Barony

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H paired with the AMD Radeon 760M is a mobile combination positioned at the very bottom of the performance hierarchy for Barony. The data shows a combo ranking of 2,926 out of 2,935 tested configurations, placing it in the 0.3rd percentile of all tested combos. This is a processor-heavy roguelike, and the integrated GPU is the primary bottleneck, as evidenced by the steep performance drop at higher resolutions. The CPU, which ranks in the 85th percentile against all CPUs, is far more capable than the graphics solution, creating a significant imbalance in this pairing.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of what settings are viable for this specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and the AMD Radeon 760M. The benchmark results indicate that the "Low" preset is the only setting that consistently delivers a playable experience across all tested resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average frame rate reaches 98 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay. The 2560x1440 Low preset also holds up well, producing an average of 62 FPS, which is exactly at the threshold for a standard 60Hz display.

The "Medium" preset is a viable alternative for users who prioritize visual fidelity over maximum frame rates, but only at 1080p. At that resolution, the Medium preset delivers an average of 73 FPS, with a minimum of 62 FPS, ensuring that the experience remains fluid even in demanding scenes. However, at 2560x1440, the Medium preset drops to an average of 46 FPS, which may feel less responsive. The data shows that the "High" preset is only borderline playable at 1080p, with an average of 62 FPS. At 1440p, the High preset falls to 39 FPS, and at 4K, it plummets to 21 FPS.

The "Ultra" preset is not recommended for this combo at any resolution. The benchmark results show that even at 1080p, the Ultra preset only manages an average of 45 FPS. At 2560x1440, it drops to 28 FPS, and at 3840x2160, it becomes nearly unplayable at 15 FPS. The data suggests that the optimal experience for this hardware pairing is the Low preset at 1080p or 1440p. The 1440p Low option is particularly attractive, as it offers a significant resolution upgrade over 1080p while maintaining a 60 FPS average. For users who want a balance of quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1080p is the best choice, as it offers a 17% performance improvement over the High preset while providing better visuals than Low.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for this combo at 4K resolution?

A: The data shows that no preset is truly playable at 3840x2160. The Low preset yields the highest average at 32 FPS, followed by Medium at 24 FPS, High at 21 FPS, and Ultra at 15 FPS. For any semblance of playability, Low is the only option, but even then, the frame rate is below the standard 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How much faster is the Low preset compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: The benchmark results show a 53 FPS difference. At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 98 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages only 45 FPS. This represents a 117% performance uplift when using the Low preset.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU bottleneck this combo in Barony?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H has an average benchmark score of 35,670 and sits in the 85th percentile of all CPUs, while the AMD Radeon 760M has an average score of 6,019 and sits in the 35th percentile of all GPUs. The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at the same settings (e.g., High preset from 62 to 21 FPS) is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario.

Q: What is the frame rate range for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The measured data for the Medium preset at 2560x1440 shows an average of 46 FPS, with a minimum of 39 FPS and a maximum of 53 FPS. This range suggests that the experience can be inconsistent, potentially dipping below 40 FPS during intense scenes.

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

A: The combo rank for this specific pairing is 2,926 out of 2,935 tested combos. This places it in the bottom 0.3% of all configurations, indicating that it is among the least performant systems for this game.

Q: What is the FPS difference between the High and Medium presets at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Medium preset averages 73 FPS, while the High preset averages 62 FPS. This is an 11 FPS difference, or approximately a 15% improvement in average frame rate when dropping from High to Medium.

How This Combo Ranks

The data places this configuration of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and AMD Radeon 760M at a rank of 2,926 out of 2,935 total combos tested for Barony. This ranking places the system in the bottom 0.3% of all tested hardware pairings, underscoring its position as a low-end solution for this title. The performance is severely constrained by the integrated GPU, which is a far weaker component relative to the CPU.

The CPU itself is a high-performing part; its average benchmark score of 35,670 places it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. It sits just 0.1% behind the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 and 0.2% behind the Intel Core 7 250H, while being 0.4% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X. This proximity to other high-end mobile and desktop chips shows that the processor is not the cause of the low combo rank.

Conversely, the AMD Radeon 760M has an average benchmark score of 6,019, placing it in the 35th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6400 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M, both of which are within 0.3% of its score, and the NVIDIA Quadro P2000, which is 0.5% faster. This indicates that the GPU's performance level is comparable to older discrete entry-level graphics cards. The massive disparity between the CPU's 85th percentile ranking and the GPU's 35th percentile ranking is reflected in the overall combo rank, which is dragged down by the graphics solution. The system is effectively a powerful processor paired with a weak integrated GPU, resulting in a bottom-tier performance ranking for Barony.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates for this combo show a consistent pattern of decreasing performance as resolution and graphical fidelity increase. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 98 FPS, which is the highest score recorded for any setting in this test. The Medium preset at 1080p follows with an average of 73 FPS, with a minimum of 62 FPS and a maximum of 84 FPS. The High preset at the same resolution averages 62 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 45 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset remains the most playable, with an average of 62 FPS. The Medium preset averages 46 FPS, with a minimum of 39 FPS and a maximum of 53 FPS. The High preset falls to 39 FPS, and the Ultra preset is only able to produce an average of 28 FPS. The performance at 3840x2160 is uniformly poor across all settings. The Low preset averages 32 FPS, the Medium preset averages 24 FPS, with a minimum of 20 FPS and a maximum of 28 FPS, the High preset averages 21 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 15 FPS.

The data reveals that the gap between the Low and Ultra presets remains relatively consistent across resolutions, but the absolute numbers become critically low at higher resolutions. For instance, at 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 53 FPS, while at 1440p it is 34 FPS, and at 4K it is 17 FPS. This suggests that the GPU is saturating its limits at 4K, leaving little headroom for settings changes to affect the frame rate. The only setting that provides a consistent 60 FPS or above experience is the Low preset at 1080p, which is the definitive sweet spot for this hardware.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a steep decline as resolution increases, which is a classic indicator of a GPU-bound workload. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 62 FPS at 1080p, to 39 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 21 FPS at 4K. This represents a 37% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 46% drop from 1440p to 4K. The Low preset follows a similar pattern: 98 FPS at 1080p, 62 FPS at 1440p, and 32 FPS at 4K, showing a 37% drop and then a 48% drop respectively.

This scaling behavior points directly at the AMD Radeon 760M as the limiting component. The integrated GPU has a pixel rate of 41.58 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 83.17 GTexel/s, which are relatively modest figures. As the resolution increases, the number of pixels and texels that need to be processed grows exponentially, and the GPU's limited resources become overwhelmed. The CPU, which has a boost clock of 5.10 GHz and 16 cores, is more than capable of feeding the GPU with data. The fact that the frame rate halves when moving from 1080p to 4K suggests that the GPU is at its absolute limit trying to fill those frames.

The data shows that the performance penalty for moving from 1080p to 1440p is roughly the same as the penalty for moving from 1440p to 4K, around 37-48%. This indicates that the GPU's scaling is not linear, and the bottleneck becomes more severe at higher resolutions. For this combo, the playable range is effectively limited to 1080p and 1440p with Low settings. The 4K results are uniformly below playable thresholds, confirming that this resolution is not viable for this hardware, regardless of the settings chosen.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is a high-end mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on a 7 nm process. It features 16 cores and 22 threads, with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. The processor has a 24 MB shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel memory with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. Its benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 17,984.5 and a single-core score of 1,810.5. The Geekbench multi-core score is 11,657, and the single-core score is 1,794.

In the context of Barony, this processor provides ample computational headroom. The game's roguelike genre typically involves procedural generation and complex simulation logic, which can be CPU-intensive. However, the measured FPS data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this system. The 85th percentile ranking for the CPU against all other processors indicates that it is far more powerful than the average. When paired with the AMD Radeon 760M, which sits in the 35th percentile of GPUs, the performance discrepancy is significant.

The CPU's high boost clock of 5.10 GHz is beneficial for single-threaded tasks, which are common in game logic and physics calculations. The 16 cores and 22 threads also provide substantial multi-threaded capability for any background tasks or game engine threads that can utilize them. The data shows that the CPU is capable of maintaining high frame rates when the GPU is not the bottleneck, as seen in the 98 FPS result at 1080p Low. This suggests that the CPU is not holding back the system in this title. Instead, the Radeon 760M's 512 shading units and 16 ROPs are the limiting factors, preventing the system from achieving higher frame rates at higher resolutions and settings. The processor is effectively waiting on the GPU to render each frame, a clear sign of a GPU-bound configuration.