I'm trying to create a generative lightning graphic.

I first tried simply taking point a and point b and stepping towards point b.

With each step towards point b, I would veer off to the right or left normal of the line towards b randomly.

This worked really well, creating a jagged yet focused line that looks electric (if you just jump the nodes about randomly, it stops looking like lightning). It's also quite important that I can target this lightning on a specific point.

But after looking at some tesla coil videos, I noticed that lightning branches off along its path.

What I would really be after is some kind of recursive algorithm, that headed towards my attractor, but also sent off recursive paths as it went.

Does anyone have any lightning examples they can point me to to help with my research? Preferably ones that may express this branching behaviour

I've actually created a lightning generator that's based on real-life lightning physics, tweaked to a processing environment.

http://rdwong.net/archive/lightning/

If you play with it long enough, you can actually see that the lines don't actually branch off, but found a different/shorter path from point A to point B via electrons in the air. But because the change of path happens at such a great speed, (1/10000000000000zzz... seconds) it appears to be branching off. (I could be wrong here, it could just be that they really branch off when a couple of electrons find a shorter path. I'm no meteorologist.)

Hope it helps!