Barony

Barony, a roguelike released in 2015, demonstrates distinct scaling behavior with the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060. The measured data reveals a combination that is heavily influenced by both resolution and graphical presets, with the most significant frame rate shifts occurring between 1080p and 4K. This analysis breaks down the performance metrics, examining the roles of the CPU and GPU and how this specific pairing ranks against other tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate data for this combination shows a clear and consistent decline as resolution increases, but the magnitude of that decline varies significantly based on the selected graphics settings. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 results in a drop from 357.9 FPS to 224.8 FPS, a reduction of 133.1 frames. Moving from 1440p to 3840x2160 at Low settings brings the average down to 116.9 FPS, meaning the 4K figure is roughly half of what is achieved at 1440p.

The scaling pattern shifts when examining High settings. At 1080p, the average frame rate is 231.2 FPS. At 1440p, this falls to 147 FPS, and at 4K, it reaches 77.2 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial, indicating the workload becomes progressively more demanding on the GPU. The Ultra preset exhibits the steepest curve, starting at 163.7 FPS at 1080p, dropping to 104.4 FPS at 1440p, and finally reaching 52.4 FPS at 4K. This last figure suggests that the RTX 5060 is being pushed to its limits, as the 4K Ultra result is the lowest measured across all configurations.

This data suggests that at 1080p, the system is likely not bottlenecked by the graphics card, as even the High preset produces well over 200 FPS. The limiting factor at that resolution is more likely the processor. As resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the pixel count and shading workload scale, placing progressively more strain on the GPU. The differential between Low and Ultra at 4K is particularly telling: 116.9 FPS versus 52.4 FPS, a gap of 64.5 frames. This wide spread indicates that the GPU is the primary constraint at 4K, as its raw throughput dictates the performance ceiling.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core processor with 20 threads, based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and can boost up to 5.30 GHz. For a game like Barony, which is a roguelike and may not be heavily threaded, the high boost clock is likely more relevant than the total core count. The CPU’s strong single-threaded performance is evidenced by benchmarks like the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4642 and the Passmark single-thread score of 4270.

In the context of the measured FPS, the CPU’s role appears to be most critical at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 357.9 FPS, a figure that far exceeds what most displays can refresh. This high frame rate suggests that the processor is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to maintain such performance, but it also implies that the CPU is not the limiting factor here. However, the fact that the 1080p Ultra setting only reaches 163.7 FPS, compared to the Low setting’s 357.9 FPS, shows that the GPU is already becoming the bottleneck even at 1080p when settings are maxed out.

The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory provide a solid foundation for game logic and asset streaming. Its average benchmark score of 49166 places it in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, indicating strong overall capability. Compared to its nearest rivals, the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X has a score of 49062, making the i5-14600K 0.2% faster. It is also 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600KF, which scores 49367. This data suggests that the CPU is not a weak link in the system, and its performance is competitive with other high-end processors.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and features 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. Its boost clock is 2497 MHz, and it offers 3840 shading units. The GPU’s compute capability is rated at 19.18 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. These specifications are directly relevant to the resolution scaling observed in the data.

The GPU’s role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. At 4K, the number of pixels to be rendered quadruples compared to 1080p, placing a massive load on the shading units and memory bandwidth. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is a key factor here, as higher resolutions and texture quality settings require more memory. The fact that 4K Ultra yields only 52.4 FPS suggests that the GPU is fully saturated, and its memory bandwidth or compute units are the limiting factor.

The RTX 5060’s performance percentile is 73, with an average benchmark score of 30109. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, scores 30097, which is a 0% difference. This indicates that the RTX 5060 is positioned competitively in the mid-range segment. However, the data from Barony shows that at 4K Ultra, the GPU struggles to maintain playable frame rates, suggesting that for demanding titles, this card is better suited for 1440p or 1080p gaming. The 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth is a significant asset, but it is insufficient to handle the extreme demands of 4K Ultra settings in this title.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 achieves a rank of 868 out of 1702 tested combos for Barony. This places the pairing in the middle of the pack, which is a logical outcome given the individual components' performance. The CPU is powerful, ranking in the 93rd percentile, while the GPU is more mid-range, ranking in the 73rd percentile. The combination’s overall rank reflects the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions.

The ranking suggests that while this system can deliver high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, it is not optimized for 4K gaming in this title. The 868th rank out of 1702 means that a significant number of other combinations, likely those with more powerful GPUs, outperform this setup at 4K. However, for users targeting 1080p, this combination would likely rank much higher, as the CPU and GPU work well together to produce very high frame rates. The data indicates that the system is balanced for 1080p and 1440p but becomes GPU-limited at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system produces its highest frame rates across all settings. With the Low preset, the average FPS is 357.9, which is the highest recorded value in the entire dataset. The Medium preset achieves 268.3 FPS, while the High preset reaches 231.2 FPS. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, still delivers a solid 163.7 FPS. These figures suggest that at 1080p, the system has ample headroom, and the CPU is likely the primary driver of performance, given the high numbers.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease but remain very playable. The Low preset averages 224.8 FPS, which is a drop of 133.1 FPS from 1080p. The Medium preset averages 169 FPS, while the High preset brings the average to 147 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p delivers 104.4 FPS, which is still a smooth experience. The data shows that the GPU is starting to assert more influence, but the performance is still strong enough for high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 3840x2160, the system’s limitations become evident. The Low preset averages 116.9 FPS, which is a significant drop from the 224.8 FPS seen at 1440p. The Medium preset averages 86.3 FPS, and the High preset drops to 77.2 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with an average of 52.4 FPS. This is the only resolution where the High and Ultra presets fall below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that 4K gaming with this combination requires lowering settings to maintain a fluid experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combination in Barony?

A: The highest average FPS is 357.9, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low preset.

Q: How does the system perform at 4K with the Ultra preset?

A: At 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset, the average FPS is 52.4, which is the lowest score in the dataset and indicates a demanding workload for the GPU.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 1440p at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 231.2 at 1920x1080 to 147 at 2560x1440, a difference of 84.2 frames per second.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the very high frame rates (over 230 FPS on High) suggest the CPU is the more likely limiting factor, as the GPU has less pixel workload.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all other tested combinations?

A: This combination ranks 868th out of 1702 tested combos for Barony.

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with the Medium preset?

A: At 2560x1440 with the Medium preset, the average FPS is 169.