Barony

Barony, a roguelike with a 2015 release, presents an interesting case for the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings reveal a system that is exceptionally capable of handling this title, with performance scaling that points to a clear balance between the CPU and GPU depending on the workload.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows how the performance burden shifts as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates extreme headroom. The average frame rate at Low settings reaches 340 FPS, dropping to 156 FPS at Ultra. This massive spread at 1080p suggests that the game is heavily influenced by the CPU and its 16 cores, as the GPU is not yet the primary constraint. The Ryzen 9 9950X3D, with its high boost clock of 5.70 GHz, is able to feed frames to the RTX 4060 at a rate that the GPU can process without becoming a bottleneck.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high but the scaling becomes more linear. The Low preset delivers 215 FPS, while Medium achieves 160 FPS, High hits 137 FPS, and Ultra drops to 98 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p sees a reduction in performance across all settings, but the system still maintains a smooth experience. This indicates that while the GPU is starting to take on more work, the CPU's 32 threads and 128 MB of L3 cache are still providing ample support to keep the frame pipeline full.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4060 becomes the dominant factor. The average FPS at High settings is 72, with Low settings reaching 112 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 51 FPS, showing that the 8 GB of VRAM and the GPU's 128-bit memory bus are being stressed by the higher pixel count. The scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a clear pattern: at lower resolutions, the CPU's strength is evident in the high frame rates, but as resolution climbs, the GPU's 15.11 TFLOPS of compute power and 272.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth become the limiting factors. The frame rate drop from 340 FPS at 1080p Low to 112 FPS at 4K Low is a 67% reduction, highlighting the GPU's increased workload.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a formidable processor for this title. With 16 cores, 32 threads, and a 128 MB L3 cache, it provides a massive amount of processing power. The benchmark data shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution, as even the lowest average frame rate of 51 FPS at 4K Ultra is not a result of CPU limitations. The 3DMark scores are telling: the single-thread score of 1292 and the 16-thread score of 16374 indicate strong per-core performance and excellent multi-threading scaling. For a game like Barony, which can utilize multiple cores for game logic and world simulation, this CPU ensures that the system never stutters due to processor lag.

The CPU's position in the broader market is strong, with a percentile rank of 95 among all CPUs. Its nearest rivals are closely matched in average benchmark scores. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 9755 scores 75738, a delta of 0.1% from the Ryzen 9 9950X3D's average of 75779. Similarly, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 9755X3D is 0.1% behind, and the AMD EPYC 8224P is 0.3% behind. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285 trails by 0.4%. This clustering indicates that the Ryzen 9 9950X3D is at the top of its class, and for Barony, this translates to a system that can easily maintain high frame rates even in complex scenes with many entities.

The CPU's high performance is further evidenced by its benchmark results in Cinebench R23, where it scores 42018 in multi-core and 2259 in single-core. These numbers confirm that the processor is not just a multi-threaded powerhouse but also has excellent single-thread performance, which is crucial for games that rely on a primary game thread. The combination of high clock speeds (4.30 GHz base, 5.70 GHz boost) and the large cache ensures that the CPU can handle any task Barony throws at it without breaking a sweat.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 ranks 2000 out of 3717 combos for Barony. This places it in the 54th percentile of all tested combos, which is a solid middle-ground ranking. While the CPU is top-tier, the GPU is more mid-range, which pulls the overall combo ranking down.

The RTX 4060 itself has a percentile rank of 61 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17639. Its nearest rivals are very close in performance: the AMD Radeon HD 7790 scores 17666 (a -0.2% delta), the AMD Radeon 780M scores 17588 (a 0.3% delta), and the AMD Radeon Pro 560 scores 17551 (a 0.5% delta). This shows that the RTX 4060 is positioned in a competitive segment of the GPU market. The combo's rank of 2000 suggests that while the CPU is overkill for this GPU in many scenarios, the overall system is still well-balanced for achieving high frame rates in Barony at 1080p and 1440p, with playable performance at 4K.

The ranking indicates there are 1717 combos that perform better, likely featuring more powerful GPUs paired with similar or weaker CPUs. This makes sense, as the RTX 4060's 8 GB of VRAM and 128-bit memory bus are entry-level specifications for modern gaming at higher resolutions. However, for a roguelike with the graphical complexity of Barony, this combo proves to be more than sufficient for a smooth experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a detailed look at performance across all settings. At 1920x1080, the system is incredibly fast. The Low preset averages 340 FPS, which is an extraordinarily high frame rate that would be wasted on any standard 60Hz or 144Hz monitor. Medium averages 253 FPS, with a minimum of 215 FPS and a maximum of 291 FPS, showing a consistent experience. High averages 217 FPS, while Ultra averages 156 FPS. Even at Ultra, the frame rate is high enough for any competitive or fast-paced gameplay.

At 2560x1440, performance remains excellent. Low averages 215 FPS, Medium averages 160 FPS (min 136, max 183), High averages 137 FPS, and Ultra averages 98 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p is the first to dip below 100 FPS, but it remains smooth and well within the range of high-refresh-rate monitors. The jump from Medium to High at 1440p is a 23 FPS difference, while the jump from High to Ultra is a 39 FPS difference, indicating that the Ultra preset is significantly more demanding on the GPU.

At 3840x2160, the limits of the RTX 4060 become apparent. Low averages 112 FPS, which is still very playable. Medium averages 83 FPS, with a minimum of 71 and a maximum of 96, showing some variance. High averages 72 FPS, which is still above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Ultra drops to 51 FPS, which is the only measured result that falls below the 60 FPS mark. This makes 4K Ultra a less desirable option for those seeking a consistently smooth experience, but the 4K High setting offers a good balance of visual quality and performance.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 plays a critical role in this system, particularly at higher resolutions. The GPU's specifications, including its base clock of 1830 MHz and boost clock of 2460 MHz, are well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory is adequate for Barony, but the 128-bit bus width and 272.0 GB/s memory bandwidth are limiting factors at 4K, where the demand for texture data and frame buffer memory increases significantly.

The GPU's compute capabilities, with 3072 shading units and 96 tensor cores, are more than enough for a game of Barony's visual complexity. The RTX 4060's performance in benchmarks shows it holds its own in its class. The PassMark G3D score of 19545 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2302 confirm its mid-range positioning. The GPU's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon HD 7790, is essentially tied in average score, while the integrated AMD Radeon 780M is just 0.3% behind, which is surprising but shows the efficiency of the RTX 4060 at its power envelope.

The GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU is often the limiting factor, but the RTX 4060 is still able to deliver 156 FPS at Ultra. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as evidenced by the 51 FPS average at Ultra. The 4K Low setting at 112 FPS shows that the GPU can handle the resolution when the graphical load is lighter, but the Ultra preset's demands on the GPU's memory subsystem and shader units cause a significant performance drop.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the best experience varies by resolution. For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the clear recommendation, as the 156 FPS average is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay, and it provides the highest visual fidelity. The system has so much headroom at 1080p that even the most demanding settings are easily handled.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset at 98 FPS is also a strong choice, offering a great balance of visual quality and performance. If a player prefers a higher refresh rate, the High preset at 137 FPS is a better option, but the difference in visual quality is minimal in a game like Barony. The Medium preset at 160 FPS is also viable, but the jump to High is worth the small performance cost.

At 3840x2160, the High preset is the recommended setting. The 72 FPS average provides a smooth and responsive experience, while the Ultra preset's 51 FPS may be too low for some players, especially in a game that can have fast-paced action. The Medium preset at 83 FPS is also a good option if a higher frame rate is desired, but High offers a better visual experience for only an 11 FPS drop. The Low preset at 112 FPS is unnecessary, as the game will look noticeably worse without a significant performance benefit over Medium. The data shows that the High preset at 4K is the sweet spot, balancing the RTX 4060's capabilities with the visual demands of the game.