World generation
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Caves of Qud uses procedural generation to create much of its content each playthrough. While a few of the main quest locations are pre-determined or pre-built, such as 
Grit Gate, most of the rest of the world is largely procedurally generated. Even many main quest dungeons and guarantd settlements tend to include a large element of procedural generation. For example, the shops and merchants surrounding the 
Six Day Stilt will be procedurally generated during each playthrough, and much of the interior structures of 
Golgotha and the 
Tomb of the Eaters are also procedurally generated.
History
A core component of world generation is the history of the sultans. Related to the sultan history are the underlying types of government, historic sites, villages, and other locations.
The history of the sultans will always include 5 initial periods of sultan rule, involving 5 procedurally generated sultans. Those sultans' names, events from their lives, bits of lore that recount those events, and recurring sultan themes that are relevant to each sultan will all be procedurally generated.
The sixth sultan is Resheph - a guaranteed sultan who appears in every playthrough and always has the same fixed events described in his lore.
Historic Sites
The sultans from period 4 and period 5 are unique because they will each have two procedurally generated historic sites associated with them. The historic sites will be inhabited by sultan cults composed of members from the sultans' favored factions. The sultans' favored factions can generally be observed from the various bits of lore that describe events in the sultans' lives. For example, this snippet of sultan lore indicates that crabs are one of the sultan's favored factions:
While wandering around Abalep Palace, Oroleseh II stumbled upon a clan of crabs performing a secret ritual. Because of her fortuitous eyes, they accepted her into their fold and taught her their secrets. |
Historic site generation is controlled both by features from the broader generated world, such as the government type, and by features from their associated sultan, such as the sultan's theme.