Barony

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers a benchmark suite for Barony that is defined by extreme headroom, where the primary challenge is not achieving playability but rather selecting a preset that balances visual fidelity with the monitor's refresh rate capabilities. The data shows that even at the most demanding tested configuration, the combo maintains a fluid experience, making the optimal preset highly dependent on the display's maximum refresh rate. For users with a standard 60 Hz or 144 Hz display, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160, which produces an average of 109 FPS, is the most appropriate choice, as it provides the highest visual quality while still exceeding the refresh rate of common monitors. However, for those with high-refresh-rate 1440p displays, the Medium preset at 2560x1440, yielding an average of 340 FPS, offers a superior balance, as it comfortably saturates a 240 Hz panel with a substantial margin for frame-time variance, as indicated by the min FPS of 289. At 1920x1080, the Low preset's 724 FPS average is only relevant for competitive play on esports-grade 360 Hz monitors; otherwise, the High preset at 462 FPS or the Ultra preset at 331 FPS are more visually refined options that still obliterate any standard refresh rate.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this configuration, and its specifications directly explain the exceptional frame rates observed. The GPU's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides a 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, a prodigious amount of memory throughput that prevents any bandwidth-related bottlenecks even at 4K resolution with high-detail textures. The architecture, Blackwell 2.0, is built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, with a massive 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. This hardware foundation translates into a raw compute capacity of 104.8 TFLOPS for FP32 operations, which is the primary driver for the pixel and texture rates of 423.6 GPixel/s and 1,636.8 GTexel/s, respectively. While Barony is a roguelike and not typically a graphics-intensive title, the GPU's sheer horsepower is evident in the data: it maintains an average of 152 FPS at 4K High settings, a figure that many systems cannot achieve at 1080p in more demanding games.

The GPU's benchmark scores reinforce its top-tier status. Its Passmark G3D score of 44,065 places it in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, and its Geekbench Vulkan score of 376,915 is particularly noteworthy, indicating strong API-level performance. The nearest rivals in the average benchmark score, such as the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT with a deltaPct of -1.6%, are mobile parts that are not in the same performance class, highlighting the RTX 5090 D's position as a desktop flagship. The core configuration, with 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, provides an immense amount of parallel processing power that scales directly with resolution, as the FPS data shows a relatively modest drop when moving from 1080p to 4K compared to what a lesser GPU would exhibit. The boost clock of 2407 MHz, while lower than some previous generation parts, is less relevant given the sheer number of execution units working in tandem.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling across resolutions reveals that this combo is rarely GPU-bound at lower resolutions, and only becomes so at 4K. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 462 at 1920x1080 to 292 at 2560x1440, a 36.8% reduction, and then further to 152 at 3840x2160, a 47.9% reduction from the 1440p figure. This pattern is typical of a CPU-limited scenario at 1080p, where the Ryzen 7 7700X cannot feed frames fast enough to fully utilize the RTX 5090 D. The data supports this interpretation: at 1080p Low, the FPS reaches 724, which is an astronomical number that is more representative of a CPU's maximum frame generation capability than a GPU's rendering limit. The transition from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings shows a 36.9% drop (724 to 457), which is proportionally similar to the High preset drop, further suggesting the CPU is the limiting factor, as the GPU's workload increases but the frame rate is still constrained by the processor's thread scheduling and draw call submission.

The scaling becomes more GPU-centric at 4K. The difference between 1440p High (292 FPS) and 4K High (152 FPS) is a 47.9% reduction, which aligns more closely with the increase in pixel count (from 3.7 million to 8.3 million, a 125% increase, but the FPS drop is less than half of that, indicating the GPU still has headroom). At 4K Ultra, the FPS falls to 109, which is a 28.3% drop from 4K High, showing that the most demanding settings finally impose a significant load on the RTX 5090 D. The medium preset at 4K shows a min FPS of 151 and a max of 204, providing a frame-time window that is still exceptionally smooth. This data collectively indicates that the limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p and 1440p to the GPU only at 4K with higher settings, but even then, the GPU is so powerful that it never drops below the 100 FPS threshold at any tested configuration.

How This Combo Ranks

The benchmark database categorizes this specific CPU-GPU pairing as the top performer for Barony, securing a rank of 1 out of 2,935 tested combinations. This is a definitive statement about its superiority in this particular game, indicating that no other tested hardware configuration in the database produces higher average frame rates across the tested scenarios. The combination of the Ryzen 7 7700X's strong single-threaded performance and the RTX 5090 D's immense rendering capabilities creates a synergy that is unmatched for this title. The CPU's 3DMark single-thread score of 1,090 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1,987 are excellent, ensuring that the processor can keep up with the GPU's frame generation. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326 is a high-end result that predicts strong performance in modern APIs.

The ranking of 1 out of 2,935 is not merely a marginal victory; it represents a clear gap over the rest of the field. While the nearest CPU rivals in the average benchmark score, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 with a deltaPct of 0.3%, are within a rounding error, the same cannot be said for the GPU's rivals, which are all lower-scoring parts. This combination ensures that the system is not bottlenecked by either component, a rarity in high-end builds. The data confirms that this is the definitive platform for those seeking the absolute highest frame rates in Barony, with no other configuration in the database even approaching its performance level. This rank also suggests that the game is not heavily optimized for multi-threading, as the CPU's 8-core, 16-thread configuration is more than sufficient, and the GPU's raw power is the deciding factor.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X plays a critical supporting role, ensuring that the RTX 5090 D is never starved for data. This 8-core, 16-thread processor, based on the Zen 4 architecture (codenamed Raphael), is built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock of 4.50 GHz and boost clock of 5.40 GHz are high, and the 32 MB of shared L3 cache provides a large, low-latency pool for frequently accessed game data. The CPU's benchmark results show a strong balance between single-threaded and multi-threaded performance. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19,088 and single-core score of 1,987 are both robust, and its Passmark single-thread score of 4,190 is particularly high, which is beneficial for a game like Barony that likely has a primary game thread. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 8,859 shows excellent scaling, but the single-thread score of 1,090 is the more relevant metric for frame pacing in this title.

The CPU's performance is a key reason why frame rates at 1080p are so exceptionally high. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 724 FPS, a figure that is almost certainly limited by the CPU's ability to process game logic and issue draw calls, not by the GPU's rendering speed. This is supported by the fact that the FPS at 1080p High (462) is significantly lower than at Low (724), suggesting that while the GPU is working harder, the CPU is still the bottleneck, as the frame rate is not scaling proportionally with the GPU's workload. The Ryzen 7 7700X's memory support for DDR5 and dual-channel architecture with 83.2 GB/s of bandwidth ensures that the CPU can quickly access game assets, preventing any memory-related stutters. Its percentileVsAllCpus of 85 indicates that it is in the top 15% of all CPUs, which, while not at the very top, is more than adequate to complement a flagship GPU in a game that is not heavily CPU-bound. The data shows that the CPU's role is to provide a stable, high-frequency platform that allows the GPU's immense power to be fully realized, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is underutilized.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average of 724 FPS at Low, 538 FPS at Medium, 462 FPS at High, and 331 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset shows a min FPS of 458 and a max of 619, indicating a stable frame time distribution. At 2560x1440, the averages are 457 FPS at Low, 340 FPS at Medium, 292 FPS at High, and 209 FPS at Ultra. The 1440p Medium preset has a min of 289 and a max of 391 FPS. At 3840x2160, the averages are 239 FPS at Low, 178 FPS at Medium, 152 FPS at High, and 109 FPS at Ultra. The 4K Medium preset has a min of 151 and a max of 204 FPS.

The progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent decrease in performance, with the most significant drop occurring between High and Ultra at each resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is a 54.3% reduction (724 to 331 FPS). At 1440p, the reduction is 54.3% as well (457 to 209 FPS). At 4K, the reduction is 54.4% (239 to 109 FPS). This consistent percentage indicates that the Ultra preset imposes a similar relative load on the GPU regardless of resolution, confirming that the GPU is the primary scaling factor for settings. The data also shows that the game is not particularly demanding, as even the most conservative 4K Ultra configuration maintains an average of 109 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. The min FPS values for the Medium preset at all resolutions are within a reasonable range of the average, indicating good frame pacing and a lack of severe stutters. For instance, at 4K Medium, the min of 151 FPS is only 15.2% lower than the average of 178 FPS, which is a healthy margin.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 144 Hz monitor at 2560x1440 resolution?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 produces an average of 209 FPS, which is well above 144 Hz. However, the High preset, with an average of 292 FPS, offers a higher frame rate with a moderate visual quality reduction, making it a better choice to provide more headroom for frame time spikes.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p resolution?

A: The data indicates the CPU is the primary limiter at 1080p, as the FPS at Low (724) is exceptionally high and does not increase proportionally with the GPU's workload. The GPU becomes the limiting factor only at 4K with higher settings, where the average FPS drops to 152 at High and 109 at Ultra.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 D's memory configuration impact performance in Barony?

A: The GPU's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, ensures that there is no memory bandwidth bottleneck. This is sufficient to handle any texture or asset loading requirements at 4K, contributing to the stable frame times observed.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded across all tested settings?

A: The lowest average FPS recorded is 109 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with the Ultra settings preset. This is the most demanding configuration tested, and it still maintains a frame rate that is well above the standard 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested CPU-GPU pairings?

A: This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 1st out of 2,935 tested combinations in the benchmark database for Barony. This indicates it is the highest-performing configuration tested for this game.

Q: Does the data show any significant frame pacing issues at any settings?

A: The data shows min FPS values only for the Medium preset across all resolutions. At 4K Medium, the min is 151 FPS versus an average of 178 FPS, and at 1080p Medium, the min is 458 FPS versus an average of 538 FPS. These differences are moderate and suggest no severe frame pacing issues.