Three White Soldiers Candlestick Pattern: What It Looks Like and What It Means
Three white soldiers is a three-candle pattern: three tall rising candles in a row, each opening inside the previous candle's body and closing near its own high. It is read as a bullish pattern, either a reversal or a continuation, and it can suggest that buyers are in steady control. It earns a second look, but it forecasts nothing.
How It Forms
Each candle stands for one period of trading. Its body runs from its open to its close, and a wick is the thin line that reaches to its high or low. Bullish reads as buyers gaining ground, bearish as sellers gaining it. Here "white" simply means rising, and the drawing shows the soldiers in green.
Each soldier starts inside the last one's body and finishes near its top. Made-up prices for the drawing's five candles:
| Candle | Open | High | Low | Close |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $8 | $11 | $6 | $9 |
| 2 (soldier) | $9 | $18 | $7.50 | $16 |
| 3 (soldier) | $14 | $26 | $12.50 | $24 |
| 4 (soldier) | $22 | $34 | $20.50 | $32 |
| 5 | $32 | $41 | $30 | $39 |
The first soldier opens at $9 and closes at $16. The second opens at $14, inside that $9 to $16 body, and closes at $24. The third opens at $22, inside the $14 to $24 body, and closes at $32. Together they climb $23, and each closes just $2 below its high. (The drawing shades the first candle red, even though its made-up prices rise from $8 to $9.)
How to Read It
- The steadiness. Three tall rising candles in a row can suggest steady, broad buying rather than a single burst.
- The wicks. Small upper wicks show buyers stayed in control into the close, as with the $2 wicks above.
- The starting point. The pattern is said to mean the most after a downtrend or a base, which is a stretch where the price moved sideways.
What to Watch For
After a long run, it can show exhaustion, meaning buyers have run out of energy, rather than new strength. Very long candles can also mean the price is overextended, meaning it rose very fast. Reading it as a reversal or as a continuation depends on what came before: after a fall it looks like a turn, inside a rise it looks like more of the same.
Two look-alikes are worth knowing:
- Three black crows is the mirror image: three strong falling candles in a row, read as a bearish reversal. It differs in direction, not in structure.
- A marubozu is a single full-body candle with little or no wick. It differs by shape and count, because the soldiers come as a trio and may carry small wicks.
Free or Premium
Three White Soldiers counts as a core pattern, so charts and Rapunzl's Stock Scanner offer it free of charge. The 10 extended patterns work differently: on charts they are part of Rapunzl Premium, and in the Stock Scanner's filters they stay free.
Try It in Rapunzl
Put a stock on a Candlestick or OHLC chart, then go to Customize Chart → Chart Indicators → Levels, Patterns & AI Charts and flip on Pattern Markers. Bullish patterns get a ▲, bearish ones a ▼ and indecision a ◆, and what the chart detects is listed below it.
In the Stock Scanner, the Bullish candlestick filter includes Three White Soldiers among its patterns, and it shows stocks that completed one on the latest daily candle. The idea "Bullish candlestick today" widens the search to any bullish pattern and reminds you that many do not lead to a rise.
A 15-Minute Class Activity
Soldier Checklist. Pairs need a pencil and a sheet of notes paper. Three made-up sets of three candles are listed as open, high, low, close. Set P: day 1 is 10, 19, 9, 18; day 2 is 14, 27, 13, 26; day 3 is 22, 35, 21, 34. Set Q: day 1 is 10, 19, 9, 18; day 2 is 21, 30, 20, 29; day 3 is 25, 38, 24, 37. Set R: day 1 is 10, 22, 9, 14; day 2 is 12, 25, 11, 18; day 3 is 15, 27, 14, 20.
- 3 minutes. In your own words, write the three tests: tall rising candles, each opening inside the previous body, each closing near its high.
- 6 minutes. Check each set and mark pass or fail, naming the test that failed. P passes. Q fails because day 2 opens at $21, above day 1's $18 close. R fails because every day closes far below its high.
- 3 minutes. Pairs write one sentence on why a pass would mean more after a base (a sideways stretch) than after a long run.
- 3 minutes. Exit ticket: why might a very tall candle be a reason to look closer? Answer in a sentence.
Related Patterns
- How to Read a Candlestick Chart: the basics of bodies, wicks and what each candle shows.
- Three Black Crows: three strong falling candles, the bearish mirror.
- Marubozu: one full-body candle with little or no wick.
- Support and Resistance Levels: why the place a pattern forms matters.
Frequently Asked
Questions
Three white soldiers is a run of three tall rising candles, each opening inside the previous body and closing near its high. It is read as a bullish pattern.
They are mirror images. The soldiers are three strong rising candles read as bullish, and the crows are three strong falling candles read as bearish.
Sometimes. After a long run it can show buyers running out of energy rather than fresh strength, so what came before it matters.
See Rapunzl in Your Own Classroom
Thinking about Rapunzl for your classroom? Request a demo to see the charts and simulator. Students working on their own can start from the parents page.
Indicators, patterns and examples in this article are for education and are not investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.
By Nate Thomas, School Partnerships Lead at Rapunzl.