Barony

Barony is a roguelike title that places modest demands on modern hardware, and the measured results for the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 confirm this. The data shows that this combination delivers high frame rates even at 4K, with performance scaling predictably as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 302 FPS, while the same settings at 4K produce 100 FPS. This indicates a strong overall capability for the game, with the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck only at the highest resolutions and quality presets. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, examines the role of each component, and provides context on how this combo ranks among tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At 1080p with Medium settings, the system averages 225 FPS; this drops to 142 FPS at 1440p and further to 74 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is significant—a 37% reduction in average FPS—while the jump from 1440p to 4K results in a 48% reduction. This scaling behavior indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the rendering workload increases with pixel count.

At Low settings, the same trend holds but with higher absolute numbers. The system produces 302 FPS at 1080p, 191 FPS at 1440p, and 100 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 1440p is 37%, and from 1440p to 4K is 48%, which closely mirrors the Medium preset scaling. This consistency suggests that the resolution scaling is independent of the quality preset, reinforcing the notion that pixel throughput is the dominant constraint.

The High preset shows a similar pattern: 193 FPS at 1080p, 122 FPS at 1440p, and 64 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 37% and 48%, respectively. Ultra settings produce the lowest averages: 138 FPS at 1080p, 87 FPS at 1440p, and 46 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 37%, and from 1440p to 4K is 47%. These consistent percentages across all four presets indicate that the game's performance scaling is purely resolution-driven, with no unexpected bottlenecks emerging at higher settings.

The 4K Ultra result of 46 FPS is the only measured point that falls below the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that this preset may be too demanding for consistent smoothness at that resolution. However, the 4K High result of 64 FPS shows that a single preset step down brings the system back into playable territory. The data implies that the RTX 5050's 8 GB of VRAM and 320.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for most configurations, but the GPU's raw compute power becomes the constraining factor at 4K Ultra.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 302, measured at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Does this combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Yes, for High and Medium presets. The 4K High preset averages 64 FPS, and the 4K Medium preset averages 74 FPS. However, the 4K Ultra preset drops to 46 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's multithreaded performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D has a Passmark multithread score of 20363. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, has an average benchmark score of 36945, which is 0.2% lower than the 5500X3D's average of 37018.

Q: What is the GPU's VRAM capacity and bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations in Barony?

A: The combo ranks 1775 out of 2935 tested combinations in Barony.

Q: How does the GPU's Passmark G3D score compare to its nearest rival?

A: The RTX 5050 has a Passmark G3D score of 17326. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL, has an average score of 21153, which is 0.6% higher.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 ranks 1775 out of 2935 tested combos in Barony. This places it in the 60th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 40% of combos perform better in this specific game. The rank reflects a mid-tier standing, which is consistent with the hardware's specifications: the CPU sits in the 85th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 66th percentile among all GPUs.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 37018 puts it within a tight cluster of rivals. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F scores 36945, a delta of 0.2% lower; the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 scores 37093, a delta of -0.2% (meaning the 5500X3D is 0.2% lower); the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 scores 36938, a delta of 0.2% higher; and the Intel Core i9-12900T scores 37112, a delta of -0.3%. This indicates that the CPU's performance is essentially on par with its immediate competitors, with differences well within noise margins.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 21035 is similarly competitive. The AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL scores 21153, which is 0.6% higher; the AMD Radeon HD 8970M scores 21237, 1% higher; the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT scores 20713, 1.6% lower; and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile scores 21379, 1.6% higher. These small deltas suggest that the RTX 5050 sits in a crowded performance band, where no single rival holds a decisive advantage.

In Barony specifically, the combo's rank of 1775 out of 2935 suggests that the game is more sensitive to GPU performance than CPU, given that the GPU's percentile rank is lower than the CPU's. The measured FPS data supports this, as the resolution scaling shows clear GPU-bound behavior at higher settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers high frame rates across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 302 FPS, Medium averages 225 FPS with a minimum of 191 and maximum of 258, High averages 193 FPS, and Ultra averages 138 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 164 FPS, indicating that the game's quality settings have a substantial impact on performance at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 191 FPS for Low, 142 FPS for Medium (with a minimum of 120 and maximum of 163), 122 FPS for High, and 87 FPS for Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra is 104 FPS, showing a tighter spread than at 1080p. The Medium preset's minimum of 120 FPS is notable, as it remains well above the 60 FPS threshold even during demanding scenes.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 100 FPS for Low, 74 FPS for Medium (with a minimum of 63 and maximum of 85), 64 FPS for High, and 46 FPS for Ultra. The Medium preset's minimum of 63 FPS is just above the 60 FPS line, but the Ultra preset's 46 FPS average indicates that this configuration cannot sustain smooth gameplay at the highest quality settings. The 4K High preset at 64 FPS is the most demanding configuration that remains consistently playable.

The data shows that the Medium preset is the only one with min/max values recorded for all three resolutions. At 1080p, the min of 191 and max of 258 indicate a 67 FPS range; at 1440p, the range is 43 FPS (120 to 163); and at 4K, the range is 22 FPS (63 to 85). This narrowing range with increasing resolution suggests that frame time variance decreases as the GPU becomes more consistently utilized.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process node from TSMC. It features 2560 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 32 raster output units, along with 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2317 MHz with a boost clock of 2572 MHz. Its memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Barony, the GPU's role is evident from the resolution scaling data. The consistent percentage drops from 1080p to 1440p and from 1440p to 4K across all presets indicate that the GPU's pixel fill rate is the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The GPU's pixel rate of 82.30 GPixel/s and texture rate of 205.8 GTexel/s are the key specifications driving this behavior. The FP32 performance of 13.17 TFLOPS provides ample compute for the game's roguelike rendering, which is not particularly demanding on modern GPUs.

The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for Barony at all tested settings, as no memory-related stutters or min FPS anomalies appear in the data. The 320.0 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and memory access do not become bottlenecks, even at 4K Ultra where the average FPS drops to 46. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 17326 and its 66th percentile rank among all GPUs place it in the mid-range segment, which aligns with the measured performance in this game.

The RTX 5050's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT, has an average score of 20713, which is 1.6% lower. This close comparison suggests that the RTX 5050 delivers competitive performance in its class, though the measured FPS data in Barony shows it handles 4K Ultra only marginally, with an average of 46 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the system averages 225 FPS with a minimum of 191, providing a large headroom for smooth gameplay. At 1440p Medium, the average is 142 FPS with a minimum of 120, which remains well above the 60 FPS threshold. Even at 4K Medium, the average of 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 ensures that gameplay stays consistently smooth.

For users with 1080p displays, the High preset at 193 FPS is a viable alternative that offers improved visual fidelity without sacrificing performance. The Ultra preset at 138 FPS still provides a high frame rate, but the jump from High to Ultra yields a 28% performance drop, which may not justify the visual gains in a roguelike where readability is often more important than graphical detail.

At 1440p, the High preset at 122 FPS is recommended for users prioritizing visual quality, while the Medium preset at 142 FPS is better for those seeking higher refresh rates. The Ultra preset at 87 FPS is acceptable for 1440p, as it remains above 60 FPS, but the diminishing returns from Medium to Ultra are notable: a 39% reduction in average FPS.

For 4K displays, the High preset at 64 FPS is the highest quality setting that maintains playable performance. The Medium preset at 74 FPS offers more headroom and is the safest choice for consistent 60+ FPS gameplay. The Ultra preset at 46 FPS is not recommended, as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold and would result in noticeable stuttering in fast-paced roguelike encounters.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer, manufactured on a 7 nm process at TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz, with a 105 W TDP. The CPU features 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and a large 96 MB shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration, providing 51.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Barony, the CPU's role is less prominent than the GPU's due to the game's modest computational requirements. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (302 FPS) is the only data point that approaches CPU-bound territory, as the GPU is not fully utilized at this low resolution and quality setting. However, the CPU's Passmark multithread score of 20363 and single-thread score of 2941 indicate strong performance for a 6-core part, with the 96 MB L3 cache providing a significant advantage in games that benefit from large cache sizes.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 37018 places it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs, which is higher than the GPU's 66th percentile. This suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this combo, which is consistent with the resolution scaling data showing GPU-bound behavior at higher settings. The nearest CPU rivals—the Ryzen 5 5600F at 36945, Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 at 37093, Core Ultra 5 225 at 36938, and Core i9-12900T at 37112—all perform within 0.3% of the 5500X3D, indicating that this processor's performance is well-matched to its class.

The CPU's non-unlocked multiplier and 105 W TDP make it a fixed-performance part, but its 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for Barony's single-threaded rendering and occasional multi-threaded background tasks. The 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth is adequate for this game, as the measured FPS data shows no signs of memory-related bottlenecks. Overall, the CPU provides a solid foundation for the RTX 5050, enabling the GPU to deliver its full potential in this roguelike title.