Barony

# Barony with Intel Core Ultra 5 235 + Intel Arc B390

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the Intel Arc B390 produces a deeply unbalanced gaming experience in Barony, with the integrated graphics solution acting as a severe bottleneck across all tested configurations. The measured frames per second range from a marginal 24 FPS at 4K Ultra to a fluid 159 FPS at 1080p Low, but the data consistently shows the GPU limiting performance far below what the 14-core processor is capable of delivering. This combination ranks 2601st out of 2935 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations, which aligns with the Arc B390's 9th percentile standing among all GPUs.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression across resolutions reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 159 FPS, but dropping to 1440p Low reduces that to 100 FPS — a 37% performance loss from a 1.78x pixel count increase. Moving to 4K Low yields 53 FPS, which is a 47% further drop from 1440p. This steep scaling curve indicates that the Arc B390's rendering throughput is the limiting factor, as resolution increases place exponentially more stress on the pixel pipeline.

The High settings row tells a similar story with slightly different magnitudes. At 1080p High, the system produces 102 FPS, falling to 64 FPS at 1440p High (a 37% reduction) and then to 34 FPS at 4K High (a 47% reduction from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and High settings — both showing approximately 37% and 47% reductions at each resolution step — confirms that the scaling behavior is resolution-driven rather than settings-driven. The GPU's 24 ROPs and 60.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are simply insufficient to maintain higher fill rates as pixel counts grow.

The Medium preset shows the same pattern with measured minimum and maximum frames providing additional context. At 1080p Medium, the average is 118 FPS with a minimum of 101 and maximum of 136. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 75 FPS with a range of 64 to 86. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 and maximum of 45. The minimum-to-maximum spread remains proportionally similar across resolutions, suggesting consistent frame pacing rather than sporadic stuttering — but the overall trend is unmistakably downward as resolution climbs.

Ultra settings produce the most dramatic scaling penalties. The 1080p Ultra result of 73 FPS drops to 46 FPS at 1440p Ultra and then collapses to 24 FPS at 4K Ultra. The 4K Ultra result is below the generally accepted threshold for smooth gameplay, and even the 1440p Ultra figure sits at the edge of playability. The data suggests that this combo is only viable at 1080p for most settings, with 1440p requiring Low or Medium presets to maintain playable frame rates.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture with a Panther Lake chip. Its boost clock reaches 2500 MHz, and it operates with a base clock of 300 MHz, drawing up to 80 W. The GPU features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster output pipelines, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Its FP32 compute rating stands at 7.680 TFLOPS, and the texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s.

The memory configuration is "System Shared" across size, type, and bus width, with bandwidth listed as "System Dependent." This means the GPU relies on the CPU's dual-channel DDR5 memory subsystem, which the Core Ultra 5 235 supports at 102.4 GB/s. In practice, this shared memory architecture introduces latency and bandwidth contention that likely contributes to the GPU's low performance ceiling. The Arc B390's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places it at the 9th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3% faster), the NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5% faster), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5% faster), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 (1443, 2.7% faster). These rivals are all older entry-level discrete GPUs, which contextualizes the Arc B390's position as a low-end integrated solution.

The VRAM situation is entirely dependent on system memory allocation, with no dedicated video memory available. This shared configuration means that texture-heavy scenes at higher settings could cause the GPU to contend with the CPU for memory bandwidth. The measured FPS data does not show catastrophic frame drops in the available minimum values — the lowest minimum recorded is 33 FPS at 4K Medium — which suggests the memory pressure is manageable at these settings, likely because Barony's roguelike visuals are relatively modest in texture complexity.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimal settings at each resolution. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers 159 FPS, which is excellent for fast-paced roguelike gameplay where reaction time matters. The Medium preset at 118 FPS offers a substantial improvement in visual quality while still maintaining well over 100 FPS, making it the recommended choice for most players at this resolution. High at 102 FPS remains playable, but Ultra at 73 FPS sacrifices 45 FPS compared to Medium for what is likely a marginal visual gain in a game with Barony's art style.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more constrained. Low achieves 100 FPS, which is still smooth, while Medium drops to 75 FPS — still acceptable for most players. High at 64 FPS is borderline but workable, while Ultra at 46 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold that many consider the minimum for comfortable gameplay. The recommendation at 1440p is Medium, as it provides the best balance between the 75 FPS average and the 64 FPS minimum, ensuring reasonably consistent frame delivery.

At 4K, none of the settings deliver ideal performance. Low at 53 FPS is the only preset that approaches playability, while Medium at 39 FPS and High at 34 FPS will feel sluggish. Ultra at 24 FPS is effectively unplayable. For 4K users, Low is the only realistic option, and even then, the experience will be compromised. The data suggests that this combo is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p with Medium settings, as those configurations provide the most favorable balance of visual fidelity and frame rate consistency.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Barony with this hardware combination?

A: The measured data shows 1080p Medium delivering 118 FPS average with a 101 FPS minimum, which provides the best combination of smoothness and visual quality. At 1440p, Medium drops to 75 FPS average, and at 4K, even Low only reaches 53 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its closest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B390's 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1482 is 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% higher than the GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% higher than the GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% higher than the GT 710 (1443). These are all modest differences, placing the Arc B390 in the same performance tier as these older entry-level GPUs.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 the bottleneck in this system?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU ranks in the 89th percentile among all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 46062, while the GPU sits in the 9th percentile. The FPS scaling across resolutions — dropping from 159 FPS at 1080p Low to 53 FPS at 4K Low — is characteristic of GPU-bound performance.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average at 2560x1440 High is 64 FPS. This is playable but below the 75 FPS average of Medium settings at the same resolution. The game will feel responsive, but there is limited headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: Does the Arc B390 have dedicated VRAM?

A: No, the memory configuration is "System Shared" for size, type, and bus width, with bandwidth listed as "System Dependent." This means the GPU uses the CPU's DDR5 memory, which the Core Ultra 5 235 supports at 102.4 GB/s in dual-channel mode.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Barony?

A: This combination ranks 2601st out of 2935 total combos tested in Barony, placing it in the bottom 11% of all tested systems. This low ranking aligns with the GPU's 9th percentile performance standing among all GPUs.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth and connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 lanes.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Core Ultra 5 235 achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14769 and a single-core score of 2085. Its PassMark multi-thread score is 37816, with a single-thread score of 4516, and it ranks in the 89th percentile among all CPUs. The nearest rivals in overall CPU benchmark performance include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46030 average, 0.1% slower), the Intel Core i9-13900HX (46098 average, 0.1% faster), the AMD EPYC 4364P (45970 average, 0.2% slower), and the AMD EPYC 7303 (45960 average, 0.2% slower). These extremely tight margins — all within 0.2% — indicate that the Core Ultra 5 235 sits right at the expected performance level for its class.

Despite this strong CPU showing, Barony's measured frame rates never approach the levels that would indicate CPU limitation. At 1080p Low, the system produces 159 FPS, which is respectable but far below what a 14-core Arrow Lake processor could theoretically push in a roguelike title if the GPU were not the constraint. The CPU's integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 24EU is separate from the discrete-class Arc B390, and the measured performance reflects the latter's output. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking versus the GPU's 9th percentile ranking creates a massive imbalance that leaves significant CPU headroom unused in every measured configuration.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings spectrum shows a clear hierarchy. Low produces an average of 159 FPS, the highest measured result across all configurations. Medium averages 118 FPS with a minimum of 101 FPS and maximum of 136 FPS. High averages 102 FPS, and Ultra averages 73 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 54% performance reduction, from 159 FPS down to 73 FPS, which is a substantial penalty for the highest visual preset.

At 2560x1440, the results scale downward consistently. Low averages 100 FPS, Medium averages 75 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS and maximum of 86 FPS, High averages 64 FPS, and Ultra averages 46 FPS. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 59 FPS, while the drop from 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra is 27 FPS. The percentage losses are steepest at the Low setting (37% reduction) and least severe at Ultra (37% reduction as well, showing a consistent pattern across all settings).

At 3840x2160, performance becomes marginal across the board. Low averages 53 FPS, Medium averages 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 FPS and maximum of 45 FPS, High averages 34 FPS, and Ultra averages 24 FPS. The 4K Low result is the only one above 50 FPS, and even that falls short of ideal smoothness. The Ultra preset at 24 FPS is below 30 FPS, which will be noticeably choppy in gameplay. The Medium preset's minimum of 33 FPS indicates that even the average performance is not consistently maintained, with dips into the low 30s possible during intense scenes.

The medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum values at all three resolutions, providing the most complete picture of frame time consistency. At 1080p, the range is 101-136 FPS around a 118 FPS average, showing a tight distribution. At 1440p, the range is 64-86 FPS around a 75 FPS average, with a similar relative spread. At 4K, the range is 33-45 FPS around a 39 FPS average, indicating that the lower frame rates are accompanied by proportionally similar variance.

How This Combo Ranks

This Intel Core Ultra 5 235 + Intel Arc B390 combination ranks 2601st out of 2935 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the bottom 11.4% of all configurations. This ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU's performance tier, as the Arc B390 sits at the 9th percentile among all GPUs with a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1482. The CPU, by contrast, ranks at the 89th percentile, creating one of the most pronounced CPU-GPU performance gaps possible in a tested system.

The practical implication of this ranking is that users of this combo will experience frame rates consistent with entry-level integrated graphics rather than anything approaching the CPU's capabilities. The measured FPS data confirms this: even at the lowest resolution and settings (1080p Low), the system only reaches 159 FPS, which is far below what the CPU could drive with a more capable GPU. The ranking position relative to other combos suggests that most tested configurations — 2600 of them, to be precise — deliver better or equal performance in Barony.

The GPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks all score within 2.7% of the Arc B390, which means this combo's ranking is not an outlier due to driver issues or thermal throttling but rather reflects the fundamental hardware limitations of the integrated GPU. The drop from 2601st place in a field of 2935 combos is consistent with a GPU that performs at the level of decade-old entry-level discrete cards like the GeForce GT 710. For Barony specifically, the roguelike genre's relatively simple graphics demands mean the combo can still achieve playable frame rates at 1080p Medium, but the overall ranking reflects that this is far from an optimal configuration for the game.