Little is known of Roughouse past beyond the fact that he is descended from the race of trolls that inhabit the dimension of Asgard, the mythical home of the Asgardian Gods. In Wolverine vol. 2, #6, Roughouse provides the first clue to his origin by uttering the phrase, "Ymir's icy breath." This is a reference to the giant Ymir, said to be the father of the race of beings known as the Frost Giants, the primary enemies of the Asgardian Gods.

In recent years, Roughouse has come to the island nation of Madripoor along with his partner, the "pseudo-vampire" Bloodscream. They have found employment under General Coy, one of the islands' most powerful crime lords, as special enforcers used to eliminate any threats to his operations. They are sent after the woman called Tyger Tiger, Coy's primary rival as the supreme crime boss of Madripoor. This brings the two mercenaries into a number of conflicts with Wolverine. The duo are never able to defeat him. General Coy grows tired of Roughhouse's failures and literally sells him to Geist, a former high ranking agent of Nazi Germany in the United Kingdom and a cyborg. By the time Roughouse meets him, Geist is financing himself through illegal drug trade and needs a guinea pig to experiment a new drug on. Geist's men give Roughouse a dose of this experimental version of cocaine which temporarily drives him mad. Wolverine holds back in the fight with Roughouse, since Roughouse is not truly even aware of what he is doing. After helping Roughouse escape, they come upon a mysterious nun of the Roman Catholic Church known only as Sister Salvation, who possesses the ability to cure those suffering from physical or mental injuries and cure sickness just by touching them with her hands. After several "sessions" she is able to fully purge Roughouse's body of the cocaine induced suffering. Roughhouse decides to stay with Sister Salvation in Tierra Verde to help her rebuild her destroyed mission.

It would be quite a while before Wolverine and Roughouse would cross paths again. Roughhouse and Bloodscream have now renewed their partnership and ambush Wolverine after the adamantium has been stripped from his skeleton. They manage to get the upper hand and beat Wolverine unconscious. They bring him to their hideout where they beat him repeatedly over the next few days. Wolverine is able to free himself from the chains and ambushes and defeats his captors. This is the last time he crosses paths with Roughouse.

It is unknown why Roughouse renews his partnership with Bloodscream, but as Bloodscream becomes increasingly cannibalistic it is unlikely Roughouse would have stayed with him as Roughouse, while a villain, still had some sense of honor and valued human life. Sure enough, when next Wolverine encounters Bloodscream, Roughouse is no longer with him, but is instead replaced by the cannibalistic imbecile, Vermin.