Barony

Barony, a 2015 roguelike, presents an interesting case study for the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 pairing. The measured data reveals a configuration that scales predictably across resolutions, with the CPU's strong multi-threaded foundation ensuring the GPU remains the primary bottleneck at higher settings. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS to understand the balance between the 8-core processor and the 6 GB graphics card.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases, which is classic behavior for a system where the GPU becomes progressively more stressed. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves 122.2 FPS, but this drops to 74.1 FPS at 2560x1440 and further to 41.6 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 39% performance hit from 1080p to 1440p and a 66% hit from 1080p to 4K at the highest preset. The scaling suggests that at 1080p, the RTX 2060 has enough headroom to push high frame rates, but the increasing pixel count at 1440p and 4K quickly saturates the GPU's capabilities.

Interestingly, the scaling is not uniform across settings. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 264.5 at 1080p to 163.8 at 1440p (a 38% reduction) and then to 83.5 at 4K (a 68% reduction from 1080p). This indicates that even when the graphical load is minimal, the RTX 2060's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus become limiting factors at higher resolutions. The data implies that the Ryzen 7 5800X, with its 16 threads and 32 MB of L3 cache, is not the primary constraint here; the performance curve aligns almost entirely with the GPU's rendering workload.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens as resolution increases, which further confirms the GPU-bound nature of the system. At 1080p, the difference between Low (264.5 FPS) and Ultra (122.2 FPS) is 142.3 FPS, while at 4K, the difference shrinks to 41.9 FPS (83.5 versus 41.6). This compression at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is working near its limits regardless of the preset, making the CPU's 3.80 GHz base and 4.70 GHz boost clocks largely irrelevant to the final frame rate at 4K.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

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

A: The highest measured average FPS is 264.5, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the RTX 2060's performance compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 16074, which is 0.5% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996) and 1.8% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15786). It trails the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and Pro 5700 by 1.7%.

Q: Does the Ryzen 7 5800X outperform the Intel Core i5-12600KF in multi-threaded workloads?

A: Yes, the Ryzen 7 5800X has an average benchmark score of 27606, which is 0.8% higher than the Intel Core i5-12600KF's score of 27827 (deltaPct of -0.8 for the Intel part).

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Medium and High settings at 2560x1440?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium settings yield 122.7 FPS, while High settings yield 103.6 FPS. This represents a 19.1 FPS advantage for Medium over High.

Q: Is the RTX 2060's VRAM capacity a potential limitation in Barony?

A: The RTX 2060 has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory. Given that the 4K Ultra preset only achieves 41.6 FPS, the data suggests that memory bandwidth (336.0 GB/s) and capacity are stressed at higher resolutions, but the game still runs.

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

A: This specific combo ranks 1401 out of 1702 tested combinations, placing it in the lower half of all tested systems.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X is a desktop processor from the 5000 series, built on the Zen 3 architecture (codenamed Vermeer) using a 7 nm process. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 23571 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3327 in single-core, with a 3DMark max threads score of 7578.

In Barony, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (264.5) is high enough that the 5800X's 16 threads are clearly sufficient to feed the RTX 2060. The CPU's 84th percentile ranking among all CPUs (avg score 27606) suggests it is a strong performer, but the game's frame rates are more dependent on the GPU's output. The nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800, scores 27535 (0.3% lower), while the Intel Core i7-13700H scores 27716 (0.4% higher), indicating that this CPU is well within the expected performance envelope for its class.

The data does not show any CPU-bound scenarios even at 1080p, as the FPS does not plateau or exhibit irregular scaling that would suggest a processor bottleneck. The 5800X's 4.70 GHz boost clock and 32 MB L3 cache are likely sufficient for Barony's roguelike mechanics, which typically involve single-threaded game logic but can benefit from multi-threading for background tasks. The CPU's 105 W TDP and DDR4 memory support further indicate a balanced platform that pairs well with the RTX 2060 for this title.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 1401 out of 1702 tested combos in Barony. This places it in the 82nd percentile of all tested systems, meaning that roughly 82% of the combinations tested achieve higher frame rates in this game. The ranking is based on the measured FPS data, which shows that while the combo is capable of high frame rates at 1080p (up to 264.5 FPS on Low), it struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra (41.6 FPS).

The rank position suggests that Barony is a demanding title for this hardware, likely due to the game's rendering requirements at higher resolutions. The RTX 2060's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs (avg score 16074) is a key factor, as its performance is below average compared to other graphics cards. The CPU's 84th percentile ranking does not compensate for the GPU's relative weakness in this game. The combo's rank of 1401 indicates that users with higher-end GPUs (e.g., RTX 30-series or newer) would see significantly better results, but for this pairing, the measured data shows that 1080p and 1440p are the practical sweet spots.

The deltaPct values for the CPU's nearest rivals show that the 5800X is not a bottleneck; the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE and Intel Core i7-13700H are within 0.4% of its score, yet the combo rank is determined by the GPU's output. This implies that upgrading the CPU would yield minimal gains in Barony, while upgrading the GPU would have a more substantial impact on the frame rates and overall rank.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is based on the Turing architecture (chip TU106) and manufactured on a 12 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz, with 1920 shading units and 120 TMUs. The GPU features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its compute capabilities include 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 30 RT cores, though Barony is unlikely to utilize ray tracing given its 2015 release.

In Barony, the RTX 2060's performance is the primary determinant of the measured FPS. At 1080p, the GPU delivers 169.1 FPS on High settings and 122.2 FPS on Ultra, which are respectable numbers. However, at 4K, the frame rates drop to 55.6 FPS on High and 41.6 FPS on Ultra, indicating that the 6 GB VRAM and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the pixel workload at that resolution. The GPU's 58th percentile ranking (avg score 16074) confirms that it sits in the mid-range of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals (RX 7600S, Pro 5600M) show similar performance, with deltaPct values ranging from -1.7% to 1.8%.

The data shows that the RTX 2060 is the limiting component at higher resolutions. The FPS scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K (83.5 to 41.6) highlights how the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth become saturated. The GPU's 160 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for this class, but the end-of-life production status suggests that newer GPUs would offer better performance per watt. For Barony, the RTX 2060 is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can maintain frame rates above 120 FPS on most presets.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured data provides a comprehensive view of this combo's performance across three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from a low of 122.2 on Ultra to a high of 264.5 on Low. Medium settings yield 194.3 FPS, while High settings produce 169.1 FPS. These numbers indicate that 1080p is the optimal resolution for high refresh rate monitors, as even Ultra settings exceed 120 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop significantly. Low settings achieve 163.8 FPS, Medium 122.7 FPS, High 103.6 FPS, and Ultra 74.1 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 38% across all settings, which is consistent with the increase in pixel count (from 2.07 million to 3.69 million pixels). At 1440p, only Low and Medium settings maintain frame rates above 120 FPS, while High and Ultra dip below that threshold.

At 3840x2160, the performance is further constrained. Low settings average 83.5 FPS, Medium 61.5 FPS, High 55.6 FPS, and Ultra 41.6 FPS. The 4K resolution (8.29 million pixels) presents a 4x increase over 1080p, but the FPS does not drop by 4x, indicating that other factors (such as CPU overhead or memory latency) partially mitigate the GPU load. The data shows that 4K gaming is only viable on Low settings for a smooth experience, while Ultra is borderline unplayable at 41.6 FPS.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user's resolution and target frame rate. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset (122.2 FPS) is recommended for the best visual quality without sacrificing smoothness, as it stays well above the 60 FPS threshold. For users with 144 Hz or higher refresh rate monitors, the Medium preset (194.3 FPS) offers a substantial frame rate boost while still providing decent visuals. Low settings (264.5 FPS) are only necessary for competitive play where maximum frame rate is paramount.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset (122.7 FPS) is the sweet spot, balancing visual fidelity with a frame rate that exceeds 120 FPS. The High preset (103.6 FPS) is also viable for users who prioritize graphics quality over frame rate, as it remains above 100 FPS. Ultra settings (74.1 FPS) are playable but may feel less responsive on high refresh rate displays. Low settings (163.8 FPS) are recommended for esports-style play, though the visual compromise may not be justified given the game's roguelike nature.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset (83.5 FPS) is the only setting that provides a consistently smooth experience above 60 FPS. Medium (61.5 FPS) and High (55.6 FPS) are borderline, while Ultra (41.6 FPS) falls below the acceptable threshold for most gamers. Given these results, users with 4K displays should either drop to Low settings or consider lowering the resolution to 1440p, where the Medium preset (122.7 FPS) offers a much better experience. The data clearly shows that this combo is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p, with settings adjusted to match the user's performance priorities.