Barony

Barony is a roguelike that, on the surface, doesn't seem like a typical graphics stress test. However, the measured frame rates for this Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination reveal that it can push enormous frame counts, making the choice of settings more about consistency and headroom than about hitting a playable baseline. The data shows that this pairing is massively overqualified for the game's demands, so the best experience is found by prioritizing frame pacing and stability over raw average FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark results present a clear hierarchy across the four tested presets. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves an average of 663 FPS, while High drops to 423 FPS and Ultra falls to 303 FPS. The Medium preset, however, provides the most interesting data point because it is the only one with measured minimum and maximum frame times, showing an average of 493 FPS with a minimum of 419 FPS and a maximum of 567 FPS. This consistency is crucial in a game where a sudden frame hitch can mean the difference between life and death against a trap or enemy.

The data indicates that the Medium preset is the sweet spot for this combination. While the average FPS is lower than Low, the presence of a recorded minimum FPS suggests that the frame pacing is more stable. At 1440p, the same pattern holds: Medium averages 311 FPS with a minimum of 264 FPS, whereas High and Ultra average 267 FPS and 191 FPS respectively. The jump to Ultra provides diminishing returns in visual fidelity for a significant performance cost, cutting the frame rate nearly in half compared to Medium at both 1080p and 1440p.

For a game like Barony, where the action is fast and the visual style is often pixelated or stylized, the difference between High and Ultra is likely imperceptible on most displays, especially if you are using a high-refresh-rate monitor. The measured data suggests that Medium at 1440p is the optimal balance, delivering an average of 311 FPS while maintaining a minimum above 260 FPS. This provides a massive buffer above the refresh rate of even the fastest gaming monitors, ensuring that the CPU and GPU are never the bottleneck in a chaotic dungeon crawl. If you prefer maximum visual polish, High at 1440p is still excellent, but you lose roughly 44 FPS on average compared to Medium.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is the undisputed powerhouse in this configuration, and its specifications are reflected in the benchmark results. It features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive 1.01 TB/s of memory bandwidth. Its AD102 chip, built on a 5 nm process, contains 16,384 shading units and 512 texture mapping units. The core clock runs at a base of 2235 MHz and boosts to 2520 MHz, which helps drive the exceptionally high frame rates seen in the data.

The GPU's role in Barony becomes clear when examining the frame rates across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 663. This is a scenario where the CPU and game logic are likely the limiting factors, as the GPU is nowhere near its maximum output. However, the RTX 4090's raw power ensures that even at 4K Ultra, it maintains an average of 100 FPS. The data shows a direct correlation between resolution and performance, with the GPU becoming more of a bottleneck as pixel count increases.

The RTX 4090's benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 38194 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 9223, position it in the 88th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are prosumer and workstation cards like the Intel Arc Pro A60 and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48, which are not typical gaming counterparts. This indicates that in the context of this database, the RTX 4090 is a top-tier consumer part that is not meaningfully challenged by Barony's graphics engine. The 24 GB of VRAM is far more than the game will ever need, but it ensures that there are zero concerns about texture loading or memory swapping, even at maximum settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, built on a 3 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The CPU's benchmark scores are stellar, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44253 and a single-core score of 2439. It also achieves a Passmark single-thread score of 5068, placing it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs.

In Barony, the CPU's role is primarily about handling game logic, entity updates, and physics for the procedurally generated dungeon. The data suggests that this CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution tested. At 1080p Low, the average FPS of 663 confirms the CPU's ability to feed the GPU with enough draw calls and game state updates. The high single-core performance, evidenced by the 354 score in Cinebench R15 single-core, is critical for a roguelike where the main thread often handles the majority of the game simulation.

Comparing the CPU to its nearest rivals, it is effectively tied with the Intel Xeon 6520P (0% delta), and it is slightly ahead of the AMD EPYC 4564P (1.5%), AMD EPYC 9175F (1.9%), and AMD EPYC 4565P (2.1%) in average benchmark score. These are server-class processors, which highlights that the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is not just a gaming CPU but a multi-purpose powerhouse. In the context of Barony, the CPU's massive 36 MB of shared L3 cache and high boost clock are likely more important than its core count, as the game's simulation may not scale perfectly across 24 threads. The data implies that the CPU provides a massive headroom, allowing the GPU to operate at its full potential.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 111th out of 2935 tested combinations in Barony. This places it in the top 3.8% of all systems tested, which is a strong result, but it is not the absolute top. The data indicates that there are 110 other combinations that achieve higher average frame rates in this specific game.

This ranking is interesting because it suggests that while this is a top-tier consumer setup, other combinations—likely involving even more extreme CPUs or configurations optimized for high-frequency memory—can edge it out in Barony. The combo's percentile ranking for the CPU (96th) and GPU (88th) are individually high, but the combined rank is not in the top 100. This could be due to the game's engine being particularly sensitive to specific CPU architectures or memory latencies, or simply that other combos have a better balance for this title.

The delta between this combo and the top-ranked systems is not specified, but the rank of 111 out of 2935 is a clear indicator of exceptional performance. For a practical builder, this means you are getting a system that will not struggle with Barony at any settings, and the only reason to seek a higher-ranked combo would be if you were chasing e-sports-level frame rates on a 500Hz monitor. The data shows that this combo is overkill for 99% of displays, and the rank primarily serves as a bragging right in the benchmark database.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data across 1080p, 1440p, and 4K provides a clear picture of how this system scales with resolution. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 423 at 1080p to 267 at 1440p (a 37% decrease) and then to 140 at 4K (a 48% decrease from 1440p). This indicates a strong scaling pattern where the GPU becomes increasingly stressed as pixel count grows.

Looking at the Low preset, the scaling is even more dramatic. The average FPS goes from 663 at 1080p to 418 at 1440p (a 37% drop) and then to 219 at 4K (a 48% drop). The fact that the percentage drops are similar between presets suggests that the limiting factor changes in a predictable way. At 1080p, the CPU is likely the primary limiter, as the GPU is so powerful that it can render frames faster than the game logic can update. As resolution increases to 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the frame rate is dictated by the RTX 4090's pixel throughput.

The data reveals that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 100, which is a 67% reduction from the 1080p High frame rate of 423. This scaling behavior is typical for a system where the CPU is extremely fast. The CPU's performance headroom means that the GPU is fully utilized at higher resolutions, leading to a linear scaling pattern that is easy to predict. For players, this means that if you have a 4K display, you can expect a playable experience at Ultra, but you will need to drop to High or Medium to take full advantage of a high-refresh-rate 4K panel. The biggest takeaway is that the system is balanced enough that you are never CPU-bound at 4K, but you are clearly GPU-bound at 1080p.

FAQ

Q: What is the best setting to use for a 144Hz 1440p monitor?

A: The Medium preset at 1440p is the best choice, as it delivers an average of 311 FPS with a minimum of 264 FPS, ensuring your monitor's refresh rate is always met without any significant frame drops.

Q: Is the RTX 4090 overkill for Barony?

A: The data shows that even at 4K Ultra, the system averages 100 FPS. For a roguelike, this is far beyond the required performance, but it ensures that you can run the game at the highest settings with a massive performance buffer.

Q: Does the CPU hold back the GPU at 1080p?

A: Yes, the benchmark results suggest a CPU limit at 1080p Low, where the average FPS is 663. The CPU's performance is the constraining factor at this resolution, as the GPU is capable of much higher output.

Q: How does this combo compare to other systems in the database?

A: This combination ranks 111th out of 2935 tested combos in Barony, placing it in the top 4% of all systems. It is outperformed by 110 other combos, but it remains a top-tier setup.

Q: What is the difference between High and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 4K, High settings average 140 FPS, while Ultra averages 100 FPS. This is a 40 FPS difference, making High the better choice for maintaining higher frame rates without a massive visual hit.

Q: Is the 24 GB of VRAM on the RTX 4090 necessary for this game?

A: No, Barony is unlikely to use anywhere near 24 GB of VRAM. However, the large memory pool and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth ensure that there is no stuttering or texture pop-in, even at 4K Ultra.