Barony

# Barony with Intel Core i5-10400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070

This combination of an Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 delivers exceptional performance in Barony, a roguelike title from 2015, with measured frame rates ranging from 76 FPS at 4K Ultra to 474 FPS at 1080p Low. The pairing ranks 811th out of 3717 tested combinations, placing it in the top 22% of all systems evaluated for this game, and the data shows the GPU is the dominant factor at higher resolutions while the CPU's six cores provide ample headroom at lower settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p High settings?

A: The system achieves 202 FPS on average at 2560x1440 with High settings, which is well above the 144Hz refresh rate threshold and indicates smooth gameplay for most displays.

Q: How does the combo rank among other tested systems for Barony?

A: This configuration ranks 811th out of 3717 tested combinations, placing it in the top 22% of all systems evaluated for this game.

Q: What is the largest FPS drop when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the system drops from 320 FPS at 1920x1080 to 105 FPS at 3840x2160, representing a 215 FPS reduction (67.2% decrease) as resolution scales up.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in this game at 4K Ultra?

A: The GPU is the primary limiter at 4K Ultra, where the system produces 76 FPS. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient to feed the RTX 5070 at lower resolutions, but the GPU's workload at 4K Ultra becomes the bottleneck.

Q: What is the RTX 5070's VRAM capacity and memory bandwidth?

A: The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 672.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth, which is ample for Barony's visual demands.

Q: How does the i5-10400F's single-thread performance compare to its multi-thread score?

A: The CPU scores 1451 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 10283 in multi-core, indicating a roughly 7.1x scaling from single to multi-threaded workloads, consistent with its 6-core/12-thread design.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 achieves a rank of 811 out of 3717 tested combos for Barony, positioning it in the 78th percentile of all systems evaluated. This is a strong result for a roguelike title, where the game's procedural generation and physics calculations benefit from both CPU and GPU capabilities.

The CPU itself sits at the 68th percentile among all processors in the database, with an average benchmark score of 14185. Its nearest rivals in raw CPU performance include the Intel Xeon 6756E (14163, 0.2% behind), AMD EPYC 7552 (14115, 0.5% behind), Intel Core 7 160UL (14232, 0.3% ahead), and AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277, 0.6% ahead). These deltas are minimal, indicating the i5-10400F is tightly clustered with these alternatives in general compute workloads.

The GPU holds the 82nd percentile among all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 40377. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro 580 (40318, 0.1% behind), AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (40063, 0.8% behind), AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (40870, 1.2% ahead), and NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile (39568, 2.0% behind). The RTX 5070's composite benchmark score is roughly 2.85 times higher than the CPU's average score, reinforcing that the GPU is the more powerful component in this pairing.

In Barony specifically, the measured frame rates demonstrate that this combo delivers playable performance even at the most demanding settings. The 811th rank out of 3717 combos means 78.2% of tested systems perform worse, while 21.8% perform better. Given Barony's roguelike nature—where fast reaction times and consistent frame pacing matter more than absolute visual fidelity—this ranking suggests the system is well-suited for competitive play.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Core 10th Gen series, based on the Comet Lake architecture built on Intel's 14 nm process. It operates at a base clock of 2.90 GHz and boosts up to 4.30 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel configuration, providing 42.7 GB/s of memory bandwidth, and connects via PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes.

In Barony, the CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are relevant due to the game's procedural dungeon generation and entity simulation. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 10283 and single-core score of 1451 indicate the processor can handle both the game's main thread (which benefits from the 4.30 GHz boost clock) and background simulation tasks (which utilize the 12 threads). The 3DMark results show scaling from 1350 at 2 threads to 4735 at max threads, demonstrating that the CPU effectively utilizes additional threads as workloads increase.

The PassMark multithread score of 12115 and single-thread score of 2541 further contextualize the CPU's capability. For Barony, which is not typically considered a heavily threaded title, the single-thread performance is often more critical for maintaining consistent frame times. The Geekbench single-core score of 1420 supports this, indicating strong per-core performance for a 10th-generation processor.

At 1080p, the CPU's influence on frame rates becomes more apparent. The measured 474 FPS at Low settings suggests the CPU can feed frames faster than most displays can refresh. However, the gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p (474 vs 229 FPS) shows that the GPU's workload scaling with settings still dominates overall performance. The CPU's 12 MB of shared L3 cache and 64 KB L1 cache per core help maintain responsiveness during Barony's frequent random events and item generation.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce 474 FPS average, Medium yields 372 FPS (with a minimum of 317 and maximum of 428), High achieves 320 FPS, and Ultra drops to 229 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 245 FPS reduction (51.7% decrease), indicating that each settings tier adds meaningful GPU workload.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high but show the expected resolution penalty. Low settings produce 316 FPS, Medium averages 235 FPS (minimum 200, maximum 270), High reaches 202 FPS, and Ultra falls to 145 FPS. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 158 FPS (33.3% decrease), while the 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra drop is 84 FPS (36.7% decrease). This consistent percentage drop across settings suggests a balanced scaling pattern.

At 3840x2160, 4K resolution significantly reduces frame rates but keeps the game playable. Low settings still achieve 165 FPS, Medium averages 123 FPS (minimum 104, maximum 141), High produces 105 FPS, and Ultra drops to 76 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 76 FPS remains above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, though it is the only tested configuration that approaches that boundary.

The Medium settings rows include minimum and maximum frame data, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the range spans 317 to 428 FPS (111 FPS spread). At 1440p Medium, the range is 200 to 270 FPS (70 FPS spread). At 4K Medium, the range narrows to 104 to 141 FPS (37 FPS spread). This narrowing range at higher resolutions indicates that GPU-bound scenarios produce more consistent frame pacing, while CPU-bound situations at lower resolutions exhibit larger variance.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring 31,100 million transistors on a 263 mm² die. It operates at a base clock of 2325 MHz with a boost clock of 2512 MHz, and its 12 GB of GDDR7 memory runs at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective) across a 192-bit bus, delivering 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's 6144 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 80 ROPs provide substantial rasterization throughput.

In Barony, the GPU's raw compute capabilities are evident in the frame rate scaling across settings. The PassMark G3D score of 29137 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5077 indicate strong DirectX 12 performance, which aligns with the game's rendering requirements. The GPU's FP32 throughput of 30.87 TFLOPS supports the pixel and texture rates of 201.0 GPixel/s and 482.3 GTexel/s respectively, enabling the high frame rates observed at 1080p and 1440p.

The RTX 5070's 82nd percentile ranking among all GPUs places it in the upper tier of graphics hardware. Its nearest rivals—AMD Radeon Pro 580, Radeon Pro WX 7100, Radeon Pro 5300, and NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile—are all within 2% of its average benchmark score, suggesting the 5070 sits at a competitive performance level. However, in Barony specifically, the GPU's capabilities are not fully stressed until 4K Ultra settings, where the 76 FPS result indicates the graphics card is working near its limits.

The GPU's 12 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for Barony, as the game's 2015 release date means it does not require large texture pools. The 672.0 GB/s memory bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and shader data transfer do not become bottlenecks, even at 4K resolution. The GPU's 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores are present but likely underutilized in this title, as Barony does not employ ray tracing or DLSS features.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 4K Medium, the system achieves 123 FPS average with a minimum of 104 FPS, ensuring consistent gameplay above 100 FPS. The 1440p Medium result of 235 FPS (minimum 200) and 1080p Medium at 372 FPS (minimum 317) provide substantial headroom for high-refresh-rate displays.

For players prioritizing maximum frame rates, Low settings deliver exceptional performance: 474 FPS at 1080p, 316 FPS at 1440p, and 165 FPS at 4K. These results make Low the optimal choice for competitive play or when using very high refresh rate monitors (240Hz or above). The difference between Low and Medium at 1080p is 102 FPS (21.5% decrease), which may be acceptable for the visual improvements Medium provides.

High settings offer a middle ground, with 320 FPS at 1080p, 202 FPS at 1440p, and 105 FPS at 4K. This preset is suitable for most gaming scenarios, as it maintains frame rates above 200 FPS at 1440p and above 100 FPS at 4K. However, the step from High to Ultra at 4K results in a 29 FPS drop (27.6% decrease), suggesting that Ultra's additional visual effects come at a significant performance cost.

Ultra settings should only be used at 1080p or 1440p, where the system maintains 229 FPS and 145 FPS respectively. At 4K Ultra, the 76 FPS average, while playable, approaches the threshold where frame time spikes could become noticeable during intense gameplay moments. The data indicates that Medium provides the best overall experience, offering frame rates nearly double those of Ultra at 4K while delivering most of the visual benefits.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about the system's bottleneck characteristics. At Low settings, the system drops from 474 FPS at 1080p to 316 FPS at 1440p (33.3% decrease) and then to 165 FPS at 4K (47.8% decrease from 1440p). The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 309 FPS, representing a 65.2% reduction.

At Ultra settings, the scaling shows a similar pattern: 229 FPS at 1080p, 145 FPS at 1440p (36.7% decrease), and 76 FPS at 4K (47.6% decrease from 1440p). The total reduction from 1080p Ultra to 4K Ultra is 153 FPS (66.8% decrease). The consistent percentage drops across settings—roughly one-third from 1080p to 1440p and nearly half from 1440p to 4K—indicate that the GPU is the primary scaling factor, as pixel count increases by 2.25x from 1080p to 1440p and 4x from 1080p to 4K.

The fact that the system achieves 165 FPS at 4K Low settings suggests the CPU is not a limiting factor even at high resolutions. If the CPU were the bottleneck, frame rates would plateau regardless of resolution or settings. Instead, the steady decrease in FPS as resolution increases points to the GPU's pixel throughput as the constraint, particularly at Ultra settings where the 76 FPS result represents the most demanding scenario tested.

At 1080p, the system's frame rates exceed 200 FPS at all settings, indicating that both CPU and GPU have sufficient headroom. The 474 FPS Low result at 1080p demonstrates that the i5-10400F can drive the RTX 5070 to near-maximum output when GPU load is low. As resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows faster than the CPU's, shifting the bottleneck firmly to the graphics card. This scaling behavior confirms that the RTX 5070 is the performance-limiting component in this pairing, while the i5-10400F provides adequate support across all tested configurations.