Barony

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER produces a fascinating dataset in Barony, a roguelike that is clearly far more forgiving on hardware than its genre peers. The measured frames per second (FPS) reveal a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-limited at higher resolutions, but which still manages to deliver playable performance even at 4K Ultra. This analysis breaks down exactly what the 12 measured data points mean for builders considering this combination.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, confirming that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary bottleneck as pixel count rises. At Low settings, the system produces 284.7 FPS at 1920x1080, but this falls to 182.3 FPS at 2560x1440 (a 36% reduction) and further to 97.9 FPS at 3840x2160 (a 66% reduction from 1080p). The pattern holds at High settings, where 186.2 FPS at 1080p drops to 116.6 FPS at 1440p and then to 61.3 FPS at 4K.

The scaling curve suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor at 1080p. The jump from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings costs roughly 100 FPS, which is a massive hit that only makes sense if the GPU is already saturated. If the processor were the constraint, we would expect the 1080p to 1440p gap to be smaller. Instead, the data shows a linear degradation tied to resolution, which points squarely at the graphics card's pixel throughput limits.

At 4K, the situation becomes critical for high refresh rate monitors. Even at Low settings, the card only manages 97.9 FPS, which is below the 100 FPS mark many gamers consider the floor for smooth competitive play. At Ultra settings, 4K drops to 42.1 FPS, which is barely playable for a turn-based roguelike but would be unacceptable for any fast-paced action. The 1440p results are the sweet spot: High settings deliver 116.6 FPS, which clears the 100 FPS threshold with headroom.

GPU Role

The RTX 2060 SUPER is the star of this show, and its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth is sufficient for Barony's demands at all tested resolutions. The card's base clock of 1470 MHz and boost clock of 1650 MHz are modest by modern standards, but the Turing architecture's 2176 shading units and 64 ROPs do the heavy lifting. The measured data shows that the card's 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is enough to push 284.7 FPS at 1080p Low, which indicates the game is not heavily shader-bound.

The GPU's percentile rank of 63 among all GPUs places it in the mid-range, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070, which scores only 0.5% higher on average. This explains why the 2060 SUPER can handle 1440p High at 116.6 FPS: it is essentially trading blows with cards that were marketed for 1440p gaming. The 8 GB VRAM buffer is never stressed in this dataset, as even the 4K Ultra run at 42.1 FPS does not suggest texture thrashing; the bottleneck is raw compute, not memory capacity.

The card's 175 W TDP and dual-slot cooler are irrelevant to the FPS numbers, but the fact that it maintains 61.3 FPS at 4K High shows that the TU106 chip has respectable thermal headroom under sustained load. The 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is the key spec here; it allows the card to feed its 64 ROPs efficiently at 4K, which is why the drop from 1440p to 4K is not catastrophic.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 9 7900X is massively overqualified for this game, and the data proves it. With 12 cores and 24 threads based on Zen 4 architecture, this processor is designed for workstation tasks, not 2015-era roguelikes. Its benchmark scores are exceptional: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 43695 and a single-core score of 6168 place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. The nearest rivals, including the Intel Core i9-13980HX, score only 0.8% lower on average, meaning the 7900X is essentially at the top of the consumer heap.

In Barony, the CPU's role is almost nonexistent at 1080p. The fact that the system hits 284.7 FPS at Low settings with a 175 W GPU suggests the processor is not even breaking a sweat. The 5.60 GHz boost clock ensures that single-threaded game logic is handled instantly, while the 64 MB of shared L3 cache likely eliminates any memory latency issues. The CPU's 83.2 GB/s memory bandwidth on DDR5 is more than adequate for the game's data streaming needs.

The only scenario where the CPU might matter is at 1080p Ultra, where the system still produces 130.3 FPS. This is high enough that the GPU is still the limiting factor, but it does show that the processor can feed the graphics card enough data to keep it busy. The 3DMark results support this: the 8-thread score of 7798 and 16-thread score of 10972 show that even half the cores can handle modern workloads. For Barony, the 7900X is a waste of silicon, but it ensures zero CPU-induced frame drops.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Barony at 4K 60 FPS?*

A: Yes, but only at Medium settings or lower. The data shows 61.3 FPS at 4K High, which is just above 60, but this drops to 42.1 FPS at Ultra. For a locked 60 FPS experience, use Medium at 71.2 FPS or Low at 97.9 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER the bottleneck at 1080p?

A: Yes, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor even at 1080p. The CPU is far more powerful, as shown by its 93rd percentile ranking, so the FPS ceiling is set by the graphics card's 7.181 TFLOPS of compute.

Q: What is the best resolution for competitive play?

A: For maximum FPS, 1080p Low delivers 284.7 FPS. If you want higher visual fidelity without sacrificing responsiveness, 1440p High at 116.6 FPS is the best balance, as it clears the 100 FPS mark comfortably.

Q: How does this GPU compare to its closest rival in terms of overall performance?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER scores an average of 19774 in benchmarks, which is 0.5% higher than the RTX 2070. This explains why the 2060 SUPER can handle 1440p High at over 100 FPS in this game, as the two cards are nearly identical in raw power.

*Q: Is 8 GB of VRAM enough for Barony at 4K?*

A: The data suggests yes. The 4K Ultra run at 42.1 FPS does not indicate a VRAM shortage; the performance drop is due to compute limits, not memory capacity. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for the game's textures.

Q: Will upgrading the CPU improve FPS in this game?

A: No. The 7900X is already in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals score within 0.8%. The FPS numbers are entirely GPU-bound, so a CPU upgrade would yield zero measurable improvement in Barony.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of settings for each resolution. For 1080p, the choice depends on your monitor's refresh rate. If you have a 144 Hz display, Medium at 213.9 FPS is the sweet spot, as it provides a massive frame rate cushion without the visual degradation of Low. High at 186.2 FPS is also viable and likely looks better. Ultra at 130.3 FPS is the best visual experience but still exceeds 120 FPS, making it the recommended choice for 120 Hz monitors.

At 1440p, the recommendation is High at 116.6 FPS. This is the only setting that combines good visuals with a frame rate above 100. Medium at 135.1 FPS is also excellent if you prioritize frame rate, but Low at 182.3 FPS is overkill for most displays. Ultra at 84.7 FPS is playable but drops below the 90 FPS threshold that many players consider minimum for smooth motion.

At 4K, the situation is more nuanced. Low at 97.9 FPS is the only setting that clears 60 FPS with significant headroom, making it the default recommendation for 4K60 displays. Medium at 71.2 FPS is also acceptable, but High at 61.3 FPS is cutting it close to the 60 FPS line. Ultra at 42.1 FPS is not recommended for any serious play, as the frame pacing will suffer.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset shows a consistent pattern across all three resolutions. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 284.7 FPS on Low, 213.9 FPS on Medium, 186.2 FPS on High, and 130.3 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra is 154.4 FPS, which represents a 54% performance penalty for maximum visual quality.

At 2560x1440, the numbers drop to 182.3 FPS on Low, 135.1 FPS on Medium, 116.6 FPS on High, and 84.7 FPS on Ultra. The delta between Low and Ultra here is 97.6 FPS, showing that the GPU's limitations become more pronounced as resolution increases. The 1440p High result of 116.6 FPS is particularly notable, as it represents a playable frame rate with high visual fidelity.

At 3840x2160, the final tier shows 97.9 FPS on Low, 71.2 FPS on Medium, 61.3 FPS on High, and 42.1 FPS on Ultra. The Low setting is the only one that stays above 90 FPS, and the Ultra setting falls below the 45 FPS mark, which is generally considered the absolute floor for playability. The 4K results clearly show that this GPU is at its limit, but the 8 GB memory buffer ensures that even the lowest FPS figures are stable rather than stutter-prone.