Barony

# Barony with AMD Ryzen 9 5900X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

This combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers exceptional performance in Barony, a roguelike title from 2015. The measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings presets are remarkably high, with the combo ranking 39th out of 2,935 tested combinations in this game. This places the system firmly in the top 1.3% of all tested configurations, indicating that this pairing is exceptionally well-suited for Barony's demands, though the game's age and relatively modest graphical requirements mean even lower-tier hardware can achieve playable results.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 39 out of 2,935 tested combinations places this system in the 98.7th percentile of all configurations tested for Barony. This is an elite position, though the ranking reflects the sheer horsepower of both components rather than any particular optimization for this specific title. The CPU alone sits in the 87th percentile versus all CPUs, while the GPU holds the 92nd percentile versus all GPUs, and their combined performance in this game exceeds what either component's individual percentile would suggest.

The Ryzen 9 5900X's nearest rivals in overall CPU benchmarks show a tightly clustered group. The Intel Core Ultra 7 366H scores 41,263, which is just 0.3% behind the Ryzen 9 5900X's average benchmark score of 41,376. Similarly, the Intel Core Ultra 7 356H (41,215) and AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 (41,208) are both 0.4% behind, while the Intel Core i7-14650HX (41,576) is 0.5% ahead. This indicates that while the Ryzen 9 5900X is a strong performer, it sits within a very competitive performance band where small margins separate the top contenders.

For the GPU, the RTX 5090 D's average benchmark score of 77,712 places it just 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76,904) and 1.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (78,940). The NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants trail by 2.1% and 2.4% respectively. These narrow deltas in synthetic benchmarks contrast sharply with the measured FPS results in Barony, where the RTX 5090 D delivers frame rates that would be unattainable for most of those rival GPUs at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo achieves in Barony?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system reaches 646 FPS average, which is the maximum measured frame rate across all tested configurations.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested systems in Barony?

A: The combination ranks 39th out of 2,935 tested combos, placing it in the top 1.3% of all configurations tested for this game.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the system still maintains 109 FPS average, which is the minimum measured across all resolution and settings combinations.

Q: Does the system maintain playable frame rates at 4K with maximum settings?

A: Yes, the 109 FPS average at 3840x2160 Ultra is well above playable thresholds, and even the minimum FPS recorded at Medium settings (151 FPS at 4K) exceeds typical display refresh rates.

Q: How much faster is this combo compared to its nearest CPU rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 9 5900X has an average benchmark score of 41,376, which is just 0.3% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 7 366H's 41,263.

Q: What is the VRAM capacity of the GPU in this configuration?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, which is far more than Barony requires given its 2015 release date.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how performance scales across resolutions, and the pattern is highly informative about which component limits performance in Barony. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system delivers 646 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops this to 457 FPS, a reduction of approximately 29.3%. At 3840x2160 Low, the frame rate falls to 239 FPS, which represents a 63.0% drop from the 1080p result.

This scaling pattern is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, but the absolute numbers tell a more nuanced story. The CPU's 12 cores and 24 threads are substantial, yet Barony, as a 2015 roguelike, likely cannot utilize all of those resources effectively. The 1080p Low result of 646 FPS suggests some CPU limitation even at this resolution, as the GPU is theoretically capable of much higher frame rates in lighter titles.

The Medium settings show the most complete data, with minimum and maximum FPS recorded. At 1080p Medium, the average is 538 FPS with a minimum of 458 and maximum of 619. At 1440p Medium, these figures drop to 340 average, 289 minimum, and 391 maximum. At 4K Medium, the average is 178 FPS with a minimum of 151 and maximum of 204. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p Medium represents a 36.8% drop, while 1440p to 4K Medium shows a 47.6% drop, indicating progressively heavier GPU load at higher resolutions.

The High settings show less dramatic scaling: 462 FPS at 1080p, 292 FPS at 1440p (a 36.8% drop), and 152 FPS at 4K (a 47.9% drop from 1440p). This consistent pattern across settings suggests that the RTX 5090 D's capabilities are being increasingly taxed as resolution increases, while the CPU overhead remains relatively constant.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system achieves extraordinary frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce 646 FPS average, Medium produces 538 FPS (with a minimum of 458 and maximum of 619), High produces 462 FPS, and Ultra produces 331 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 48.8% reduction in frame rate, demonstrating that the Ultra preset imposes significant additional GPU workload compared to Low.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high but show the expected reduction. Low settings deliver 457 FPS, Medium delivers 340 FPS (minimum 289, maximum 391), High delivers 292 FPS, and Ultra delivers 209 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 54.3%, slightly larger than at 1080p, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects scale more heavily with resolution.

At 3840x2160, the system still delivers excellent performance. Low settings produce 239 FPS, Medium produces 178 FPS (minimum 151, maximum 204), High produces 152 FPS, and Ultra produces 109 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 4K is 54.4%, consistent with the scaling observed at 1440p. The minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium (151 FPS) is still higher than the average FPS of many lesser GPUs at 1080p, highlighting the sheer performance headroom this combination offers.

The step from 1080p to 1440p at each setting shows reductions of 29.3% (Low), 36.8% (Medium), 36.8% (High), and 36.9% (Ultra). From 1440p to 4K, the reductions are 47.7% (Low), 47.6% (Medium), 47.9% (High), and 47.8% (Ultra). This remarkably consistent scaling pattern indicates that the performance penalty is primarily driven by resolution-dependent GPU workload rather than setting-specific effects.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture (codenamed Vermeer), manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process. It features a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz, with a 64 MB L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 memory with dual-channel configuration and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth, and it connects via PCIe Gen 4.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Ryzen 9 5900X demonstrates strong multi-threaded performance with a 3DMark max threads score of 10,075, while the single-thread score is 941. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16,262 and single-core score of 1,527 further illustrate the processor's capabilities. PassMark results show a multithread score of 39,002 and a single-thread score of 3,469, placing the CPU in the 87th percentile versus all CPUs.

For Barony, the CPU's role appears to be secondary given the game's age and genre. The 1080p Low result of 646 FPS suggests that even this powerful processor approaches its limits in frame generation, as the GPU is unlikely to be the bottleneck at such low settings and resolution. However, the CPU's 12 cores and 24 threads provide substantial headroom for any background tasks or streaming workloads that might run alongside the game.

The Ryzen 9 5900X's performance relative to its nearest rivals shows a tightly contested field. The Intel Core Ultra 7 366H is just 0.3% behind in average benchmark score, while the Intel Core Ultra 7 356H and AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 are 0.4% behind. The Intel Core i7-14650HX leads by 0.5%. These margins are negligible in real-world gaming scenarios, though the Ryzen 9 5900X's desktop pedigree with higher sustained clocks may give it an edge in extended gaming sessions.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured FPS data, the Ultra preset at 1080p delivers 331 FPS average, which is more than sufficient for any display technology currently available. However, the Medium preset at 1080p produces 538 FPS average with a minimum of 458 FPS, offering a substantial frame rate increase of 62.5% over Ultra while likely maintaining visual quality that is nearly indistinguishable in a roguelike title.

At 1440p, the High preset delivers 292 FPS average, while Ultra drops to 209 FPS. The Medium preset at 340 FPS provides the most balanced experience, with a 62.7% improvement over Ultra while still delivering frame rates far beyond what most monitors can display. The minimum FPS of 289 at Medium ensures consistent performance even in demanding scenes.

For 4K gaming, the High preset at 152 FPS average is the recommended choice for those with high refresh rate 4K displays, as it provides a 39.4% improvement over Ultra's 109 FPS while maintaining excellent visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 178 FPS (minimum 151) offers even more headroom, and given the game's roguelike nature where visual detail is less critical than smooth gameplay, Medium at 4K represents the optimal balance of performance and quality.

The data suggests that the Medium preset offers the best overall experience across all resolutions, as it consistently provides the highest frame rates while maintaining reasonable visual quality. The jump from Medium to High at any resolution costs approximately 14-16% of performance, while High to Ultra costs an additional 28-29%, making Ultra the least efficient choice for the performance gained.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a flagship GPU based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, built on TSMC's 5 nm process with 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2017 MHz and boost clock of 2407 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective).

With 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 raster output units, the RTX 5090 D delivers 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores provide extensive compute capabilities that far exceed Barony's requirements. The GPU's 575 W TDP and dual-slot design with a 16-pin power connector require a 950 W suggested PSU, making this a power-hungry component that demands careful system planning.

In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 5090 D achieves a PassMark G3D score of 44,065 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 376,915. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326 reflects strong modern API performance. The GPU holds the 92nd percentile versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712.

For Barony, the GPU's role is primarily resolution scaling. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 646 FPS, which is likely CPU-limited given the GPU's vast capabilities. As resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes progressively more utilized, with the performance scaling matching what would be expected from a GPU-bound workload. The 32 GB VRAM is massively overprovisioned for Barony, which was released when 4 GB GPUs were common, but this capacity ensures zero risk of VRAM-related stuttering or texture pop-in, even at 4K Ultra.

The RTX 5090 D's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks show that it leads the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT by 1.1% and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT trails by 1.6%. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB and 16 GB variants are 2.1% and 2.4% behind respectively. These margins are small in synthetic tests, but in Barony the RTX 5090 D's combination of high clock speeds and massive memory bandwidth likely provides more consistent frame delivery at high resolutions than those rivals could achieve.