Barony

Barony is a roguelike that scales dramatically with resolution and settings, and the data for the Intel Core i5-9400 with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 shows a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions but capable of extreme frame rates at 1080p. The measured results reveal a clear progression: the framerate penalty from 1080p to 1440p and then to 4K is substantial, indicating that the rendering workload is the primary bottleneck. Specifically, moving from 1920x1080 High (214.5 FPS) to 2560x1440 High (136.7 FPS) represents a 36% drop, while stepping down to 3840x2160 High (69.4 FPS) more than halves the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is typical of a title where the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become increasingly critical as pixel count rises, rather than the CPU's six cores and six threads being the limiting factor. The delta between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution further underscores this, as the gap widens from a 55% difference at 1080p to a 127% difference at 4K, confirming that the RTX 4060's workload is what determines the final output.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS degradation from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings. At Low settings, the system delivers 339.1 FPS at 1920x1080, but this falls to 212.4 FPS at 2560x1440 and then to 109.7 FPS at 3840x2160. That is a 68% reduction in performance from the lowest to the highest resolution tested. For Medium settings, the trajectory is similar: 253.9 FPS at 1080p, 163.0 FPS at 1440p, and 81.2 FPS at 4K. The High preset shows the same pattern, with 214.5 FPS dropping to 136.7 FPS and then 69.4 FPS. The Ultra preset, which likely imposes the heaviest shading and texture loads, produces 154.2 FPS at 1080p, 96.2 FPS at 1440p, and only 48.4 FPS at 4K. The fact that even the lowest settings at 4K cannot reach 120 FPS strongly suggests that the GPU is the limiting component; a CPU-bound scenario would show more consistent frame rates across resolutions, particularly at lower settings where the graphics card has less work to do. The data indicates that for smooth 4K gameplay, settings must be reduced to Low to stay above 100 FPS, while 1440p offers a balanced sweet spot with High settings reaching 136.7 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested hardware combinations for Barony, this specific pairing of the Core i5-9400 and RTX 4060 achieves a combo rank of 998 out of 1702 tested combos. This places it in the lower-middle portion of the performance distribution, which is notable given the high frame rates observed. The rank reflects the relative standing against all other CPU and GPU pairings, not just the isolated performance of the individual components. The CPU itself sits at the 50th percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 2305, putting it in the median tier. Its closest rivals in synthetic testing are the Intel Core i3-10305 (avg score 2300, 0.2% slower) and the Intel Core i3-1125G4 (avg score 2299, 0.2% slower), while the Intel Xeon E-2134 is 0.4% behind at 2295. On the GPU side, the RTX 4060 ranks in the 66th percentile among all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 23181. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600M (avg score 23321, 0.6% faster) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti (avg score 23338, 0.7% faster), while the Intel Arc B580 is 0.7% slower at 23021. The combined rank of 998 suggests that while the GPU is above average, the older six-core CPU holds the combo back relative to modern pairings, even if the game itself does not appear to be CPU-limited in the measured FPS data.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the dominant factor in these results. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s, which is adequate for the texture loads at 1080p and 1440p but appears to be a limiting factor at 4K Ultra where the average FPS drops to 48.4. The GPU's boost clock of 2460 MHz and base clock of 1830 MHz are respectable for the Ada Lovelace architecture, and the 3072 shading units are sufficient to push high pixel rates. The pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s are directly reflected in the scaling behavior; as resolution increases, the demand on these units grows proportionally. The FP32 performance of 15.11 TFLOPS is what enables the high frame rates at lower resolutions, but the 4K results show that the memory subsystem becomes a bottleneck, particularly when settings are raised to Medium (81.2 FPS) and High (69.4 FPS). The 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores are present, but Barony is not a ray-tracing or DLSS-heavy title, so their impact is minimal in this dataset. The GPU's 115 W TDP and dual-slot design are consistent with a mid-range card that prioritizes efficiency, and the PCIe 4.0 x8 interface does not appear to hinder performance given the measured numbers.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured average FPS values provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the performance is exceptionally high across the board: Low settings yield 339.1 FPS, Medium produces 253.9 FPS, High reaches 214.5 FPS, and Ultra still manages 154.2 FPS. These numbers indicate that for competitive or high-refresh-rate play at 1080p, the combo is more than sufficient, with even the most demanding preset staying well above 144 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the results remain strong but show the expected decline: Low delivers 212.4 FPS, Medium drops to 163.0 FPS, High falls to 136.7 FPS, and Ultra sits at 96.2 FPS. This resolution is where the system begins to show its limits on the Ultra preset, but High settings still provide a smooth experience. At 3840x2160, the impact is severe: Low is the only playable option at 109.7 FPS, while Medium (81.2 FPS), High (69.4 FPS), and Ultra (48.4 FPS) all fall below the 90 FPS threshold that many users consider minimum for fluid gameplay. The data shows that the RTX 4060 is capable of handling 4K only at the lowest settings, and even then, the margin is slim. The progression from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows a consistent penalty for higher quality settings, but the relative penalty grows with resolution, from 55% at 1080p to 127% at 4K, illustrating the GPU's memory bandwidth constraints.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS at 1920x1080 is 339.1 FPS, which is achieved with Low settings. Medium settings produce 253.9 FPS, High produces 214.5 FPS, and Ultra produces 154.2 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Barony?

A: At 3840x2160, only Low settings surpass 100 FPS, delivering 109.7 FPS. Medium and High settings fall to 81.2 FPS and 69.4 FPS respectively, while Ultra drops to 48.4 FPS, indicating that 4K is only viable at the lowest quality preset.

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

A: The combo ranks 998 out of 1702 tested combinations in Barony. This places it in the lower-middle tier, despite the GPU's above-average 66th percentile standing, because the CPU sits at the 50th percentile.

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

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings deliver 212.4 FPS, while Ultra settings deliver 96.2 FPS. This represents a 55% reduction in frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest quality preset.

Q: Which component is more likely to be the bottleneck in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor, as FPS drops significantly with increasing resolution. The CPU's six cores and six threads are sufficient for the workload, given that even at 1080p Low, the system reaches 339.1 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 4060's 8 GB VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory appears adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K Ultra result of 48.4 FPS suggests that memory bandwidth (272.0 GB/s) and capacity may be strained at the highest resolution and settings, limiting performance.