of that candle's range — watched on the 1-minute chart — as the basis for a trade. Casper SMC presents it as a simple, repeatable daily routine built around that single opening candle.

How does the fair value gap fit into this method?

In this video the FVG is the confirmation step, not the trigger. After price breaks the first candle's range on the 1-minute chart, a fair value gap is used to signal that the break is a real displacement rather than a false move, which is when the setup is considered valid.

What is a fair value gap (FVG)?

A fair value gap is a price imbalance left behind when a fast move creates a gap between candle wicks, meaning both buyers and sellers did not fully transact in that zone. Price often revisits the gap later, which is why traders watch it as a reference area.

How can I study or test a method like this?

Watch the source video for the full walkthrough, then backtest the idea on historical intraday data before risking capital. Strategy Decoder extracts the structure of strategies like this one from their video sources so you can evaluate and test them on TradingView.

About this strategy page

This trading strategy was decoded by Strategy Decoder's AI from a public YouTube trading video and turned into a structured, reviewable specification. In the interactive app this page shows the full entry and exit logic, risk management settings, the indicators involved with their parameters, AlgoWizard-compatible logic and a Pine Script export ready for TradingView backtesting — plus an automated backtest verdict when one has been computed for this strategy.

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