Barony

Barony, a roguelike released in 2015, presents an interesting case for hardware analysis because its low system requirements mean that modern components rarely break a sweat. The measured data for the Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT shows a combination that delivers extremely high frame rates, but the scaling pattern across resolutions and settings reveals where the bottleneck lies. This analysis will walk through the measured FPS data, what it indicates about the balance between CPU and GPU, and how this specific pairing ranks among other tested systems.

Resolution Scaling

The most revealing data point is how performance scales as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo produces an average of 196 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same Ultra preset, the average drops to 121.2 FPS, a reduction of 38%. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average falls further to 63.8 FPS, which is 67% lower than the 1080p result. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the pixel count demands more from the rendering pipeline.

However, the pattern changes dramatically when examining the Low settings. At 1080p Low, the system produces 421.5 FPS. At 1440p Low, it still manages 265.2 FPS, and at 4K Low, it achieves 141.3 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 66%, which is nearly identical to the drop seen at Ultra settings. This consistency suggests that even at Low settings, the GPU is still the primary constraint at 4K, but at 1080p Low, the CPU's capability is what caps the frame rate.

The intermediate settings tell a similar story. At Medium, the FPS goes from 314.1 at 1080p to 196 at 1440p, then to 102.6 at 4K. At High, it goes from 269.1 at 1080p to 170.2 at 1440p, and 89.6 at 4K. The ratio between 1080p and 1440p for Medium is 1.6x, while the ratio between 1440p and 4K is 1.9x. For High, the 1080p to 1440p ratio is 1.58x, and the 1440p to 4K ratio is 1.9x. These ratios indicate that the GPU is scaling as expected with pixel count, reinforcing that the RX 7800 XT is the dominant factor at higher resolutions.

In contrast, the CPU's role becomes apparent at 1080p. The jump from Low (421.5 FPS) to Medium (314.1 FPS) is a 25% reduction, and from Medium to High (269.1 FPS) is another 14% reduction. The CPU, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is clearly capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, but the game's engine and the GPU's rendering load at Ultra settings create a bigger performance gap.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 421.5, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra performance compare to the 1080p Ultra performance?

A: The 4K Ultra average is 63.8 FPS, while the 1080p Ultra average is 196 FPS, resulting in a 67% reduction in frame rate.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the limiting factor at 1440p?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p. The FPS at 1440p High (170.2) is closer to the 4K High result (89.6) than to the 1080p High result (269.1) in terms of scaling, indicating the GPU's workload is the primary constraint.

Q: What settings provide the highest frame rate at 4K?

A: Low settings at 3840x2160 produce the highest average FPS of 141.3, which is more than double the Ultra setting's 63.8 FPS.

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

A: The combo ranks 633rd out of 1702 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all tested systems.

Q: What is the difference between the 1080p Medium and 1440p Medium scores?

A: The 1080p Medium average is 314.1 FPS, while the 1440p Medium average is 196 FPS, a 38% reduction.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 14th Gen processor with 20 cores and 28 threads, running at a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 35,443 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 5,003 in single-core, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. This high single-core performance is crucial for a roguelike like Barony, where game logic and entity updates often rely on single-threaded performance.

The CPU's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, has an average benchmark score of 54,450, which is only 0.6% higher than the i7-14700F's average of 54,097. This close margin indicates that the i7-14700F is competitive with high-end alternatives in general compute tasks. However, in Barony, the measured FPS at 1080p Low (421.5 FPS) suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck at that setting; the GPU is still able to render frames quickly enough to keep up.

The CPU's boost clock of 5.40 GHz is a key factor for games that don't scale well across many threads. Barony, being an older title from 2015, likely does not fully utilize all 28 threads. The data supports this: at 1080p, the increase from Low to Medium to High settings results in significant FPS drops, which is more indicative of GPU load than CPU limitations. The CPU's high single-core score (5,003 in R23) ensures that it can handle the game's logic without capping the frame rate, even at the highest measured 421.5 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the specific game of Barony, the combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT ranks 633rd out of 1702 tested combos. This percentile placement of 37% means that the majority of tested systems (about 63%) perform better in this game. This might seem counterintuitive given the high FPS numbers, but the rank is relative to all other combos, many of which may include higher-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 or RX 7900 XTX.

The GPU's own ranking is more modest. The RX 7800 XT sits in the 76th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32,619. Its nearest rivals include the AMD FirePro S9300 X2 with a score of 32,540 (0.2% lower) and the NVIDIA P104-100 with a score of 32,747 (0.4% higher). This puts the RX 7800 XT in a mid-range tier for overall GPU compute, which aligns with its performance in Barony where it delivers playable frame rates at all settings but doesn't top the charts.

The CPU's rank is much higher, at the 94th percentile. This discrepancy between the CPU's high ranking and the combo's lower ranking suggests that the GPU is the more limiting factor in this pairing for Barony. The CPU's performance headroom is not fully utilized because the game is not CPU-bound at the resolutions tested, especially at 4K where the GPU's workload dominates.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1080p, the Ultra setting provides 196 FPS, which is well above the 144Hz refresh rate of most monitors. For 1440p, the High setting delivers 170.2 FPS, which is also excellent for high-refresh displays. For 4K, the High setting yields 89.6 FPS, which is smooth for most gaming, but the Ultra setting drops to 63.8 FPS, which may be preferable for visual fidelity over raw speed.

The data shows that the Medium setting offers a balanced experience. At 1080p, it provides 314.1 FPS, at 1440p it provides 196 FPS, and at 4K it provides 102.6 FPS. This setting offers roughly double the frame rate of Ultra at 4K, while still maintaining a reasonable level of visual quality. For a game like Barony, where fast reaction times are critical, prioritizing frame rate over graphical details might be advisable.

The Low setting is only recommended for competitive play at high resolutions, as it yields 141.3 FPS at 4K, which is still very playable. However, the visual downgrade might not be worth the extra FPS for most users. The Ultra setting is best for those who prioritize image quality and have a monitor with a lower refresh rate, such as a 60Hz 4K display.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The full measured FPS data is as follows:

• 1920x1080: Low averages 421.5 FPS, Medium averages 314.1 FPS, High averages 269.1 FPS, and Ultra averages 196 FPS.
• 2560x1440: Low averages 265.2 FPS, Medium averages 196 FPS, High averages 170.2 FPS, and Ultra averages 121.2 FPS.
• 3840x2160: Low averages 141.3 FPS, Medium averages 102.6 FPS, High averages 89.6 FPS, and Ultra averages 63.8 FPS.

These numbers show a clear stepwise progression. At each resolution, the difference between Low and Ultra is roughly a factor of 2.1 to 2.2. For example, at 1080p, the ratio is 421.5/196 = 2.15. At 1440p, it's 265.2/121.2 = 2.19, and at 4K, it's 141.3/63.8 = 2.21. This consistency indicates that the GPU's performance scales linearly with the settings preset, which is expected for a title with straightforward graphics options.

The minimum FPS values are not provided, so it's not possible to assess frame time consistency or stuttering. However, the average FPS figures alone suggest that the combo is capable of delivering a smooth experience across all settings, with the only potential concern being the 4K Ultra setting at 63.8 FPS, which might dip below 60 FPS in intense scenes. Overall, the data presents a well-balanced system that excels at 1080p and 1440p, and remains competent at 4K with adjusted settings.