Barony

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 pairing produces a striking split in Barony: the CPU is a 6-core, 12-thread Zen 3 part with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz, while the GPU is an Ada Lovelace flagship with 16 GB of GDDR6X memory. In this roguelike, the combination ranks 350th out of 3,717 tested combos, placing it in the top 10 percent of all configurations. The measured frame rates show that the RTX 4080 is doing the heavy lifting at higher resolutions, but at 1080p the Ryzen 5 5500 becomes the limiting factor, capping performance well below what the GPU could theoretically deliver. This is a pairing that works, but the data makes it clear that the CPU is the bottleneck in less demanding scenes.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 5 5500 provides six physical cores and twelve threads, built on the Zen 3 architecture using TSMC's 7 nm process. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.20 GHz are modest by modern standards, and the 16 MB of L3 cache is split across the two CCDs. In Barony, which is a roguelike with procedural generation and simulation-heavy gameplay, the CPU handles game logic, enemy AI, and world state updates. The benchmark results show that the CPU's single-thread performance is adequate but not exceptional: 3DMark single-thread score is 836, Cinebench R23 single-core is 2,319, and Geekbench single-core is 1,730. These numbers place the Ryzen 5 5500 in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19,593.

Comparing to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 5500 sits within a narrow band. The AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 scores 19,617, which is 0.1 percent higher, while the Intel Core i5-12500 scores 19,668, 0.4 percent higher. The Intel Core i7-10700F scores 19,499, 0.5 percent lower, and the Intel Core i5-11600KF scores 19,723, 0.7 percent higher. These deltas are tiny, meaning the Ryzen 5 5500 is effectively in the same performance class as those CPUs for general compute. In Barony, the multi-threaded scores matter for handling the game's simulation: Cinebench R23 multi-core is 16,429, and PassMark multi-thread is 19,330. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 5,386 suggests that when all threads are loaded, the CPU can push through the game's background tasks without major stutters.

However, the single-thread scores are more telling for Barony's frame pacing. The 3DMark 2-thread score is 1,645, and the 4-thread score is 3,151, which are moderate values. At 1080p resolution, the CPU must feed the GPU with draw calls and game state updates, and the data shows that the CPU's single-thread performance becomes the ceiling. The measured frame rates at 1080p Low reach 570 FPS average, but that is likely constrained by the CPU's ability to generate frames, not the GPU's ability to render them. The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 3,058 and Cinebench R15 single-core of 233 indicate that while it is not a weak processor, it is not in the same league as higher-clocked parts. In a game like Barony, where the simulation can spike with many entities on screen, the CPU's 6-core, 12-thread configuration provides enough parallel throughput, but the per-core speed may cause occasional dips in frame rates during complex scenes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of Ryzen 5 5500 and RTX 4080 ranks 350th out of 3,717 tested combinations in Barony. That places it in the top 9.4 percent of all combos, which is a strong showing, but the rank is not as high as the GPU's individual percentile might suggest. The RTX 4080 sits in the 86th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 54,247, but the CPU's 73rd percentile pulls the combo down. The rank of 350 means there are 349 other CPU-GPU pairings that achieve higher average frame rates in this game, many of which likely pair the RTX 4080 with a faster CPU.

Looking at the GPU's nearest rivals, the RTX 4080 is remarkably close to the RTX 4080 SUPER, which scores 54,209, a delta of just 0.1 percent. That means the non-SUPER version is effectively identical in performance to its successor. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54,828, which is 1.1 percent higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55,698, 2.6 percent higher, and the AMD Radeon 8060S scores 55,757, 2.7 percent higher. These deltas are small, indicating that the RTX 4080 is not the limiting factor in most scenarios.

The combo rank of 350 out of 3,717 means that this pairing beats 3,367 other combinations. For a roguelike like Barony, which is not particularly demanding on the GPU at lower resolutions, the CPU becomes more important. At 1080p, the combo achieves frame rates between 274 FPS (Ultra) and 570 FPS (Low), which are exceptional numbers. But the rank suggests that there are pairings with faster CPUs that push even higher, especially in the 1080p Low and Medium settings where the CPU is the bottleneck. The data shows that the combo is well-balanced for 4K gaming, where the GPU is the primary driver, but less so for competitive 1080p play where CPU speed matters more.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a clear pattern of scaling from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p High, the average FPS is 383, dropping to 242 at 1440p High, and then to 126 at 4K High. That is a 34.9 percent drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 67.1 percent drop from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the scaling is even more dramatic: 570 FPS at 1080p, 379 FPS at 1440p, and 198 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 33.5 percent and 65.3 percent respectively. This indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the frame rate scales with the number of pixels.

At Medium settings, the frame rates are 446 FPS at 1080p, 281 FPS at 1440p, and 147 FPS at 4K, with min FPS values of 379, 239, and 125 respectively. The drops from 1080p to 1440p are 37.0 percent, and from 1080p to 4K are 67.0 percent. At Ultra settings, the numbers are 274 FPS at 1080p, 173 FPS at 1440p, and 91 FPS at 4K, representing drops of 36.9 percent and 66.8 percent. The consistency of these percentage drops across all settings suggests that the scaling is purely resolution-driven, which is characteristic of GPU-bound scenarios.

The key insight from the resolution scaling is that at 1080p, the CPU is likely the bottleneck. The fact that 1080p Low hits 570 FPS while 1080p Ultra hits 274 FPS shows that the GPU is still capable of much higher frame rates, but the CPU cannot keep up with the game's simulation at those frame rates. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as the frame rates drop to between 91 and 198 FPS, which are still highly playable but show the expected impact of increased pixel count. For users with high-refresh-rate monitors at 1080p, the CPU will prevent the RTX 4080 from reaching its full potential in Barony.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 4080 with the Ryzen 5 5500 delivers exceptional frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 570 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium settings average 446 FPS, with a minimum of 379 FPS and a maximum of 513 FPS. High settings average 383 FPS, and Ultra settings average 274 FPS. These numbers indicate that even at Ultra settings, the combo is far above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on gaming monitors. The gap between Low and Ultra is 296 FPS, a 108 percent increase from Ultra to Low, which shows that the GPU is not heavily taxed at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a noticeable drop. Low settings average 379 FPS, Medium averages 281 FPS with a minimum of 239 FPS and maximum of 324 FPS, High averages 242 FPS, and Ultra averages 173 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is consistent, with Low dropping by 191 FPS, Medium by 165 FPS, High by 141 FPS, and Ultra by 101 FPS. The minimum FPS values at Medium (239 FPS) and the average at Ultra (173 FPS) still exceed the refresh rates of most 1440p monitors, which typically range from 144 Hz to 240 Hz.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more moderate but remain playable. Low settings average 198 FPS, Medium averages 147 FPS with a minimum of 125 FPS and maximum of 169 FPS, High averages 126 FPS, and Ultra averages 91 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K is significant: Low loses 181 FPS, Medium loses 134 FPS, High loses 116 FPS, and Ultra loses 82 FPS. At 4K Ultra, the average of 91 FPS is close to the 90 FPS mark, which is still smooth for a roguelike, but the minimum FPS at Medium (125 FPS) indicates that there can be dips during intense scenes. Overall, the measured data shows that this combo is capable of 4K gaming at high frame rates, but the CPU becomes less of a factor as the resolution increases.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture using TSMC's 5 nm process, with a chip designated AD103. It features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. The GPU has 9,728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 render output units, along with 76 ray tracing cores and 304 tensor cores. Its base clock is 2,205 MHz with a boost clock of 2,505 MHz, and the memory runs at 1,400 MHz with 22.4 Gbps effective speed. The FP32 performance is 48.74 TFLOPS, and the pixel rate is 280.6 GPixel/s with a texture rate of 761.5 GTexel/s.

In Barony, the GPU's role is to render the game's voxel-based environments and lighting effects. The RTX 4080's high memory bandwidth and shading unit count allow it to handle the game's procedural generation without stuttering. The GPU's PassMark G3D score is 34,457, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 6,567, which are strong results. The Geekbench OpenCL score of 214,739 and Vulkan score of 263,779 indicate that the GPU excels at compute tasks, which is relevant for a game that may use procedural generation algorithms.

The RTX 4080's performance in Barony is consistent with its overall GPU percentile of 86. The measured frame rates at 4K Ultra (91 FPS) and 4K High (126 FPS) show that the GPU is capable of handling the game at maximum settings in 4K, but the CPU limits performance at lower resolutions. The GPU's nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, has an average benchmark score of 54,209, just 0.1 percent higher, meaning the RTX 4080 is essentially equal to its successor. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X is 1.1 percent higher, and the Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB is 2.6 percent higher, but these differences are negligible in real-world gaming. The GPU's 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for Barony, which is not a VRAM-intensive game, so memory capacity is not a limiting factor in any measured scenario.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the best settings depend on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1920x1080, all settings produce playable frame rates, but the data suggests that Ultra settings at 274 FPS average is the best balance of visual quality and performance. The jump from High (383 FPS) to Ultra (274 FPS) costs 109 FPS, but the visual improvements in a roguelike like Barony may be worth it for players who prioritize image quality. For players with 240 Hz monitors, High settings at 383 FPS will be smoother, but for those with 144 Hz monitors, Ultra provides more than enough headroom.

At 2560x1440, High settings at 242 FPS average is the recommended preset for most users. This provides a smooth experience on 144 Hz and 165 Hz monitors, and the minimum FPS at Medium (239 FPS) suggests that High will stay above 240 FPS in most scenes. Ultra at 173 FPS is also viable, and it offers better visual fidelity while still exceeding 144 Hz. For players with 240 Hz monitors, Medium at 281 FPS is the best option, as it stays above 240 FPS even with a minimum of 239 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the choice is between High and Medium. High at 126 FPS average is suitable for 120 Hz displays, but the minimum FPS is not recorded. Medium at 147 FPS average with a minimum of 125 FPS is a safer choice for maintaining a consistent frame rate above 120 FPS. Ultra at 91 FPS is playable on 90 Hz or 100 Hz monitors, but the frame rate may dip below 90 FPS in demanding scenes, which could cause noticeable stuttering. Low at 198 FPS is not recommended because the visual quality loss is significant, and the frame rate is already high enough at Medium or High.

For the overall best experience, the data points to High settings at 1440p or 4K, depending on the monitor. The RTX 4080 is powerful enough to run Barony at High settings in 4K with an average of 126 FPS, which is smooth for most players. If the user prefers maximum visual fidelity, Ultra at 1440p (173 FPS) is a strong choice, as it provides the highest quality without sacrificing frame rate. The CPU bottleneck at 1080p means that lowering settings below High will not yield significant gains, so users at that resolution should stick with High or Ultra to get the most out of the GPU.