Getting Started Safely: Paper Trading & Trading Small

The single best way to learn ForteMare Tempest is to run it end-to-end on a paper (simulated) account first, then go live with the smallest possible size and increase only as you get comfortable.

Warning: Trading futures and other leveraged instruments carries a substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for everyone — you can lose more than your initial margin. Tempest's signals and assisted execution are informational tools only; they are not recommendations, advice, or guarantees of any outcome. You alone are responsible for your configuration and your trades. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Nothing here is a promise of profit. Never trade with money you cannot afford to lose.

Why start on paper

A paper account lets you watch the entire Tempest workflow — signals arriving, the approval prompt, brackets being placed, scale-ins, and exits — with no real money at risk. The goal of paper trading is not to make simulated profit; it is to confirm that:

• Tempest connects to your broker reliably.
• Signals appear for the symbols you expect.
• You understand the approval prompt and what each button does.
• Brackets (entry, stop, target) and any scale-ins appear in your broker exactly as you expect.
• You are comfortable monitoring positions and using the flatten/cancel controls.

Note: Paper fills are simulated. Live trading adds real-world factors a paper account cannot fully reproduce — slippage, partial fills, latency, and gaps. Treat paper results as a test of the workflow, not a prediction of live results.

Step 1 — Connect Tempest to a paper account

1. In Trader Workstation (TWS) or IB Gateway, log in to your paper trading account.
2. Make sure Enable ActiveX and Socket Clients is turned on (TWS → File → Global Configuration → API → Settings).
3. In Tempest, open Tools → TWS Connection… and set the paper Socket port:
   • TWS paper: 7497
   • IB Gateway paper: 4002
4. Save, and let Tempest connect. The broker status indicator should reach Connected.

For the full connection walkthrough and ports, see Connecting to Interactive Brokers.

📷 Screenshot: The Tools → TWS Connection dialog with a paper port (7497) entered, and the broker status showing "Connected".

Tip: Paper and live use different ports. When you later switch to live, you change the port in the same dialog — there is no separate "live mode" toggle.

Step 2 — Watch signals flow (no trading yet)

With Assisted Trading off, simply observe for a session or two:

• Confirm signals appear in the Signals View for the instruments you expect.
• Hover a signal to see the preview — the recent bars and the entry/stop/target levels.
• Get used to the difference between Forming and Formed signals.

If no signals appear at all, see Troubleshooting.

Step 3 — Try the approval workflow on paper

Now enable assisted trading on the paper account and keep approval required (the default for non-admin users — see Assisted Trading):

1. Turn on the ENABLE Assisted Trading checkbox. Accept the assisted trading risk disclosure if prompted.
2. When a signal is dispatched, Tempest shows an Approve Market Trade / Approve Limit Trade dialog. Read it. Click Approve to place the (simulated) order, or Decline to skip it.
3. Switch to TWS and confirm the bracket appears: the entry, the protective stop, and the target. See Brackets & Scale-In.
4. If the trade scales in, watch the target migrate. When it exits, watch the position close in Positions & Orders.

Note: Keep the approval prompt on while you are learning. The skip-approval (hands-off) option is restricted to admin accounts and is intended for experienced operators — do not rely on it until the entire workflow is second nature to you.

Repeat this over several sessions until nothing about the flow surprises you.

Step 4 — Go live, but start small

When you move to a live account, change only the port (e.g. 7496 for live TWS, 4001 for live IB Gateway) in Tools → TWS Connection…. Then deliberately start at the smallest size:

• Trade one micro contract. The micro futures (for example MES, MNQ, MYM, M2K) are a fraction of the size of the full e-minis, so each tick is a fraction of the dollar risk. They are the right place to begin. Your available instruments depend on your tier.
• Set Fixed sizing = 1 contract. In the Position Sizing tab, choose Fixed mode and set Contracts per trade to 1. If you prefer risk-based sizing, choose Dynamic with the Low (0.5%) risk level — it produces the smallest contract count.
• Keep approval on. Approve each trade by hand so you stay in control of every order.

📷 Screenshot: The Position Sizing tab set to Fixed mode with "Contracts per trade" = 1.

Warning: Live assisted trading places real orders with real money at your own direction. Confirm you are on the account (paper vs live) you intend before enabling it — the only difference in Tempest is the port you connected to.

Step 5 — Get comfortable, then scale slowly

Increasing size is a decision to make calmly, never in the heat of a good or bad run:

• Stay at one micro contract until approving trades, reading brackets, and managing exits feel routine — not exciting, not stressful.
• Increase size gradually (for example one micro at a time), and only after a sustained period of consistent, unemotional execution. There is no rush.
• Change one thing at a time — size, instrument, or sizing mode — so you can see the effect of each change.
• Decide your maximum risk per trade and per day in advance, and let your position sizing reflect it. Position sizing is a control, not a guarantee — see Position Sizing.
• Never size up to "make back" a loss.

Note: Bigger size magnifies both gains and losses. Scaling up is a personal risk decision; Tempest does not advise on size, and larger size does not improve the odds of any individual trade.

A simple daily routine

1. Start TWS / IB Gateway and log in (to the account — paper or live — you intend to trade).
2. Launch Tempest and confirm the broker status reaches Connected.
3. Confirm signals are arriving in the Signals View.
4. Decide whether you are assisted trading today; if so, enable it and keep approval on.
5. Monitor Positions & Orders through the session.
6. Know your exits: you can cancel working orders or flatten positions from Tempest at any time, but always verify the result in your broker.

When to step back

Stop and return to paper (or smaller size) if any of these are true:

• You are approving trades you do not understand.
• You feel pressure to "catch up" after a loss.
• The connection, signals, or brackets are behaving in a way you cannot explain — see Troubleshooting.

Warning: There is no setting in Tempest that removes market risk. Brackets and stops can be subject to slippage and gaps and may fill at worse prices than shown. Trading futures carries a substantial risk of loss; signals and AI commentary are informational only and are not recommendations or guarantees; past performance does not guarantee future results; and you are solely responsible for every trade you place.