I've been working on an indicator that flags when the current options chain looks unusually different from what's normal for that ticker. To compute that, I compare a recent snapshot of the chain to the ticker's own historical baseline. If today's chain structure is way off from its usual pattern, the indicator spikes.
How I use it: when the indicator is elevated, I often see a bigger-than-usual move soon after, or a regime shift (trend → chop, downtrend → bounce, etc). It's not directional by itself, more of a pay attention alert that I still pair with trend/levels/events. The one thing I know for sure (when it spikes) there is going to be a meaningful change in underlying's volatility.
It doesn't work every time, but it's been surprisingly useful to spot anomalies in the chain, which allowed to make some good trades.
Two questions:
1/ If you've traded around unusual options signals before, what indicators have you found useful (something like volume spikes, OI spikes, or anything else)?
2/ And would you use an indicator like the one I described here even if it feels a bit black-boxy? What kind of evidence or explanation would you need to actually believe it's worth paying attention to?
[divergence indicator for XLP](https://preview.redd.it/18s5efilm4dg1.png?width=1156&format=png&auto=webp&s=9474a2e289a2044c5648733949394365f29a0367)