Barony

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 pairing in Barony is a study in extreme headroom. The data shows a combination that, at lower resolutions, pushes frame rates so high that the CPU becomes the primary governor of performance, while at 4K the GPU takes over. This analysis breaks down the measured results, what the settings mean, and how this specific combo stacks up against the broader field of tested hardware.

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X is built on the Zen 4 architecture (codenamed Raphael) and manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This is a desktop part with a 105 W TDP, and it supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration. The CPU also carries 32 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a relevant factor for a roguelike where procedural generation and game logic can create spiky, unpredictable workloads.

In Barony, the CPU’s role becomes starkly apparent when looking at the 1080p results. At Low settings, the system delivers 689.4 FPS average. This is a staggeringly high number that far exceeds the refresh rate of virtually any mainstream monitor. The fact that this number is so high indicates that the 8-core, 16-thread processor is not the bottleneck at this setting; the GPU is still producing frames faster than the CPU can logically dictate. However, the delta between settings is telling. Moving from Low to Ultra at 1080p drops the average to 317.5 FPS. While this is still an enormous frame rate, the 371.9 FPS drop shows that the game’s visual effects, even at 1080p, are starting to load the GPU more heavily. The CPU’s 16 threads provide ample parallelism for the game’s simulation and AI routines, ensuring that the GPU is fed with data without stuttering.

The CPU’s benchmark scores reinforce its position. It achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 30325 and a single-core score of 4281. In the 3DMark suite, it scores 8859 with 16 threads and 1090 with a single thread. These numbers place it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals in the database are the Intel Core i5-13500, which is just 0.4% behind in average score, and the Intel Core i7-12800HX, which is 0.5% behind. It also slightly edges out the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H by 0.8%. This places the 7700X in a very competitive tier, meaning that the performance ceiling in CPU-bound scenarios is exceptionally high. For a game like Barony, which is not a massive AAA open-world title, this CPU is overkill, but it ensures that the GPU is never waiting on the processor to deliver frame data.

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

Analyzing the measured FPS across all resolutions, the "High" preset offers the most balanced experience in terms of raw performance and visual fidelity, but the data suggests that "Ultra" is viable for most users. At 1080p, High yields 442.1 FPS, while Ultra yields 317.5 FPS. Both are far beyond playable, but the 124.6 FPS difference is substantial. For a fast-paced roguelike where reaction time matters, the higher frame rate of High might be preferable, but the visual upgrade to Ultra is likely minimal in a game of this graphical style.

At 1440p, the pattern continues. High produces 275.3 FPS, and Ultra drops to 196.6 FPS. The 78.7 FPS difference is still significant. However, at 4K, the gap narrows. High hits 142.6 FPS, and Ultra falls to 103.3 FPS. This 39.3 FPS difference is less pronounced, but it still represents a meaningful shift. The data suggests that the "Ultra" preset is the best choice for a high-refresh-rate 1440p monitor or a standard 60 Hz 4K display, as it maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS at 4K and above 100 FPS at 1440p. For competitive play on a 360 Hz or 540 Hz monitor, the "High" preset at 1080p would be the logical pick, but for the vast majority of users, the visual quality of Ultra will not cost them playability. The "Medium" preset is a middle ground, but it offers no significant advantage over High, which is only a slight step down in frame rate.

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

The scaling data shows a classic shift in bottleneck behavior. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 689.4 FPS. At 1440p Low, this drops by 252.5 FPS to 436.9 FPS. At 4K Low, it plummets to 228.7 FPS. This is a massive reduction, indicating that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor as resolution increases. The RTX 5090 is a monstrous card, but even it cannot maintain the absurd frame rates of 1080p when the pixel count quadruples at 4K.

Looking at the High preset, the drop is also steep but slightly less dramatic in percentage terms. From 442.1 FPS at 1080p to 275.3 FPS at 1440p, and then down to 142.6 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 132.7 FPS, which is a 48.2% reduction. This confirms that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and compute units are the primary drivers of performance at higher resolutions. The RTX 5090’s 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth are heavily utilized, but the sheer volume of pixels at 4K is a challenge.

The data points to the GPU as the limiting component at 4K. The CPU’s role diminishes as resolution scales, as the frame time becomes dominated by rasterization and pixel shading. However, the fact that the 7700X can push 689.4 FPS at 1080p Low means it is not a bottleneck even in the most CPU-intensive scenarios. The bottleneck is purely the GPU’s ability to render the scene. This is a healthy balance for a high-end system, as it means the CPU has plenty of headroom for background tasks or future game updates that might increase CPU load.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 11th out of 1702 tested combos in Barony. This is an exceptionally strong position, placing it in the top 0.65% of all configurations. The rank indicates that the combination of this CPU and GPU is among the fastest in the database for this particular game. Given the CPU’s 89th percentile standing and the GPU’s 94th percentile standing, a top-11 finish is expected, but it also highlights that there are a few other combinations that manage to edge it out.

The rank is likely determined by the average FPS across all measured settings and resolutions. Since this combo delivers over 100 FPS at 4K Ultra, it outperforms most systems. The fact that it is not ranked first suggests that there are a few CPUs with even higher single-thread performance or perhaps a different GPU configuration that yields a few more frames in specific scenarios. However, a rank of 11 out of over 1700 is a dominant result. It means that for the vast majority of gamers, this system will provide a top-tier experience in Barony, with no meaningful compromises at any resolution or setting. The delta between this combo and the number one spot is likely minimal, given the high frame rates already achieved.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the flagship of the GeForce 50-series, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU has a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz. Its memory operates at 1750 MHz, with an effective data rate of 28 Gbps. This is a colossal amount of memory and bandwidth, which is directly reflected in the 4K performance.

In Barony, the GPU’s role is to render the game’s environments. The 32 GB VRAM is far more than any game needs currently, but it ensures that there are no texture streaming issues or memory-related stutters at any resolution. The high bandwidth is crucial for feeding the 21760 shading units and 176 ROPs. The GPU’s PassMark G3D score is 39650, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 14411. These numbers place it in the 94th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the RTX 5090 D (0.1% ahead) and the RTX 5050 Mobile (0.2% ahead), which is a strange grouping in the database, but it shows that the desktop 5090 is at the absolute top of the stack.

The 4K Ultra result of 103.3 FPS reflects the GPU’s raw power. The drop from 228.7 FPS at 4K Low to 103.3 FPS at 4K Ultra shows the significant performance cost of enabling the highest visual settings. However, the GPU is still capable of maintaining a frame rate that is well above the standard 60 FPS target, even at the most demanding settings. The data confirms that the RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing, and its architecture is designed to handle the most extreme workloads a modern game can throw at it.