Barony

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT delivers a performance profile in Barony that is heavily dictated by resolution. The measured frame rates across the three tested resolutions reveal a system that is overwhelmingly capable at 1080p and 1440p, while still maintaining playable, high-refresh-rate performance at 4K. The data shows a clear scaling pattern: as resolution increases, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, but the sheer headroom at lower resolutions indicates that the CPU is more than sufficient for this title.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 demonstrates the expected inverse relationship between pixel count and performance, but the magnitude of the drop varies significantly by settings preset. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 395 FPS at 1080p to 249 FPS at 1440p (a 37% reduction), and further to 130 FPS at 4K (a 67% reduction from the 1080p baseline). This steep decline at Low settings is a strong indicator that the RX 7700 XT is the limiting factor; at 1080p Low, the GPU is not being fully exercised, allowing the CPU to push frame rates to extreme levels.

Moving to High settings, the scaling is less aggressive in absolute terms but still substantial. The average FPS drops from 252 at 1080p to 159 at 1440p (a 37% decrease) and then to 83 at 4K (a 67% decrease from 1080p). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and High settings suggests that the rendering load scales uniformly with resolution, and the GPU's compute resources are being saturated in a predictable manner.

The Medium and Ultra presets tell a more nuanced story. At Medium, the 1080p average is 294 FPS, dropping to 185 FPS at 1440p and 97 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset, however, shows the most dramatic scaling penalty: 181 FPS at 1080p, 114 FPS at 1440p, and just 60 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is particularly telling—it is exactly half the frame rate of the 1080p Ultra result, indicating a hard limit imposed by the GPU's pixel throughput at that resolution. The data suggests that while the CPU can handle the game's logic and draw calls at any resolution, the RX 7700 XT's 96 ROPs and 432.0 GB/s memory bandwidth become the decisive factors at 4K, especially when the highest quality settings are enabled.

The min FPS values recorded for the Medium preset further illuminate the scaling behavior. At 4K Medium, the minimum FPS is 82, which is 84% of the average (97 FPS). At 1440p Medium, the minimum (157 FPS) is 85% of the average (185 FPS), and at 1080p Medium, the minimum (250 FPS) is 85% of the average (294 FPS). This consistent ratio across resolutions implies that the frame time variance scales proportionally, meaning the GPU is delivering a stable workload without introducing stutter, even as the resolution increases. The combination of high averages and consistent minimums indicates that this setup is well-balanced for smooth gameplay across all tested configurations.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal balance of visual fidelity and performance is achieved at the High preset for most use cases. At 1080p High, the system produces 252 FPS, which is more than sufficient for any high-refresh-rate monitor, while at 1440p High, the 159 FPS average comfortably exceeds the 144Hz threshold. Even at 4K High, the 83 FPS average is playable on a 60Hz display, though it leaves little headroom for demanding scenes.

The Ultra preset is viable for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with averages of 181 FPS and 114 FPS respectively. However, the 4K Ultra result of 60 FPS is precisely at the edge of playability; while it is a locked 60 FPS on average, the lack of a recorded min FPS value suggests potential variance. For users prioritizing maximum visual quality at 4K, the Ultra preset is technically achievable, but the High preset offers a safer margin.

The Medium preset serves as the best option for 4K gaming when seeking higher frame rates. The 97 FPS average at 4K Medium is a significant improvement over the 60 FPS at Ultra, and the recorded min FPS of 82 ensures a smooth experience. At 1440p Medium, the 185 FPS average is excellent for competitive play, and the 1080p Medium result of 294 FPS is excessive for most displays, indicating that users with 1080p monitors could comfortably run at Ultra without issue.

The Low preset is generally unnecessary for this hardware combination. At 1080p Low, the 395 FPS result is far beyond what any current monitor can display, and even at 4K Low, the 130 FPS average is sufficient for high-refresh-rate 4K panels. The data indicates that the Low preset is only relevant for users seeking maximum frame rates at 4K with a 120Hz or higher display, as it provides a 57% improvement over the High preset at that resolution.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT's specifications directly explain the performance ceiling observed in the data. With a boost clock of 2544 MHz and a game clock of 2171 MHz, the GPU is able to sustain high throughput, but the 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus (432.0 GB/s bandwidth) becomes a limiting factor at 4K Ultra. The 96 ROPs are responsible for pixel output, and the 4K Ultra result of 60 FPS suggests that the pixel fill rate is the bottleneck at that extreme configuration.

The GPU's FP32 performance of 35.17 TFLOPS and texture rate of 549.5 GTexel/s are more than adequate for the game's rendering needs at lower resolutions. The benchmark results show that the RX 7700 XT sits in the 67th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 22549. When compared to its nearest rivals, it is 0.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile (22435) and 1.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5700 (22170), but 0.8% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile (22729) and 1.5% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (22895). These small deltas in synthetic benchmarks translate to the real-world results seen here, where the card is clearly capable of high frame rates but not unlimited scaling at 4K.

The 4K Medium vs. 4K High comparison (97 FPS vs. 83 FPS) shows a 17% performance cost for the quality increase, while the 4K High vs. 4K Ultra comparison (83 FPS vs. 60 FPS) shows a 28% cost. This non-linear scaling indicates that the Ultra preset introduces effects that disproportionately tax the GPU's memory subsystem or shading units. The 28,100 million transistors on a 346 mm² die provide ample compute, but the 192-bit memory bus is the clear weak point for 4K Ultra workloads.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT ranks 1388 out of 3717 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the top 37% of all configurations. This ranking is strong for a mid-range setup, but it is not exceptional, as the game appears to be highly scalable with GPU resources. The rank suggests that while this combo delivers high frame rates, there are numerous other pairings that achieve even higher averages, likely due to more powerful GPUs being able to sustain higher 4K performance.

Given that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution (as evidenced by the 395 FPS result at 1080p Low), the rank is almost entirely determined by the GPU's performance. The RX 7700 XT's 67th percentile standing among all GPUs aligns well with the combo's 63rd percentile ranking (1388/3717). This consistency indicates that the i5-12400 is not holding back the GPU in this title, and the combo's rank is a direct reflection of the GPU's raw capabilities. Users with higher-ranked combos likely have GPUs with greater memory bandwidth or more ROPs, which would push the 4K Ultra result above 60 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400's role in Barony is to provide a stable foundation without becoming a limiting factor, and the data confirms it succeeds in this regard. With 6 cores and 12 threads, a base clock of 2.50 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, the CPU has ample single-threaded performance for the game's logic. The 1080p Low result of 395 FPS is a clear indicator that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU far more frames than it can render at that resolution.

The CPU's benchmark scores reinforce this analysis. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2257 and multi-core score of 15989 place it in the 72nd percentile of all CPUs. In the 3DMark single-thread test, it scores 910, and in the 16-thread test, it scores 5873. These scores are competitive with its nearest rivals: it is 0.9% ahead of the Intel Core i3-14100F (18519 avg score) and 0.1% behind the AMD EPYC 7643 (18697 avg score). The i5-12400's average benchmark score of 18683 is nearly identical to the EPYC 7643's 18697, showing that for gaming workloads, the consumer chip matches a server-grade processor.

The CPU's L3 cache of 18 MB (shared) and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory provide adequate memory bandwidth for the game's data streaming. The fact that the frame rate at 1080p Low (395 FPS) is more than double the 4K Low result (130 FPS) proves that the CPU is not the bottleneck at any resolution; if it were, the 1080p result would be much closer to the 4K result. The i5-12400's 65W TDP and Alder Lake architecture are more than sufficient for this roguelike title, which does not appear to be heavily multi-threaded given the relatively modest scaling from 2-thread (1692) to 16-thread (5873) scores in 3DMark.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-12400 a bottleneck for the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT in Barony?

A: No. The 1080p Low average of 395 FPS is more than double the 4K Low average of 130 FPS, proving the CPU can feed the GPU far more frames than it can render at lower resolutions. The CPU's 72nd percentile ranking and high single-thread scores (910 in 3DMark single-thread) confirm it is not limiting performance.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 4K gaming with this combo?

A: The Medium preset offers the best experience at 4K, with an average of 97 FPS and a minimum of 82 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 60 FPS average, which is playable but leaves no headroom, while the High preset provides 83 FPS average.

Q: How does this combo compare to other tested configurations?

A: It ranks 1388 out of 3717 combos, placing it in the top 37%. This is consistent with the GPU's 67th percentile standing, indicating the CPU is not holding back the GPU and the rank reflects the GPU's raw performance.

Q: Can this system achieve 144 FPS at 1440p?

A: Yes, at High settings the 1440p average is 159 FPS, and at Medium it is 185 FPS. Even at Ultra, the 1440p average of 114 FPS is close to 144 FPS but does not fully reach it.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The Low preset averages 395 FPS, while Ultra averages 181 FPS, a difference of 214 FPS (a 54% reduction). This large gap shows that the Ultra preset imposes a significant rendering cost even at 1080p.

Q: Does the GPU's memory configuration affect performance at high resolutions?

A: Yes. The 12 GB GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus (432.0 GB/s bandwidth) is likely the limiting factor at 4K Ultra, where the average drops to 60 FPS. The GPU's 96 ROPs are also a constraint, as the 4K Ultra result is exactly half the 1080p Ultra result.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the frame rates are as follows: Low settings produce an average of 130 FPS, Medium produces 97 FPS (with a minimum of 82 and maximum of 111), High produces 83 FPS, and Ultra produces 60 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 70 FPS, showing a 54% performance penalty for the highest quality preset.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the results are: Low averages 249 FPS, Medium averages 185 FPS (minimum 157, maximum 213), High averages 159 FPS, and Ultra averages 114 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra here is 135 FPS, a 54% reduction, which matches the 4K scaling pattern.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the performance is exceptionally high: Low averages 395 FPS, Medium averages 294 FPS (minimum 250, maximum 338), High averages 252 FPS, and Ultra averages 181 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p still delivers more frames than the Low preset at 4K, demonstrating the GPU's capability at lower resolutions.

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded min and max FPS values across all resolutions, providing the most detailed picture of frame pacing. The minimum FPS values (250 at 1080p, 157 at 1440p, 82 at 4K) are consistently 84-85% of the averages, indicating smooth frame delivery without significant dips. The maximum FPS values (338 at 1080p, 213 at 1440p, 111 at 4K) show that the system has headroom to burst above the average, which is beneficial for avoiding perceived stutter. Overall, the measured data paints a picture of a highly capable mid-range combo that excels at 1080p and 1440p, with respectable 4K performance that is best tuned via the Medium or High presets.