Barony

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 delivers an extraordinary performance profile in Barony, a roguelike title where the data reveals a system that is almost entirely unconstrained by its components at lower resolutions. The measured frame rates across the resolution and settings matrix are exceptionally high, with the lowest recorded average still being a very playable 68.7 FPS at 4K Ultra. This combination ranks in the 75th percentile for the CPU and 81st percentile for the GPU among all tested parts, and its combined performance in this specific game places it at rank 420 out of 1702 tested combos, indicating a top-quartile result that leaves significant headroom for the game's procedural generation and physics calculations.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K in Barony tells a clear story about which component is doing the heavy lifting. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 468.1 FPS, but this drops by 36.4% to 297.8 FPS at 1440p and then by another 47.4% to 156.7 FPS at 4K. This pattern of steep declines with increasing pixel count is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario, where the RTX 4070's rendering workload is the primary bottleneck. The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is actually the limiting factor, as the frame rates are so high that they likely approach the engine's or CPU's maximum throughput, preventing the GPU from fully stretching its legs.

However, the scaling behavior changes dramatically when we examine the Ultra preset. At Ultra settings, the 1080p average is 213.6 FPS, which drops to 133.8 FPS at 1440p and then to 68.7 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is 37.4%, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is a more severe 48.7%, indicating that the GPU is becoming progressively more saturated as both resolution and graphical complexity increase. This suggests that while the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, the RTX 4070's raw throughput is the definitive constraint at 4K, especially with the heavier High and Ultra presets which increase shading and texture work.

FAQ

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

A: The highest measured average frame rate was 468.1 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This indicates the game is extremely well-optimized or lightweight, as even a mid-range CPU and high-end GPU can produce frame rates far beyond typical display refresh rates.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, the data confirms this is possible. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS was 68.7, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Even at the most demanding settings, the system does not drop below 60 FPS, showing consistent playability at the highest resolution.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its rivals?

A: The i5-11400F has an average benchmark score of 17181. This puts it virtually tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, which scores 17189 and has a deltaPct of 0. It is also 0.2% faster than the Intel Core i7-1260P and 0.2% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 7 164U, but 0.2% slower than the Intel Core i5-1240U.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: The difference is substantial. At 2560x1440, the Low preset yields an average of 297.8 FPS, while the Ultra preset yields an average of 133.8 FPS. This represents a 55.1% reduction in frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest graphical preset.

Q: Is the RTX 4070's performance closer to the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 or the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile?

A: The RTX 4070's average benchmark score is 37283. This is 0.6% higher than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56's score of 37507, making it slightly faster than that card. Conversely, it is 2.2% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile, which scores 38135.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal balance between visual fidelity and performance is the High preset. At 1920x1080, High settings deliver an average of 301 FPS, which is still nearly three times higher than a standard 144Hz monitor's refresh rate. Moving to 2560x1440, the High preset maintains an excellent 190.9 FPS, providing a smooth and detailed experience. Even at 3840x2160, High settings produce an average of 100.7 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS standard for 4K gaming and offers a significant improvement in visual quality over the Medium preset.

While the Ultra preset offers the highest visual quality, the performance cost is steep. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 68.7, which is 31.8% lower than the 100.7 FPS seen at 4K High. Given that the game is a roguelike where fast reaction times can be critical, the High preset provides the best experience per the measured data. It offers a massive frame rate buffer at 1080p and 1440p, ensuring no stutter, while still maintaining high enough frame rates at 4K to utilize high-refresh-rate displays. The Medium preset is a viable alternative for 4K users who want a bit more headroom, as it produces 116.2 FPS, but the jump in quality to High is generally worth the small performance trade-off.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all 1702 tested CPU and GPU combinations for Barony, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 achieves a rank of 420. This places it in the top 24.7% of all tested systems, indicating a strong performance tier. The rank suggests that while the combo is powerful, it is not at the absolute top of the leaderboard, which is likely occupied by newer, more expensive CPUs and higher-tier GPUs. However, the rank is particularly impressive when considering the CPU's position in the market.

The CPU itself sits in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 17181 is nearly identical to its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U. This indicates that the i5-11400F is a solid mid-range performer. The GPU, on the other hand, is in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. The fact that this combo ranks at 420 out of 1702, rather than higher, suggests that Barony's performance is not entirely dependent on raw GPU power. The game's procedural generation and logic might be more sensitive to CPU performance, and the i5-11400F, while capable, is not a top-tier processor by current standards, which likely holds the combo back from breaking into the top 300.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, with its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, plays a crucial role in the higher resolution and settings tiers. The data shows a clear correlation between the GPU's workload and frame rates. For instance, at 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 68.7, which is less than half of the 156.7 FPS achieved at 4K Low. This massive 56.2% drop in performance when moving from Low to Ultra settings is a direct result of the GPU having to process more complex shaders, textures, and lighting effects, which increases the demand on its 5888 shading units and 64 ROPs.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 1920 MHz and a boost of 2475 MHz, are key to its ability to sustain high frame rates. The architecture, Ada Lovelace, is built on a 5 nm process, allowing for high clock speeds and efficiency. The benchmark results show that the GPU is the primary limiter at 4K, as evidenced by the steep FPS drop from 1440p to 4K. For example, at High settings, the FPS drops from 190.9 at 1440p to 100.7 at 4K, a 47.3% reduction. This scaling is expected for a GPU-bound scenario. The RTX 4070's performance is slightly better than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 by 0.6%, but lags behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile by 2.2%, showing it is a solid high-end performer.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the system's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are exceptionally high across all settings. Low settings produce 468.1 FPS, Medium produces 352.2 FPS, High produces 301 FPS, and Ultra produces 213.6 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the system is rarely stressed, and the frame rates are likely limited by the CPU or game engine rather than the GPU.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high. Low settings average 297.8 FPS, Medium averages 217.7 FPS, High averages 190.9 FPS, and Ultra averages 133.8 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent, averaging around a 36% reduction across all settings, which is typical for a GPU that is beginning to become more of a factor. At 3840x2160, the performance is still playable but shows the GPU's limitations. Low settings average 156.7 FPS, Medium averages 116.2 FPS, High averages 100.7 FPS, and Ultra averages 68.7 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is steeper, with an average reduction of about 48%, confirming that the RTX 4070 is the definitive bottleneck at 4K resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, provides the foundational processing power for Barony. Its base clock of 2.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.40 GHz are sufficient to handle the game's logic and physics, which is evident from the high frame rates at 1080p. The CPU's multi-threaded performance, demonstrated by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14372, suggests it can handle the procedural generation and AI calculations that are common in roguelikes. The single-thread performance, with a Geekbench single-core score of 1979, is also respectable, which is important for games that rely heavily on a single main thread.

The CPU's role as a potential limiter is most apparent at 1080p with Low settings, where the frame rate of 468.1 FPS is likely capped by the CPU's ability to issue draw calls and update game state. The data shows that even when the GPU is under minimal load, the frame rates do not exceed this threshold, indicating a CPU limit. The CPU's 12 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency, and its support for DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s provides adequate data transfer for the game. The i5-11400F is ranked in the 75th percentile of all CPUs, and its performance is virtually identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, showing it is a well-balanced mid-range processor that does not bottleneck the RTX 4070 in most scenarios, except for the extreme low-resolution, low-settings cases.