Barony

Settings Recommendations

The measured frame rate data for Barony with the Intel Core i5-12400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 shows a clear hierarchy across the four settings presets, with the most balanced experience appearing at Medium. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 114 FPS with a minimum of 97 FPS and a maximum of 131 FPS, which indicates that the frame rate remains consistently above the 60 FPS threshold even in the most demanding moments captured by the minimum reading. High at the same resolution produces 98 FPS on average, while Low reaches 153 FPS and Ultra drops to 70 FPS. The jump from Ultra to Medium at 1080p is substantial, a gain of 44 FPS, whereas the step from Medium to Low adds another 39 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns for the lowest preset.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset again stands out as the most sensible choice. It averages 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 FPS and a maximum of 83 FPS, meaning the minimum stays just above the 60 FPS line, which is often considered the baseline for smooth play. High at 1440p averages 62 FPS, but without a reported minimum, the data cannot confirm whether it dips below that threshold. Low at 1440p reaches 97 FPS, and Ultra falls to 44 FPS, which is noticeably below the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset at 1440p offers a narrower gap to High (10 FPS) than the gap from Medium to Low (25 FPS), reinforcing that Medium occupies a sweet spot where quality and speed converge.

For 3840x2160, the situation changes, as no preset reaches the 60 FPS mark. Medium averages 38 FPS with a minimum of 32 FPS and a maximum of 43 FPS, while High averages 32 FPS, Low averages 51 FPS, and Ultra averages 23 FPS. Although Low provides the highest average at this resolution, the visual degradation from Medium is significant, and the Medium preset's minimum of 32 FPS is only slightly below its average, indicating a stable but limited experience. The data suggests that users targeting 4K should accept a lower frame rate, with Medium offering the best compromise between the playability of the 38 FPS average and the quality retention over Low. Across all resolutions, Medium consistently provides the most predictable performance envelope, making it the recommended preset for this combination.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings a 6-core, 12-thread configuration to Barony, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This processor belongs to the Alder Lake-S generation, built on Intel's 10 nm process node, and features 18 MB of shared L3 cache along with 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core. The benchmark results for this CPU show strong multi-threaded capabilities, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15989 and a single-core score of 2257. In PassMark tests, the multithread score reaches 18747, while the single-thread score is 3456, and the physics test yields 1105.

The percentile ranking against all CPUs is 72, meaning this processor outperforms 72 percent of the tested CPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7643 with an average score of 18697 and a delta of -0.1 percent, the Intel Core i7-1355U at 18730 with a delta of -0.3 percent, the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 at 18811 with a delta of -0.7 percent, and the Intel Core i3-14100F at 18519 with a delta of 0.9 percent. These deltas are all under 1 percent, indicating that the i5-12400 sits in a tightly contested performance band where no single rival holds a decisive advantage.

In the context of Barony, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU, as the frame rates scale more dramatically with resolution changes than with settings changes. The 3DMark scores reveal a scaling pattern: single-thread scores 910, 2-thread scores 1692, 4-thread scores 3012, 8-thread scores 4745, and max-thread scores 5890. This near-linear scaling up to 8 threads suggests that the processor can feed multiple threads effectively, which matters for a roguelike where game logic, entity updates, and rendering commands may run concurrently. However, the fact that Low settings at 1080p produce 153 FPS while Ultra produces 70 FPS indicates that the CPU is not the limiting factor, as the GPU is clearly burdened by the higher quality presets. The 12 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and the game's simulation, but the measured data does not show any CPU-bound bottlenecks, since even the highest frame rate of 153 FPS at Low 1080p does not approach a typical CPU ceiling.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is built on the Polaris 20 chip with a GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured on a 14 nm process by GlobalFoundries. It contains 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, with 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 render output units. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1257 MHz and a boost clock of 1340 MHz, with memory running at 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective). The 8 GB of GDDR5 memory sits on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s. The pixel rate is 42.88 GPixel/s, the texture rate is 193.0 GTexel/s, and the FP32 performance is 6.175 TFLOPS.

The GPU's benchmark results show a PassMark G3D score of 8813 and a PassMark G2D score of 769, with a DirectX 12 score of 43, DirectX 11 score of 60, and DirectX 9 score of 124. The Geekbench Vulkan score reaches 45173, OpenCL scores 37453, and Metal scores 45235. The percentile ranking against all GPUs is 53, placing it just above the median. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile with an average score of 12940 and a delta of -0.1 percent, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER at 12986 with a delta of -0.4 percent, the AMD Radeon 740M at 12870 with a delta of 0.5 percent, and the AMD FirePro W5100 at 12847 with a delta of 0.6 percent. Again, the deltas remain under 1 percent, indicating a tight cluster of similar-performing GPUs.

The GPU's influence on Barony is evident in the frame rate scaling across settings. At 1080p, the difference between Low (153 FPS) and Ultra (70 FPS) is 83 FPS, which is a 119 percent increase in performance when dropping to the lowest preset. This large gap points to the GPU being the primary driver of frame rate variation, as the rendering load increases with each quality tier. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for the game's needs at all tested resolutions, as even at 4K Ultra the GPU still delivers 23 FPS without running out of memory. The 256-bit memory bus and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth allow the card to handle the texture and geometry loads at higher presets, but the raw compute power of 6.175 TFLOPS limits the maximum frame rate. The data suggests that the RX 580 is the bottleneck in this pairing, as the CPU has substantial headroom (evidenced by high Cinebench scores) while the GPU struggles to maintain 60 FPS at 1440p High.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and AMD Radeon RX 580 in Barony ranks 3393 out of 3717 tested combos, placing it in the 9th percentile of all configurations in the database. This low ranking reflects the GPU's age and performance tier, as the card's 53rd percentile against all GPUs is dragged down by the CPU's 72nd percentile ranking. The combo rank indicates that the majority of other hardware pairings outperform this one in Barony, which aligns with the RX 580 being an end-of-life product released in 2017.

The rank of 3393 out of 3717 means that 324 combos perform worse than this setup, while 3392 perform better. This places the combo firmly in the lower quartile of tested systems, which is consistent with the GPU's mid-range positioning. The CPU's strong benchmark scores (Cinebench R23 multicore of 15989) do not compensate for the GPU's limitations, as the 6.175 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is modest by modern standards. The measured FPS data supports this ranking, as the combo fails to reach 60 FPS at 1440p High (62 FPS average, but no minimum reported) and falls well short at 4K. The ranking suggests that users seeking higher frame rates in Barony would need a more powerful GPU, as the CPU has demonstrated it can support higher throughput in synthetic benchmarks.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a consistent decline as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 114 at 1920x1080, to 72 at 2560x1440, to 38 at 3840x2160. This represents a 36.8 percent drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 47.2 percent drop from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is not linear, with the 4K penalty being more severe per pixel, which is typical for GPU-bound scenarios. At Low settings, the progression is 153 FPS at 1080p, 97 FPS at 1440p, and 51 FPS at 4K, showing a similar pattern of diminishing returns as pixel count increases.

The resolution scaling behavior indicates that the GPU is the limiting component. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, as the processor would max out regardless of pixel count. Instead, the substantial drops (83 FPS from 1080p Low to 4K Low) demonstrate that the RX 580's fill rate and bandwidth are being saturated. The pixel rate of 42.88 GPixel/s and texture rate of 193.0 GTexel/s are the relevant metrics here, as higher resolutions demand more pixel processing. The 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth also becomes a constraint at 4K, where the larger framebuffer requires more data movement. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p or 1440p gaming, with 4K only viable at Low settings (51 FPS average), and even then, the experience is below the 60 FPS target.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gaming?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 delivers 114 FPS average with a minimum of 97 FPS and maximum of 131 FPS, providing the best balance between quality and performance. Low reaches 153 FPS but sacrifices visual fidelity, while Ultra drops to 70 FPS average.

Q: Can this combo achieve 60 FPS at 1440p?

A: Yes, at 1440p Medium the combo averages 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 FPS, so it stays above the 60 FPS threshold. High also averages 62 FPS, but no minimum is reported, so the Medium preset is safer for consistent performance.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 580's average benchmark score is 12928, which is within 0.6 percent of the AMD FirePro W5100 (12847), 0.5 percent of the AMD Radeon 740M (12870), -0.1 percent of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940), and -0.4 percent of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER (12986). All deltas are under 1 percent, indicating near-identical performance.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this pairing?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The frame rate drops by 83 FPS from Low to Ultra at 1080p, and resolution scaling shows large penalties (153 to 51 FPS from 1080p Low to 4K Low), which are hallmarks of GPU-bound performance. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15989 indicates it has ample headroom.

Q: What frame rate does the combo achieve at 4K Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo averages 23 FPS. This is the lowest measured result across all resolutions and settings, and it is far below the 60 FPS target, making 4K Ultra impractical for this hardware.

Q: How does the i5-12400 rank against all CPUs?

A: The i5-12400 ranks in the 72nd percentile against all CPUs, meaning it outperforms 72 percent of tested processors. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i3-14100F, has an average score of 18519, which is 0.9 percent lower, while the AMD EPYC 7643 is only 0.1 percent higher.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces the following average frame rates: Low settings yield 153 FPS, Medium yields 114 FPS with a minimum of 97 FPS and maximum of 131 FPS, High yields 98 FPS, and Ultra yields 70 FPS. The Medium preset is the only one with reported minimum and maximum values, showing a range of 34 FPS between its lowest and highest frames. The spread from Low to Ultra is 83 FPS, with Low being 34 percent faster than Medium, and Medium being 16 percent faster than High, and High being 40 percent faster than Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the average frame rates are: Low at 97 FPS, Medium at 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 FPS and maximum of 83 FPS, High at 62 FPS, and Ultra at 44 FPS. The Medium preset's 61 FPS minimum is the only reading that confirms a floor above 60 FPS. The gap from Low to Medium is 25 FPS, from Medium to High is 10 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 18 FPS. The total range from Low to Ultra is 53 FPS, which is smaller than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more constrained as resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are: Low at 51 FPS, Medium at 38 FPS with a minimum of 32 FPS and maximum of 43 FPS, High at 32 FPS, and Ultra at 23 FPS. The Medium preset shows a narrow range of 11 FPS between its minimum and maximum, suggesting stable performance. The drop from Low to Medium is 13 FPS, from Medium to High is 6 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 9 FPS. The total range from Low to Ultra is 28 FPS, which is the smallest across all resolutions. None of the 4K presets reach 60 FPS, with Low being the only one above 50 FPS. The data shows that this combo's playable envelope is at 1080p and 1440p with Medium settings, where the minimum frame rates remain above 60 FPS.