Most viciouses exist as servants to powerful followers of the God of the Horde, Beadu Feriend. The Horde has special mystics who create the viciouses from captured enemies or slaves, tend them as if they were animals, and unleash them during battles. They are treated as dangerous animals, like war dogs or explosive angry bulls, and used only when necessary. They are one of the most feared weapons of the Horde.

There are, however, a handful of viciouses who have escaped and formed their own small bands in the rocklands of Wymmera. These bands vary greatly. They have vague memories of what they were before they were transformed, and sometimes this influences their behavior. Some seek to return to their homes for a while, but almost all of them come to the conclusion that this would be dangerous for their former loved ones. They call themselves "the Regretful," and they dwell in remote caves in the lower mountains. There, they hunt animals for food and work out the right balance of blood so that they may live without fear of explosion or cool down.

The Regretful take in newly escaped viciouses when they find them. One of the viciouses will take the new one in and teach them how to balance themselves, help them through the process of giving up on going home, and teach them the ways of the band. The process usually takes about six weeks. Once a new vicious is calmed, so to speak, they are welcomed into the band in a small ceremony and feast, and then they take up a different role among them: hunter, ritual leader, storyteller, tender, and crafters.

Hunters are vital to the band. Because viciouses need fresh blood to live, their hunters must learn to capture animals alive to bring back for all to eat. They also serve as scouts and lookouts for the band, as the Horde will try to re-capture them if they are found, and other beings will try to exterminate them. Ritual leaders are their religious leaders. Storytellers are the ones with the best memories of what life was before, and they tell these tales after each feeding to help calm the viciouses. And tenders are the ones who are a mix to healers, cleaners, and butchers. They treat the wounds of the hunters, clean the caves, and prepare the captured animals for eating, opening their throats and gathering blood in special bowls. To make the blood more potent, they torment and terrify the captured prey first. Crafters are the ones who make the bowls and other small crafts that the band needs to survive, including weapons and tools. They take the hides and bones of the animals, the feathers and claws, and they use them to make what is needed.

The leader of the hunters is effectively the leader of the band. There is no process for deciding upon a leader. It is usually the eldest of them, but generally, the one who is best at hunting and leading rises to the top.

Because baleblood progressively gets stronger as it is fed, eventually, all viciouses begin to lose control of themselves when not even the storytellers will calm them. Upon seeing this start, either the vicious will realize it and remove themself from the band, or the band will intervene and kill them. Those who remove themselves will kill themselves by jumping off tall rocks, unless they lose control first. An out-of-control vicious will become a wild animal and hunt and kill until it explodes. These are called wild ones.

As abominations, they lose all physical capability of sex and emotional capability of love. Gender, sexual intercourse, and romance lose all meaning, but they do form bonds with one another, one of mutual survival.