True Kin, being unmutated humans, have higher base stats and access to cybernetic augmentations, while mutants can possess physical and mental mutations offering a wide range of utility.

By default, the player character will start in the unique village of Joppa, but it is also possible to choose to spawn in a procedurally generated town.

[6] Caves of Qud has "deeply simulated physical and political systems" which are randomly generated and different each session.

The procedural history system is based on historical accounts such as word of mouth and ancient texts, allowing for bias and conflicting perspectives.

[7][19][20] The version 1.0 release of Caves of Qud received "universal acclaim" from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.