When Should You Short A Rally In ES Futures? | AM Briefing #896
ES CHART | KEY LEVELS | SETUPS
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| Pre-MarketAM Briefing | Watch on YouTube |
| 15 Minutes Prior to OpeningES Live Trading Room | Join the Live Room |
| After Market CloseBattle Plan | Get Tonight’s Battle Plan |
Today at a Glance
Wait for the rising trend line to break and for price to start laddering… that changes the ball game. A short on the very first attempt into a rally is a knife catch, so have your trade management protocols in place before you take it.
- Date: Thursday, November 12, 2026
- Overnight: ES gapped down and is consolidating near the bottom, building a strong base without filling the gap.
- News Drivers: Unemployment claims this morning, existing home sales 30 minutes after the open, multiple FOMC speakers, and earnings after the close.
- Lesson of the Day: Once price breaks the trend line and starts laddering, that changes the ball game.
- Key Zones: The Strong Level under today's base, the unfilled gap above, and the rising trend line that broke yesterday afternoon.
ES Technical Analysis — AM Briefing 896 Timeline
Thursday November 12, 2026
| TIME | CHAPTER |
|---|---|
| 0:00 | Welcome ES MES Futures Traders |
| 0:36 | Episode 896 and This Week's Scripture Oh give thanks to the Lord… His mercy endures forever. Psalm 136. |
| 0:59 | News Drivers Unemployment claims, existing home sales after the open, FOMC speakers, earnings after the close. |
| 1:33 | Feature of the Day: Chrome Extensions for TradingView A tour of the extensions built to supercharge TradingView. |
| 2:01 | Telescope Into Any Candle Ctrl + click a 30 minute candle to reveal the smaller candles inside it. |
| 3:33 | Levels Colored by Timeframe Levels color by the timeframe you drew them on. Type a note the moment you draw. |
| 4:37 | Line Type and Timeframe Shortcuts Shift plus an arrow changes line type. Arrow keys and quick bars change timeframes. |
| 5:56 | Annotate Your Chart to Journal Faster A for annotations, the pencil for your journal, the camera for screenshots. |
| 7:51 | Indicators and Hotkeys Click the indicator name to toggle it. Shift + S turns Strong Levels on and off. |
| 9:04 | Favorites Bar and Font Size Make the favorites bar and indicator fonts bigger. Nice for older eyes. |
| 9:44 | Updates and the 30 Day Trial Constant and never ending improvement. Test the extensions with the 30 day ultimate trial. |
| 10:25 | How We Traded Monday Battle Plan 4 reclaimed the Strong Level. The three contract system just continues to pay. |
| 11:30 | Tuesday CPI and the Overnight Hold Nothing to do on CPI. A Core Strategy trade held overnight paid 150 points. |
| 11:57 | Yesterday's Live Trades A 70 pointer with the lotto runner, a Strong Level long and Battle Plan 1. |
| 12:54 | Where Would I Short? A mapped short area is an area of interest. Does it mean you instantly short? No. |
| 13:15 | The Trend Line Break and the Short Up, up and away until the trend line broke. George shorted and held through the gap down. |
| 14:15 | The Knife Catch The first short into a rally is a knife catch. Have your management protocols in place. |
| 14:55 | Today's Chart: Gap Down and a Strong Base ES is building a base above a Strong Level with the gap still unfilled. |
| 15:41 | NQ and Dow Check NQ looks weak. The Dow took out the previous day high and is laddering back into range. |
| 16:05 | Stay Short, No Long Yet If you're short, try to stay short. Wait for a deeper pullback and a Strong Level reclaim. |
| 16:26 | Long and Short, Both Winning Some of us are short, some are long, and we both make money cheering for each other. |
| 17:12 | Trade With Us Live The livestream is unlocked today. Join us 15 minutes before the open. |
When The Trend Line Breaks, The Ball Game Changes
Posted: Thursday November 12, 2026
Yesterday ES went up, up and away along a rising trend line… right into the area George had marked as a possible short. Once that trend line broke and price started laddering, he took the short. He held it through the gap down open and he's still in it this morning. This ES futures morning briefing covers why the first attempt at that short was a knife catch, why the three contract system keeps paying, and why there's nothing to take long yet. Plus a tour of the Chrome extension that supercharges TradingView, including chart annotations that make journaling fast.
Where Would You Short A Rally?
Yesterday, George posed a question. If you made me short, where would I be looking to possibly entertain a short? He pointed out an area on the chart. Then price went up, up and away along a clean rising trend line.
Bulls were in control. The next location for a short was discussed in the Discord group last night, and George put it in last night's Battle Plan too. Go read that.
- The break: In the afternoon, price broke the trend line and started laddering.
- The entry: George took a short twice yesterday afternoon and posted it in the Discord group.
- The hold: He stayed in the short through the gap down on the open. It turned out to be very profitable.
- The result: ES gapped down and is now spending its time near the bottom. It was a great place to look for that short… just not necessarily on the very first attempt.
Trader Lesson 1
Does a mapped short area mean you need to instantly short it? No… it's an area you're interested in.
Trader Lesson 2
A short on the very first attempt into a rising market is a knife catch trade. If you take it, you need knife catch trade management protocols in place.
Trader Lesson 3
Once price breaks the trend line and starts laddering, that changes the ball game. That's why George took his short yesterday afternoon.
How Did We Trade This Week?
We traded very well this week. Here's the recap.
- Monday: At Battle Plan 4, price dipped underneath the Strong Level, got back above, and that was the long. The maximum move was about 60 points before it came back and retested. If you followed the three contract system, you were long for a much larger move.
- Livestream: Battle Plan 3 got long, and many of George's traders held for the full move.
- Tuesday: CPI day. Nothing to do there. In the afternoon, a Core Strategy trade held overnight paid a beautiful 150 points.
- Wednesday: Battle Plan 2 offered a potential add on to that trade. If you held on to your Lotto Runner… look at that.
- Yesterday live: George called snagging a target with your lotto runner. If you did that, you had a beautiful 70 pointer on your hands.
- End of Zoom: A long against the Strong Level, targeting the IB high and maybe the ultimate target. A beautiful trade.
- Battle Plan 1: George took the entry and was a little aggressive in it. A nice 20 point move, plus a possible add on.
Trader Lesson 4
Follow the three contract system. On Monday it kept you long for a much larger move than the first target. Our three contract system just continues to pay.
Today's News And The Chart
Data came out before the open, more lands right after it, and multiple FOMC speakers are on the calendar.
| Date | Event | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Thu Nov 12 | Unemployment Claims | Out earlier this morning. |
| Thu Nov 12 | Existing Home Sales | 30 minutes after the market opens. |
| Thu Nov 12 | FOMC Speakers | Multiple speakers, and the list isn't all of them. Just be aware. |
| Thu Nov 12 | Earnings | After the close. |
On the chart, ES gapped down and is building a strong base, with a Strong Level down below. The gap hasn't filled. Price is consolidating along the bottom. If we get a little more push down, maybe we get into a Battle Plan.
- NQ: Not looking that great. It feels weak.
- Dow: Took out the previous day high and is now laddering back into range. Not bearish yet.
- The teeter totter: Which way will it fall? If the Dow pulls back in, we'll start getting on the same train.
- George's position: Still short and already up 40. Could we drop another 50 points? He kinda hopes so. Nothing else he needs to do.
Trader Lesson 5
If you're short, try to stay short. There's nothing here to take long yet… George wants a deeper pullback and then a move back above the Strong Level.
Some of George's traders took longs on the Strong Level last night. The commentary on that trade was hoping it would fill the gap. Some of them are still long. George is short.
Trader Lesson 6
Some of us can be short, some of us can be long, and we both make money and we're both cheering for each other. Why? Because you don't know where price is going to go.
Annotate Your Chart To Journal Faster
Why annotate your chart? George highly recommends that you journal. Annotating your chart is one of the ways to make journaling efficient.
The Micros Trader Chrome extension adds two tools TradingView doesn't have: the letter A and a pencil. A is for annotations. The pencil is your journal.
- Mark your trade: Say you traded with us live yesterday and took the long George called as Zoom was ending, against the Strong Level, targeting at least the IB high. Annotate where you went long and where you took partials, right on the chart.
- Screenshot it: Go to the RTH session, click the camera, and it takes a screenshot of your chart with your annotations.
- Your dashboard: Journaling comes with a dashboard that lives on your machine. George never has access to it.
Trader Lesson 7
Journal your trades. Annotating your chart is one of the ways to make journaling efficient.
Feature Of The Day: Supercharge Your TradingView
It's been a while since George did a feature of the day. Today's is the Micros Trader Chrome extensions. Indicators are one part of the system. These extensions make TradingView itself faster.
- Telescope: On a 30 minute chart, Ctrl + click a candle and it reveals the candles inside it… the 10 minute candles, the 5 minute candles. Press the spacebar to look, press it again and the animation continues. You can pick which timeframe of candles to see inside any timeframe. Very helpful with our scalping system, Core Strategy.
- Levels colored by timeframe: A level drawn on the 30 minute chart comes out orange, so you know where it was drawn. Drop to a lower timeframe and the level draws in a different color.
- Instant notes: Draw a level and start typing. The text goes straight onto that line. No digging through settings.
- Line type shortcut: Hold Shift and press the up or down arrow to switch between the dotted line and the solid line.
- Timeframe shortcuts: The up and down arrow keys change timeframes. Quick bars let you jump to a 10 minute or 30 minute chart. George likes them vertical.
- Indicators panel: Click Indicators to open and close it. Click the words to turn an indicator on or off instead of the eyeball.
- Hotkeys: Shift + S turns Strong Levels on and off, even with the panel closed. The same works for Essentials, Battle Plan and volume profile.
- Bigger is better: Resize the favorites bar and the indicator font size. Nice for older eyes. George likes the bar at about 120%.
The extensions go through constant and never ending improvement. George saw a behavior this morning and sent an update. Next up, by request, is an option to turn the favorites bar vertical. Take the 30 day ultimate trial and you get to test out these Chrome extensions.
"Some of us can be short, some of us can be long and we both make money and we're both cheering for each other."
COMMON QUESTIONS FOR ES FUTURES TRADERS
What is a knife catch trade in ES futures?
A: In today's AM Briefing, George called a short on the very first attempt into a rising market a knife catch trade. Yesterday price went up, up and away along a rising trend line… just because it's going up doesn't mean it's not a knife catch. If you take that trade, you need knife catch trade management protocols in place.
Why does a trend line break matter when shorting ES futures?
A: Once yesterday's rising trend line broke and price started laddering, that changed the ball game. That's why George took his short yesterday afternoon. He held it through the gap down open and was still short this morning.
Why use the three contract system in MES micro futures?
A: On Monday, Battle Plan 4 saw price dip under the Strong Level and get back above for a long, with a maximum move of about 60 points before it came back and retested. If you followed the three contract system, you were long for a much larger move. Our three contract system just continues to pay.
How do you make trade journaling faster in TradingView?
A: Annotate your chart. George highly recommends that you journal, and annotating your chart is one of the ways to make journaling efficient. The Micros Trader Chrome extension adds an A for annotations and a pencil for the journal. In the RTH session, the camera takes a screenshot of your chart with your annotations. The journaling dashboard lives on your own computer, and George never has access to it.
What is the Telescope feature for TradingView?
A: Telescope is part of the Micros Trader Chrome extensions for TradingView. On a 30 minute chart, Ctrl + click a candle and it reveals the candles inside it, like the 10 minute and 5 minute candles. Press the spacebar to look and press it again to continue the animation. You can choose which timeframe of candles to see inside any timeframe, which is very helpful with the Core Strategy scalping system.
Should you go long after an ES futures gap down?
A: On today's gap down, George said there's nothing he would take long yet. He wants a deeper pullback and then a move back above the Strong Level. If you're short, try to stay short.
How can two traders on opposite sides both make money in ES futures?
A: Some of George's traders took longs on the Strong Level last night and some are still long, while George is short. Some of us can be short, some of us can be long, and we both make money and we're both cheering for each other… because you don't know where price is going to go.
What economic news is driving ES futures on November 12, 2026?
A: Unemployment claims came out earlier this morning. Existing home sales hit 30 minutes after the market opens. There are multiple FOMC speakers, and the list in the briefing isn't all of them, so just be aware. Earnings come after the close.
When should you short a rally in ES futures?
A: Wait for the rising trend line to break and for price to start laddering… that changes the ball game. A short on the very first attempt into a rally is a knife catch, so have your trade management protocols in place before you take it.
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