Solving boundary value problems requires implementation of sufficiently robust constitutive models. Most models try to incorporate a great deal of phenomenological ingredients, but this refining often leads to overcomplicated mathematical formulations, requiring a large number of parameters to be identified. On the other hand, geomaterials are known to have an internal microstructure, made up of an assembly of interacting particles. Most of the macroscopic properties, observed on a specimen scale or even on larger scales, mainly result from the microstructural arrangement of grains. Thus, a powerful alternative can be found with micromechanical models, where the medium is described as a distribution of elementary sets of grains. The inherent complexity is not related to the local constitutive description between particles in contact, but to the basic topological complexity taking place within the assembly. This presentation discusses this issue, highlighting very recent results obtained from discrete element simulations. In particular, the so-called critical state regime that develops during localized or diffuse failure is discussed in detail from the perspective of emerging processes taking place within complex media.