FRacture Growth - Abaqus Explicit

Hi,

        I want to model 3D crack propagation in Abaqus Explicit. For this I am thinking of using the *shear failure option with element deletion. The path of the crackin my models is not known. I have some basic questions in this regard.

1. Is *shear failure a good approach to model crack propagation ?

2. I am modeling crack growth in geological materials. Usually cracks propagate in the trail of a damage zone. Can this (damage zone) be reproduced in Abaqus Explicit with *shear failure option ? 

Thanks in Advance,

GSR