Gotobi Samurai - User Manual (settings, schedule, risk controls and FAQ)

Gotobi Samurai is a time-based Expert Advisor for MetaTrader 5. It opens one SELL on a JPY pair at the Tokyo fixing on "Gotobi" days and closes it by the clock. This manual explains what it does, how to set it up and what each input means, so you can judge it and use it with open eyes.

Risk notice: trading leveraged products involves a high risk of loss. Backtests and past results do not guarantee future results. Nothing in this post is financial advice.

1. The idea in one sentence

In Japan, the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th and the last day of the month are traditional settlement days ("Gotobi"). The idea behind the EA is that on those days Japanese companies tend to buy US dollars before the daily bank fixing at 09:55 Tokyo time, so the EA opens one SELL on the JPY pair at the fixing and closes it 20 minutes later. This is a hypothesis about flows, not a certainty: some days the market does not behave like that, and that is why the EA has a fixed stop loss and risk limits.

What the EA does NOT do: no martingale, no grid, no averaging down, no hidden multipliers. One trade per Gotobi day, at most.

2. Which days are "Gotobi"

• The nominal days are the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th and the last day of each month.
• If the nominal day is a Saturday, a Sunday or a Japanese bank holiday, the EA uses the previous business day.
• Japanese bank holidays for 2019-2030 are built into the EA (including the year-end and new-year bank closures), so it needs no web access. After 2030 the list needs updating; the EA prints a warning.

If you want to see the days and a live countdown on your chart, I also published a free indicator: Gotobi Calendar Tokyo Fixing.

3. The daily schedule (Japan time)

• Entry: 09:55 JST (Tokyo fixing). The SELL is opened at market.
• Maximum delay: if the EA cannot enter within 30 seconds of the entry time (for example because the spread is too wide), there is no trade that day. It does not chase the price.
• Exit: 10:15 JST. Whatever is still open is closed by time. The stop loss (and an optional take profit) can end the trade earlier.

4. Requirements

• Symbols: JPY pairs - USDJPY, EURJPY, GBPJPY. Attach it to one chart per pair.
• Timeframe: any; M5 is recommended.
• Account type: a HEDGING account is recommended. On a netting account, if another position exists on the same symbol, the EA does not trade that day (a SELL would reduce your other position).
• Algo trading must be enabled in the terminal.
• A broker with tight spreads on JPY pairs at 09:55 JST. This is a quiet hour for some brokers; check your spread before you trust any backtest.

5. Server time - the most important setting

The EA works in Tokyo time but your broker's server has its own time. The EA converts between them.

• LIVE trading: with "Measure the server-GMT difference with the computer clock" ON (default), the EA measures the real difference between your server time and GMT, so daylight-saving changes are handled automatically.
• STRATEGY TESTER: the tester cannot be measured, so you must choose the rule your broker follows: "GMT+2 / GMT+3 with European daylight saving", "GMT+2 / GMT+3 with US daylight saving", or "Fixed offset" (and set the number of hours). If you pick the wrong rule, the backtest enters at the wrong hour for part of the year. Check this first.

Tip: the chart panel shows the server time, the Japan time and the GMT offset it is using. Compare them with a Tokyo clock.

6. Inputs, group by group

Identification

• Magic number (770110): the ID of this EA's trades. Change it if you run several copies on the same account.

Schedule (Japan time)

• Entry hour / minute (09:55), Max seconds of delay allowed (30), Exit hour / minute (10:15).

Exits

• Stop loss (pips), default 15. Always set; the EA never trades without it.
• Take profit (pips), default 0 = none, exit by time.

Risk

• Risk per trade (% of balance), default 1.0. The lot size is calculated from the stop loss distance so a stop-out costs about this percentage.
• Small accounts rule ("max risk multiple", default 5): the minimum lot is still traded if its real risk is at most this multiple of the risk target (with 5 and 1% target, up to 5% real risk). Above that, the trade is skipped. Lower this number if you do not accept a trade larger than your target.
• Max daily loss (% of balance), default 3.0: once the day's loss reaches it, no new trade that day.
• Max lots (0 = no cap): optional safety cap on the lot size.

Execution

• Max spread (pips), default 2.0: no entry when the spread is wider.
• Max slippage (points), default 10.

Protections

• Max open risk of the whole account (% of balance), default 6.0: the EA will not open if the sum of the risk of all open positions plus this trade would exceed it. 0 = no limit.
• Risk counted for a position without stop loss, default 3.0 (%): used in that sum for other positions that have no stop loss.
• Circuit breaker (% of balance), default 15.0: if this EA's own drawdown (all trades with its magic number) exceeds it, it stops opening trades until you review it. 0 = off.

7. What you see on the chart

A panel shows: server time and Japan time, whether today is a Gotobi day, the next trade date and its entry time in your server time, the schedule, the stop loss, the risk per trade, today's loss against the daily brake, and whether a position is open. Messages in the Experts tab tell you each decision (trade opened, trade skipped and why).

8. How to test it honestly

1) Strategy Tester, "Every tick based on real ticks", symbol USDJPY, period of several years, and set the server time rule of your broker (section 5).
2) Use realistic costs: your real spread and commission, and a random execution delay.
3) Look at the number of trades, the maximum drawdown and the result without the best trades - not only the final profit.
4) Run it on a demo account for several weeks and compare the real trades with the tester for the same days.
5) Start live with the smallest size.
I wrote a free guide about this: The Honest EA Test - 10 checks before you trust any Expert Advisor. It applies to any EA, not only this one.

9. FAQ

Why did the EA not trade today?

Check, in this order: (1) Is today a Gotobi day in Japan (holidays move the date)? (2) Was the spread above the maximum at 09:55 JST? (3) Is the daily loss brake or the circuit breaker active? (4) Is it a netting account with another position on the symbol? (5) Is algo trading enabled? (6) Is the chart symbol a JPY pair? The Experts tab usually tells you which one applied.

The trade opened at the wrong hour.

Almost always a server-time problem. Check section 5 and compare the chart panel with a Tokyo clock.

Can I change the entry or exit time?

Yes, in the Schedule inputs. If you do, test the new times first; the default values are the ones the strategy was designed around.

Does it work on other pairs or gold?

It is designed for JPY pairs (USDJPY, EURJPY, GBPJPY). On other symbols it prints a warning.

Does it need to be on the chart all day?

Yes. The terminal must be running (a VPS is the usual way) with the EA attached during the Tokyo fixing.

10. A final word

Gotobi Samurai is a simple, transparent idea with fixed risk controls. It is not a promise of profit: some Gotobi days lose, and drawdowns will happen. Test it, understand it, and size it so a losing streak does not hurt you.

Questions are welcome in the comments.

Risk notice: trading involves a high risk of loss; past performance does not guarantee future results.