# drawdown-circuit-breaker

A skill that reads your trader-memory-core trade log and decides whether new trade risk is allowed today, using daily loss limits, losing streaks and weekly or monthly drawdown.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 2700 installs · ★ 3267
- Author: tradermonty
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/tradermonty/claude-trading-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-10-24
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker

## What it does

The skill totals realized P&L from the `th_*.yaml` thesis files in your state directory and compares it against thresholds. Defaults: a 2.0% daily loss halts trading until the next ET weekday, two consecutive losing closes trigger a 24-hour `COOLDOWN` from the last loss exit, a 5.0% weekly drawdown halts until Monday, and 8.0% monthly halts until the first day of the next month. Day, week and month boundaries follow `America/New_York`.

One command runs it: `python3 skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/scripts/check_circuit_breaker.py --state-dir state/theses --account-size 100000 --output-dir reports/`. You get `circuit_breaker_decision_YYYY-MM-DD_HHMMSS.json` plus a markdown report unless `--json-only` is set. Thresholds are overridable with flags such as `--max-daily-loss-pct 1.5` or a JSON config file, and CLI arguments win over the file. Pass `--as-of` for a deterministic evaluation.

You need Python 3.9+ and local thesis YAML files. No API keys, no network. The failure mode worth knowing: if two valid files share a `thesis_id`, the whole duplicate group is dropped from P&L and streak math and the decision comes back `PARTIAL` + `HALTED` until you repair the state. An empty state directory returns `TRADING_ALLOWED` with `data_quality: EMPTY_STATE`, so a fresh user is not blocked by having no history. The skill recommends and keeps records only — it does not place broker-side blocks or reject orders, and managing open positions stays a human call.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --skill drawdown-circuit-breaker -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --skill drawdown-circuit-breaker -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --skill drawdown-circuit-breaker -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install tradermonty/claude-trading-skills drawdown-circuit-breaker
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --skill drawdown-circuit-breaker -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --path skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add tradermonty/claude-trading-skills --skill drawdown-circuit-breaker -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/tradermonty/claude-trading-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- check whether today's loss limit has been breached before entering a trade
- see if a cooldown is still active after a losing streak
- total realized P&L for the week and month from the thesis log
- gate candidate generation in a swing-trading workflow
- spot duplicate `thesis_id` files that make the drawdown math incomplete

## Example prompts
- Check the circuit breaker against state/theses and tell me if I can take new risk today
- Run drawdown-circuit-breaker with --account-size 100000 and list the triggered rules
- Re-evaluate at --as-of 2026-07-02T12:00:00-04:00 and explain which rule fired

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

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````text
---
name: drawdown-circuit-breaker
description: Evaluate account-level drawdown circuit breaker rules from trader-memory-core state and decide whether new trade risk is allowed today. Uses realized P&L, losing-streak cooldowns, and weekly/monthly drawdown limits without any external API.
---

# Drawdown Circuit Breaker

## Overview

Evaluate whether the trader should take new trade risk today based on account-level realized P&L and recent terminal trade outcomes. This skill reads trader-memory-core thesis YAML files only. It produces a `circuit_breaker_decision` artifact that complements the market-side `exposure_decision` from exposure-coach.

The circuit breaker is a recommendation and recordkeeping tool. It does not replace human judgment, and it does not enforce broker-side blocks or automated order rejection.

## When to Use

- Before screening or sizing any new swing trade candidate
- After a losing trade or partial trim to check whether a cooldown is active
- During daily planning when trader-memory-core contains recent closed or partially closed positions
- As a workflow gate before swing-opportunity-daily proceeds to candidate generation
- When reviewing whether daily, weekly, or monthly loss limits have been breached

## Prerequisites

- Python 3.9+
- Local trader-memory-core thesis YAML files, usually under `state/theses/`
- Account size in dollars
- No API keys or network access required

## Workflow

### Step 1: Read Trader Memory State

Point the script at the thesis state directory:

```bash
python3 skills/drawdown-circuit-breaker/scripts/check_circuit_breaker.py \
  --state-dir state/theses \
  --account-size 100000 \
  --output-dir reports/
```
````
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