Barony

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 paired with the Intel Arc B370 produces a highly constrained gaming experience in Barony, with benchmark results indicating that the integrated GPU is the dominant bottleneck across all tested configurations. The data shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution and graphical fidelity increase, with the combo ranking in the 2701st position out of 2935 tested combinations. This analysis breaks down the measured frame rates, the roles of the CPU and GPU, and provides actionable settings recommendations based solely on the provided facts.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep and consistent performance drop as resolution scales from 1920x1080 up to 3840x2160. At the "Low" preset, the average frame rate falls from 144 FPS at 1080p to 91 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 47 FPS at 4K. This represents a 67% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the rendering pipeline is heavily taxed by the increase in pixel count. The pattern is similar across all presets: "High" drops from 92 FPS at 1080p to 58 FPS at 1440p and 30 FPS at 4K, while "Ultra" falls from 66 FPS to 42 FPS and then to 22 FPS across the same resolution steps.

The scaling behavior points directly to the Intel Arc B370 as the limiting component. The GPU's performance is characterized by a low average benchmark score of 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, placing it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. The frame rate drops are roughly proportional to the increase in pixel count, which is a classic sign of a fill-rate or pixel-throughput limitation rather than a CPU bottleneck. For instance, moving from 1080p to 1440p increases the pixel count by 1.78 times, and the "Low" preset FPS drops from 144 to 91, a 1.58 times reduction. The slight non-linearity suggests some headroom remains in the CPU at lower resolutions, but at 4K, the GPU is fully saturated, as evidenced by the 47 FPS "Low" result.

The 4K "Ultra" figure of 22 FPS is particularly telling, as it falls below the 30 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for playable frame rates. The gap between "Low" and "Ultra" at 4K is 25 FPS, which is the largest absolute spread across all resolutions, further confirming that the GPU's compute and memory resources are exhausted when both resolution and settings are maximized. The data suggests that 1080p is the only resolution where this combo can consistently deliver fluid motion, with 1440p being borderline for most presets and 4K only viable at the lowest settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 provides a solid foundation for this game, though its capabilities are largely untapped due to the GPU bottleneck. The CPU features 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, it achieves a multi-core score of 16429 in Cinebench R23 and a single-core score of 2319, with a passmark multithread score of 19330. These figures place the CPU in the 73rd percentile of all processors, with an average benchmark score of 19593.

Comparing the CPU to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 5500 is essentially on par with the Intel Core i5-12500, which has an average score of 19668 and a delta of -0.4%. It also sits within 0.7% of the Intel Core i5-11600KF (score 19723) and is 0.5% ahead of the Intel Core i7-10700F (score 19499). This indicates that the CPU is not a weak link in the system; its compute capabilities are more than sufficient for Barony, a roguelike that is not typically known for heavy multi-threaded workloads.

The benchmark results show that the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, and at 1080p with "Low" settings, the 144 FPS average suggests the CPU can keep up with the GPU's output. However, as resolution increases, the frame rate drops are almost entirely attributable to the GPU's inability to process pixels faster. The CPU's 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for this title, but the data shows no evidence of a CPU-induced frame rate ceiling, as the FPS scales down with resolution in a manner that aligns with GPU fill-rate limits.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Barony?*

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where all presets exceed 60 FPS on average, with "High" hitting 92 FPS and "Ultra" hitting 66 FPS. At 2560x1440, only the "Low" preset (91 FPS) and "Medium" preset (67 FPS) remain above 60 FPS, while 4K results are all below 47 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370 has an average 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184, which is 0.2% below the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (score 1186) and 0.5% below the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (score 1190). It sits 1.4% above the AMD FirePro M2000 (score 1168), placing it in a very low performance tier.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more responsible for the 4K performance drop?

A: The data points to the GPU as the limiting factor. The 4K "Low" preset averages 47 FPS, which is a 67% drop from the 1080p "Low" result of 144 FPS. This scaling aligns with the GPU's fill-rate limitations, not the CPU's compute capacity, which ranks in the 73rd percentile.

Q: What is the highest playable setting at 2560x1440?

A: The "Medium" preset at 1440p provides an average of 67 FPS with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 78 FPS, making it the highest setting that maintains a playable frame rate. The "High" preset drops to 58 FPS, which is still playable but closer to the edge.

Q: Can this combo handle "Ultra" settings at any resolution?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080 the "Ultra" preset averages 66 FPS, which is smooth. At 1440p, "Ultra" falls to 42 FPS, which is borderline, and at 4K it drops to 22 FPS, which is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the frame time variance look at 1080p "Medium"?

A: The 1080p "Medium" preset shows an average of 107 FPS with a minimum of 91 FPS and a maximum of 123 FPS. This indicates a stable frame delivery with a 16 FPS spread between the minimum and average, suggesting consistent performance without major stutters.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 + Intel Arc B370 combination ranks 2701st out of 2935 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the bottom 8% of all systems. This low ranking is almost entirely due to the GPU's weak performance, as the CPU's own percentile ranking of 73% shows it is a mid-tier processor. The combo's rank is consistent with the measured FPS data, which shows that even at 1080p "Low," the system only achieves 144 FPS, a number that many modern combos would exceed by a wide margin.

The ranking gap between the CPU and GPU is stark: the processor sits above 73% of all CPUs, while the graphics solution sits above only 5% of all GPUs. This imbalance means that the system is fundamentally GPU-limited in every scenario, and the combo's overall rank of 2701 reflects the weakest link rather than the average capability of the two components. In practical terms, this rank suggests that users with this combo will need to make significant compromises in resolution or settings to achieve a playable experience, as the data shows no configuration reaches the 144 FPS "Low" 1080p result at higher resolutions.

Benchmark results indicate that the combo's rank would likely improve substantially if paired with a more capable discrete GPU, but as tested, the data is clear: this is one of the lower-performing combinations in the database for Barony. The 2701st rank out of 2935 combos places it in the company of systems with similarly low-end graphics solutions, and the measured FPS confirms that the experience is largely limited to 1080p gaming.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the data shows a full range of performance across the four presets. The "Low" preset delivers the highest average at 144 FPS, followed by "Medium" at 107 FPS (with a minimum of 91 FPS and maximum of 123 FPS), "High" at 92 FPS, and "Ultra" at 66 FPS. This represents a 54% performance drop from "Low" to "Ultra," indicating that the GPU is heavily impacted by graphical enhancements at this resolution, though all presets remain above the 60 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average frame rates decrease across the board. "Low" leads with 91 FPS, followed by "Medium" at 67 FPS (minimum 57, maximum 78), "High" at 58 FPS, and "Ultra" at 42 FPS. The gap between "Low" and "Ultra" widens to 49 FPS, and the "Ultra" preset falls below 60 FPS, making it less suitable for smooth gameplay. The "Medium" preset maintains a playable average but dips to 57 FPS on the minimum, highlighting the GPU's struggle at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the performance is significantly compromised. "Low" averages 47 FPS, "Medium" averages 35 FPS (minimum 30, maximum 41), "High" averages 30 FPS, and "Ultra" drops to 22 FPS. No preset at 4K reaches 60 FPS, and even the "Low" setting falls below the 50 FPS mark. The "Medium" preset's minimum of 30 FPS indicates that frame pacing becomes inconsistent, making 4K gaming largely impractical for this combo.

Across all resolutions, the "Medium" preset is the only one with full min/max data, providing insight into frame stability. At 1080p, the spread is 16 FPS (91 to 123), at 1440p it is 21 FPS (57 to 78), and at 4K it is 11 FPS (30 to 41). The relative variance increases with resolution, suggesting that the GPU's workload becomes less predictable as pixel count rises.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1920x1080 with the "High" preset, which delivers an average of 92 FPS. This configuration offers a balance between visual quality and performance, staying well above the 60 FPS threshold while providing better graphical fidelity than the "Medium" preset. The "Ultra" preset at 1080p is also viable at 66 FPS, but the 26 FPS drop from "High" suggests diminishing returns for the extra settings.

For users prioritizing maximum frame rate, the 1080p "Low" preset at 144 FPS is the best choice, though it sacrifices visual detail. At 2560x1440, the "Medium" preset is the recommended option, as it is the only setting that maintains an average above 60 FPS (67 FPS). The "Low" preset at 1440p does offer 91 FPS, but the visual quality reduction may not be worth the performance gain for most users, especially since the "Medium" preset's minimum of 57 FPS is only slightly below 60.

At 3840x2160, the data does not support any preset for a smooth experience, as the highest average is 47 FPS on "Low." The "Medium" preset at 4K produces 35 FPS, which is playable but not ideal, and the "High" and "Ultra" presets fall to 30 FPS and 22 FPS, respectively. If 4K is a requirement, the "Low" preset is the only reasonable choice, but users should expect a significant drop in visual quality and a frame rate that is below the typical target for fast-paced games.

The best overall experience per the measured rows is 1080p "High," as it combines a 92 FPS average with the second-highest visual settings. Users with 1440p monitors should stick to "Medium" to avoid the sub-60 FPS results seen on "High," while 4K users should either reduce resolution or accept the "Low" preset's 47 FPS as the maximum achievable frame rate.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the decisive factor in this combo's performance, and its specifications explain the measured results. The GPU is based on the Xe3-LPG architecture on a 3 nm process, with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2400 MHz. It features 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units, along with 10 ray tracing cores. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS.

The GPU's memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning it relies on the system's DDR4 memory rather than dedicated VRAM. This is a significant limitation, as the memory bandwidth is "System Dependent" and cannot match the bandwidth of discrete graphics memory. The GPU's TDP is just 25 W, which classifies it as an integrated graphics solution (IGP) with no power connectors, further confirming its low-end positioning.

In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the GPU scores 1184, which places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all older or low-power parts: the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (score 1186, delta -0.2%), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (score 1190, delta -0.5%), AMD Radeon HD 7650M (score 1192, delta -0.7%), and AMD FirePro M2000 (score 1168, delta 1.4%). This indicates that the Arc B370 performs at the level of GPUs from over a decade ago, which is consistent with its inability to maintain high frame rates at higher resolutions.

The GPU's role in Barony is to handle all rendering tasks, and the data shows it struggles with even moderate resolutions. The 4K "High" result of 30 FPS aligns with the GPU's low pixel rate, and the drop to 22 FPS on "Ultra" suggests that additional effects tax the shading units heavily. The system-shared memory is likely a bottleneck for higher resolutions, as the bandwidth available to the GPU is limited by the CPU's dual-channel DDR4 configuration. Overall, the Arc B370 is the clear performance ceiling for this combo, and the measured FPS data reflects its position at the bottom of the GPU performance hierarchy.