Barony

FAQ

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 5 2600 + Intel Arc B370 combination a strong performer in Barony?

A: No. The combo ranks 2701 out of 2935 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom percentile of all tested setups for this game. This is a low-ranking configuration, indicating significant performance limitations.

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combo can achieve at 1080p?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 144 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. At Medium settings, the average drops to 107 FPS, while High settings yield 92 FPS and Ultra settings produce 66 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its closest performance rivals?

A: The Arc B370's average benchmark score of 1184 is nearly identical to the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, a -0.2% difference) and the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, a -0.5% difference). It sits slightly above the AMD FirePro M2000 (1168, a +1.4% difference).

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 2600’s CPU performance create a bottleneck in Barony?

A: The CPU's single-threaded performance is modest, with a Passmark single-thread score of 2239 and a Geekbench single-core score of 1154. Given that Barony is a roguelike where frame rates at 1080p Low reach 144 FPS, the CPU is likely a limiting factor at lower settings, though the GPU's low percentile ranking (5th) suggests it is the primary constraint overall.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between 4K High and 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160, High settings average 30 FPS while Ultra settings average 22 FPS. This represents a 26.7% drop in average frame rate when moving from High to Ultra, indicating that Ultra is particularly demanding on this combo.

Q: Does the Intel Arc B370 have dedicated VRAM?

A: No. The memory configuration is "System Shared" for both size and type, meaning it relies on shared system memory rather than dedicated video memory. The memory bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," so performance will vary based on the system's RAM.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the sole graphics processor in this configuration, and its role in Barony is defined by its modest specifications and shared-memory architecture. The GPU is based on the Xe3-LPG architecture (Panther Lake chip) built on a 3 nm process. It has 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units, along with 10 ray tracing cores. The base clock is 300 MHz with a boost clock of 2400 MHz, and the pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s while the texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s. The FP32 performance is 6.144 TFLOPS, which is a modest figure for modern gaming.

Crucially, the Arc B370's memory configuration is entirely "System Shared," with no dedicated VRAM. This means the GPU depends on the system's main memory for all graphics data, and the memory bandwidth is described as "System Dependent." This arrangement can lead to performance variability depending on the host system's memory speed and capacity. The GPU's TDP is just 25 W, and it is classified as an IGP (Integrated Graphics Processor) with a slot width of "IGP" and no power connectors. The bus interface is also "IGP," confirming it is not a discrete card.

In Barony, the GPU's influence on frame rates is evident when comparing settings at the same resolution. For example, at 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 144 at Low to 107 at Medium, then to 92 at High, and finally to 66 at Ultra. This scaling shows that the GPU is heavily taxed by higher graphical presets. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark score for the Arc B370 is 1184, which places it at the 5th percentile of all GPUs. This is an exceptionally low ranking, indicating that the GPU is performing far below the majority of other graphics processors. Its nearest rivals are older ATI and AMD parts like the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (score 1190) and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (score 1192), which confirms the Arc B370's position as a low-end performer. The data suggests that in Barony, the GPU's shared memory and low compute capacity are primary drivers of the low frame rates seen at higher resolutions and settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 + Intel Arc B370 combination ranks 2701 out of 2935 tested combos in Barony, placing it near the very bottom of the database. This rank of 2701 means the setup outperforms only about 8% of all tested configurations, a strikingly low position. The combo's overall standing is dragged down by the GPU's performance, which sits at the 5th percentile against all GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, is at the 75th percentile against all CPUs, showing a significant mismatch between the two components.

The data implies that the Arc B370 is severely underpowered for even a roguelike title like Barony, which is not graphically intensive by modern standards. The combo rank reflects that the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck, as the CPU's performance is comparatively strong. For context, the CPU's average benchmark score is 21484, which places it near rivals like the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V (21440, +0.2% delta) and the Intel Core i9-11900H (21367, +0.5% delta). These are respectable scores, yet the combo still ranks in the 2700s. This suggests that even a powerful CPU cannot compensate for the GPU's limitations in this game.

The rank distribution also indicates that most other tested combos are more balanced or have stronger GPUs. Since Barony is a 2015 roguelike, it should not demand high-end hardware, but the Arc B370's shared memory and low FP32 throughput (6.144 TFLOPS) make it inadequate for smooth performance at higher settings. The data reveals that this combo is best suited for low graphical presets at 1080p, where it can still achieve playable frame rates, but anything above that quickly becomes problematic.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers four resolutions and four quality settings, providing a clear picture of the combo's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are 144 FPS on Low, 107 FPS on Medium (with min/max of 91/123), 92 FPS on High, and 66 FPS on Ultra. The 1080p results show that the combo can handle low and medium settings well, with High being playable and Ultra dropping to 66 FPS, which is still acceptable for many users but far from ideal.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 91 FPS on Low, 67 FPS on Medium (with min/max of 57/78), 58 FPS on High, and 42 FPS on Ultra. The 1440p results indicate a significant drop-off from 1080p, with even Low settings failing to reach 100 FPS. High at 58 FPS is borderline, and Ultra at 42 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the averages plummet to 47 FPS on Low, 35 FPS on Medium (with min/max of 30/41), 30 FPS on High, and 22 FPS on Ultra. The 4K results are largely unplayable, with only Low settings approaching 50 FPS. The minimum FPS of 30 at 4K Medium suggests frame pacing issues, as the minimum matches the average exactly, indicating potential stuttering.

The data shows a clear pattern: as resolution increases, the frame rates drop steeply, and as settings increase, the frame rates also drop. The gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution is substantial. At 1080p, the difference is 78 FPS (144 vs 66), at 1440p it is 49 FPS (91 vs 42), and at 4K it is 25 FPS (47 vs 22). This indicates that the GPU is more sensitive to resolution scaling than to settings scaling, which aligns with its shared memory limitations.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals how the combo's performance degrades under increasing pixel loads. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 144 at 1080p to 91 at 1440p (a 36.8% decrease) and then to 47 at 4K (a 67.4% decrease from 1080p). At High settings, the drop is from 92 at 1080p to 58 at 1440p (a 37% decrease) and then to 30 at 4K (a 67.4% decrease from 1080p). These consistent percentage drops suggest that the GPU's performance scales almost linearly with pixel count, which is a sign of a compute-bound or memory-bandwidth-bound situation.

The fact that the percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is nearly identical across settings (around 37%) indicates that the GPU is not hitting a wall at any particular preset but rather is uniformly limited by its processing power. The drop from 1440p to 4K is even steeper, with Low settings falling from 91 to 47 FPS (a 48.4% decrease) and High settings from 58 to 30 FPS (a 48.3% decrease). This suggests that 4K resolution is particularly punishing for the Arc B370, likely due to the exponential increase in pixels (from 3.7 million at 1440p to 8.3 million at 4K).

The data implies that the GPU is the limiting component, not the CPU, because the scaling pattern is consistent with a graphics-bound workload. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller FPS differences at lower resolutions and a plateau effect. Instead, the FPS continues to drop linearly with pixel count, which is characteristic of a GPU that lacks sufficient fill rate or memory bandwidth. The Arc B370's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s are modest, and the shared memory bandwidth is "System Dependent," which likely becomes a severe constraint at higher resolutions. The data suggests that for this combo, 1080p is the only resolution where playable frame rates can be consistently achieved, and even then only at lower settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the resolution and the user's target frame rate. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers a strong balance: 107 FPS average with a minimum of 91 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Low preset at 144 FPS is excellent for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, but Medium provides a better visual experience without sacrificing much performance. High at 92 FPS is also viable, but the jump from Medium to High costs 15 FPS, which may not be worth the visual improvement in a roguelike where pixel-perfect clarity is not critical. Ultra at 66 FPS is playable but drops below the 144 FPS that Low can deliver, so it is only recommended if visual fidelity is paramount.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation shifts to Low or Medium. Low at 91 FPS is smooth, while Medium at 67 FPS (with a minimum of 57 FPS) is borderline but still playable. High at 58 FPS and Ultra at 42 FPS are both below 60 FPS, making them less desirable. For 1440p, the data suggests that Medium is the highest setting that can maintain a playable experience, with Low being the safest choice for consistent performance.

At 3840x2160, none of the settings achieve 60 FPS. Low at 47 FPS is the only preset that exceeds 45 FPS, while Medium at 35 FPS and High at 30 FPS are choppy, and Ultra at 22 FPS is nearly unplayable. The data indicates that 4K should be avoided entirely with this combo unless the user is willing to accept sub-50 FPS gameplay. The best experience per the measured rows is clearly at 1080p with Medium settings, which delivers 107 FPS average and a minimum of 91 FPS, providing a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold while offering a decent visual upgrade over Low. The data supports that Medium at 1080p is the sweet spot for this combo, balancing frame rate and image quality.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 2000 series, based on the Zen+ architecture (Pinnacle Ridge). It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 3.90 GHz, with a TDP of 65 W. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 96 KB L1 per core, 512 KB L2 per core, and 16 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration with a memory bandwidth of 46.9 GB/s. The CPU's benchmark scores show a mixed picture: the Passmark multi-thread score is 13160, which is respectable, but the Passmark single-thread score is 2239, and the Geekbench single-core score is 1154, indicating modest per-core performance.

In Barony, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU, but still important. The single-threaded performance is crucial for game logic and AI, which are often single-core bound in roguelikes. The Ryzen 5 2600's single-thread score of 2239 (Passmark) places it in the mid-range, and the data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 144 FPS, which suggests the CPU can handle the game's logic at that level. However, at 1080p Ultra, the FPS drops to 66, which is more likely GPU-bound given the Arc B370's limitations.

The CPU's 12 threads provide ample parallelism for background tasks, but Barony is not a heavily multithreaded game, so the multi-thread score of 13160 (Passmark) is less relevant. The CPU's percentile ranking of 75 against all CPUs indicates it is above average, and its nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V (avg score 21440, +0.2% delta) and the Intel Xeon D-1746TER (avg score 21635, -0.7% delta), showing it is competitive with modern parts. In this combo, the CPU is clearly not the bottleneck, as evidenced by the fact that frame rates drop significantly with resolution and settings, which are GPU-driven factors. The CPU's 46.9 GB/s memory bandwidth is also sufficient for feeding the GPU, but the GPU's shared memory architecture means it competes with the CPU for the same memory pool, potentially causing contention. The data suggests that the Ryzen 5 2600 is a capable processor for Barony, but its performance is effectively wasted when paired with the Arc B370, as the GPU cannot translate the CPU's capabilities into higher frame rates at demanding settings.