Barony

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 lands at rank 578 out of 1702 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the upper third of all configurations benchmarked. This is a respectable position, though not a top-tier showing, suggesting the combo sits comfortably in the mid-to-upper echelon of tested systems. The ranking implies that while this pairing handles the game well, there are numerous other combinations—likely with more powerful GPUs or CPUs—that achieve higher frame rates in this roguelike title.

The percentile data reinforces this picture. The CPU ranks in the 93rd percentile against all processors, while the GPU sits in the 79th percentile against all graphics cards. The gap between these two percentiles hints that the graphics card is the more limiting factor in this pairing, a theme that recurs throughout the measured FPS data. For a game like Barony, which is a roguelike with procedural generation and potentially complex simulation logic, the CPU's strong showing is notable, but the GPU's relatively lower percentile suggests the visual rendering pipeline dictates overall performance more heavily.

# CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K brings 14 cores and 20 threads to the table, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This is a Raptor Lake Refresh part built on Intel's 10 nm process, featuring a 24 MB shared L3 cache and 2 MB L2 per core. The architecture supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory through a dual-channel bus, and it includes UHD Graphics 770 as integrated graphics, though the discrete RX 9070 renders the game.

In Barony, the CPU's high single-thread performance—evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4642 and Geekbench single-core score of 2803—likely helps with game logic, pathfinding, and procedural world generation typical of roguelikes. The multi-core capabilities are equally strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32881 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 15846. These figures place the i5-14600K within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X's average score of 49062, and 1% ahead of the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H at 48698. Against the i5-14600KF, it trails by a negligible 0.4%, and it sits 0.9% behind the AMD EPYC 4345P.

The data suggests the CPU is more than adequate for Barony's demands. With a PassMark single-thread score of 4270 and a PassMark physics score of 2473, the processor demonstrates robust per-core performance that should prevent bottlenecking in a game where frame pacing often depends on consistent logical updates. The 14 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks or streaming, though Barony itself is unlikely to leverage all of them heavily.

# GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 48 chip, manufactured on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It packs 3584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 128 raster operations pipelines, along with 56 ray tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1330 MHz, a game clock of 2070 MHz, and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. Memory duties are handled by 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth.

For Barony, the GPU's 16 GB VRAM is generous, ensuring texture-heavy scenes and high-resolution rendering do not hit memory ceilings. The card's FP32 performance of 36.13 TFLOPS provides substantial compute headroom, while the pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s indicate strong rasterization throughput. The GPU's benchmark results show a PassMark G3D score of 25381 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 165532, placing it in the 79th percentile. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA A2, scores 34866 on average, a 0.2% difference, while the AMD Radeon HD 7970 trails by 0.7% at 34541.

The GPU's role in Barony is pivotal at higher settings and resolutions. The measured frame rates show a clear pattern where the GPU becomes the primary constraint as graphical load increases, particularly at 4K Ultra where the average FPS drops to 65. The 128 ROPs and 224 TMUs suggest the card can handle heavy pixel and texture work, but the data indicates that Barony's Ultra preset pushes the GPU to its limits at higher resolutions.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves 444.5 FPS on Low, 326.9 FPS on Medium, 284.4 FPS on High, and 203.7 FPS on Ultra. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, even the Ultra preset delivers well above the refresh rates of most monitors, making the experience exceptionally smooth.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a noticeable step down. Low settings produce 279 FPS, Medium yields 207.4 FPS, High drops to 176.2 FPS, and Ultra settles at 126.7 FPS. The 1440p results suggest that High settings are still capable of driving high-refresh-rate displays, while Ultra remains playable but begins to show the GPU's workload.

At 3840x2160, the performance curve steepens significantly. Low settings average 144.7 FPS, Medium hits 109.2 FPS, High falls to 92 FPS, and Ultra drops to 65 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only measurement below 70 FPS in the entire dataset, indicating that this resolution and settings combination pushes the RX 9070 to its limits. The 92 FPS at 4K High, however, remains a solid result for a roguelike, offering a good balance between visual fidelity and responsiveness.

# Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about the bottleneck in this system. At Low settings, the transition from 1080p (444.5 FPS) to 1440p (279 FPS) represents a 37.2% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K (144.7 FPS) another 48.1% drop. This steep scaling pattern indicates that at Low settings, the CPU is likely the limiting factor at 1080p, as the frame rates are extraordinarily high and the GPU has ample headroom.

Conversely, at Ultra settings, the scaling is more moderate. From 1080p (203.7 FPS) to 1440p (126.7 FPS) is a 37.8% drop, and from 1440p to 4K (65 FPS) is a 48.7% reduction. The consistent percentage drops across settings suggest that the GPU is the primary constraint across all resolutions at Ultra, with the CPU still capable of feeding frames but the GPU becoming increasingly saturated.

The data implies a balanced system where the CPU dominates at low resolutions and settings, while the GPU takes over as the bottleneck at higher resolutions and presets. The 4K Ultra result of 65 FPS, being the lowest in the dataset, clearly indicates the GPU is fully utilized at that point. For a roguelike like Barony, which may have complex simulation elements, the CPU's strong single-thread performance ensures that logical updates do not stall frame delivery, even at 4K.

# Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, the Ultra preset at 203.7 FPS is the best choice, as it delivers the highest visual quality while still maintaining frame rates far above any practical refresh rate threshold. The gap between High (284.4 FPS) and Ultra (203.7 FPS) is significant, but both are exceptionally smooth, making Ultra the clear winner for visual fidelity.

For 1440p, the High preset at 176.2 FPS offers an excellent balance, providing high visual quality while keeping frame rates well above 144 Hz for high-refresh monitors. Medium at 207.4 FPS is also viable for competitive play, but High's visual improvements likely justify the 31 FPS reduction. Ultra at 126.7 FPS remains playable and may appeal to those prioritizing image quality, but High is the recommended sweet spot.

At 4K, the Medium preset at 109.2 FPS provides the best experience for smooth gameplay, as it stays above 100 FPS while offering reasonable visual quality. High at 92 FPS is also acceptable for slower-paced roguelike play, but Medium's higher frame rate reduces the risk of stutter during intense moments. Ultra at 65 FPS is the only preset that dips below 70 FPS, making it less ideal for consistent responsiveness, though some players may accept this for maximum visual detail.

# FAQ

Q: Does this combo achieve 60 FPS at 4K Ultra in Barony?

A: Yes, the average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 65, which exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, though barely.

Q: What is the highest frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 444.5, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rival in terms of average benchmark score?

A: The RX 9070's average benchmark score is 34780, which is 0.2% lower than the NVIDIA A2's 34866 but 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon HD 7970's 34541.

Q: What CPU benchmark score places the i5-14600K in the 93rd percentile?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score of 49166 contributes to its 93rd percentile ranking, with a PassMark multithread score of 38682 and a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32881.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to limit performance at 1080p Low?

A: The data suggests the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p Low, as the 444.5 FPS result indicates the GPU has significant unused capacity at that resolution and settings level.

Q: What is the FPS drop from 1080p High to 4K High?

A: The average FPS drops from 284.4 at 1920x1080 High to 92 at 3840x2160 High, a reduction of 192.4 FPS or approximately 67.7%.