Documentation
Everything from first install to an exported NinjaTrader 8 strategy — how the evolution engine searches, how validation tries to break the results, and how to run the app day to day.
Getting started
- Introduction What Verdict Strategy Builder is, how the discover-validate-export workflow fits together, and what the app deliberately does not do.
- Installation Download and install Verdict Strategy Builder on macOS or Windows, and what to expect on first launch.
- Quickstart — first strategy in 15 minutes From a fresh install to a ranked, exportable NinjaTrader strategy using the guided tour and the bundled sample dataset.
- The strategy library Home, strategies, and workspaces — how the app organizes many strategies, each with its own builds, runs, results, and exports.
- Exporting data from NinjaTrader Install the bundled BarsExporter add-on in NinjaTrader 8 and export minute bars as CSV for import.
- Importing data Import BarsExporter CSVs on the Data screen, resample timeframes, and manage the dataset catalog.
How the engine works
- The Build screen Compose the search space — blocks, parameter ranges, dataset and date range — and start a run.
- Optimizer settings The genetic algorithm knobs — population, generations, crossover, elitism, seed — and the advanced rule-shape options.
- Fitness & metrics What the optimizer maximizes — the Composite blend, single metrics, weighted combinations, and the soft-penalty targets.
- Quality gates Hard floors a candidate must clear or be marked Kill — the configurable gates and reusable gate presets.
- Validation settings Configure the gauntlet the top finalists are graded on — walk-forward folds, Monte Carlo iterations, and the parameter-stress sweep.
- Run settings The fixed trading world every candidate lives in — account economics, slippage, risk caps, position sizing, and session rules.
- Exit settings The exit-gene ranges the optimizer samples — targets, time stops, trailing stops, breakeven moves, partials, and reversal exits.
- Style presets One-click presets that set opinionated optimizer, validation, and gate defaults for a holding horizon.
- Prop firm mode Evaluate every candidate against a funded-account ruleset — trailing drawdown flavors, contract caps, daily limits — so survivors can actually pass the account.
- How evolution works The genetic algorithm behind the search — populations, generations, crossover, mutation, elitism, diversity, and why runs are reproducible.
- Understanding validation How the gauntlet tries to break your strategies — equity-curve phases, walk-forward analysis, Monte Carlo simulation, and parameter stress.
- Verdicts & robustness What Pass, Marginal, and Kill mean, which gates are fatal, and how to act on each verdict.
- Reading the results The ranked results of a run — summary header, every column explained, sorting, filtering, favorites, compare, and column presets.
- The strategy detail screen Everything recorded about one strategy — metrics, phase-colored equity curve, validation tabs, parameter editing, and the trade list.
Operations
- Monitoring runs The Runs fleet — live cards for every concurrent run, gauntlet-stage progress, the queue, and the single-run detail view.
- Reading the gauntlet stages What the validation-stage progress on a run card means — walk-forward, Monte Carlo, param stress, and the cross-check, stage by stage.
- Favorites Star the results worth keeping, name them, and work with them on one board across every strategy and ticker.
- Exporting to NinjaTrader Generate a standalone NinjaScript .cs from any strategy — class naming, the beta verification trace, previews, and warnings.
- Installing in NinjaTrader Compile the exported .cs in NinjaTrader 8, attach it to the right chart, and test it on simulation first.
- Strategy specs & re-evaluation Save portable .vsb.json specs, reload them anywhere, re-backtest on fresh data, and read the degradation table.
- Licensing & activation Activate with your license key, manage your two device seats, and understand offline behavior, renewal, and license states.
- Account & sync What backs up to your account, what never leaves your machine, and who can see your data.
- Updates How the app checks for, downloads, verifies, and installs updates — automatically and on demand.
- Troubleshooting Fixes for the common failure modes — engine startup, imports, runs, NinjaTrader compiles, licensing — plus log and data locations.
Reference
- FAQ Quick answers — privacy, platforms, indicators, offline use, run times, and what the app will and won't do.
- Glossary The trading, genetic-algorithm, and validation terminology used throughout the app.
- The command palette Press Cmd/Ctrl+K to search, jump anywhere, and run any action from the keyboard — fuzzy matching, recents, and inline confirms.
- Keyboard shortcuts & menus The native menu bar and every keyboard shortcut, on macOS and Windows.