How about this for an alternative solution that allows you to use the postwork lightning creation methods you're already used to:

- Create a Cylinder in 3dsmax with a decent number of vertical segments (amount depends on the amount of rotations ur helix has to make

- Apply a mesh edit modifier to the cilinder, delete the caps at top and bottom, and all poly's on the sides except for 2 opposing collumns of poly's

• Apply a twist modifier to the resulting mesh and twist it so your collumns of poly's will turn into a helix shape.

• UVWunwrap the resulting helix to get a cylindrical map of the mesh.

- Draw a lightning texture on a black background the same way you would draw lightning in postwork using the UVmap as a template for the helix shape.

• Bring the UV-mapped helix mesh into bryce, put it around your digital woman.

- Apply the lighting texture you made to the helix mesh. And make the texture Additive.

• Hit the render button and check out the result :-D

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