Barony

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers exceptional performance in Barony, a roguelike title where frame rates are already high across the board. The benchmark data shows that this combination ranks 610th out of 2,935 tested combos, placing it in the top percentile for this game. With average frame rates ranging from 71 FPS at 4K Ultra to 471 FPS at 1080p Low, the system exhibits a wide performance envelope that is primarily dictated by resolution and graphics settings. The data indicates a clear hierarchy: the CPU and GPU are both capable, but the GPU becomes the primary scaling factor as resolution increases.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to use for the highest average frame rate?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings produces the highest average frame rate at 471 FPS. At the same resolution, Medium settings yield 351 FPS, High settings yield 301 FPS, and Ultra settings yield 216 FPS.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are 156 FPS on Low, 116 FPS on Medium, 99 FPS on High, and 71 FPS on Ultra. The Medium settings also show a minimum of 98 FPS and a maximum of 133 FPS.

*Q: What is the ranking of this CPU and GPU combination in Barony?*

A: The combo ranks 610th out of 2,935 tested combinations. This places it in the 79th percentile of all tested combos, indicating it is in the top quarter of systems for this specific game.

Q: Which component is more likely to be the bottleneck at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the frame rates are exceptionally high, with the Low preset reaching 471 FPS. This suggests that the CPU, with its 16 cores and 22 threads boosting up to 5.10 GHz, is well-equipped to feed the GPU, making the RTX 4090 the limiting factor even at lower resolutions.

Q: Are there any frame rate stability metrics provided?

A: The data includes minimum and maximum FPS values for Medium settings across all three resolutions. At 4K, the range is 98 to 133 FPS; at 1440p, it is 188 to 254 FPS; and at 1080p, it is 298 to 403 FPS. These are the only settings with such detailed metrics.

Q: How does the CPU's single-thread performance compare to its multi-thread performance?

A: The CPU's Cinebench R23 scores show a multi-core score of 17,984.5 and a single-core score of 1,810.5. This indicates a strong multi-threaded capability, which is typical for a mobile processor with 16 cores, while the single-core performance is also robust.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is a mobile processor with 16 cores and 22 threads, built on the Meteor Lake architecture using a 7 nm process. Its base clock is 3.90 GHz, and it can boost up to 5.10 GHz, which is critical for a game like Barony that may rely on single-threaded logic for game simulation. The benchmark scores support this, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1,810.5 and a multi-core score of 17,984.5. The Geekbench scores are 1,794 for single-core and 11,657 for multi-core, showing a balanced profile.

In the context of Barony, the CPU's role is to maintain high frame rates, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the primary constraint. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 471 FPS, which confirms the CPU's ability to process game logic and feed frames to the GPU. The Passmark single-thread score of 3,697 further indicates that the CPU can handle the per-frame calculations required by the roguelike genre's procedural generation and AI. Compared to its nearest rivals, the CPU is virtually tied with the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, Intel Core 7 250H, and AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, with delta percentages of -0.1, -0.2, and -0.4 respectively. This suggests that the Ultra 9 185H is a competitive performer, but it is the combination with the RTX 4090 that boosts the overall frame rates.

The 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 112 KB of L1 cache per core help reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for the game's random number generation and map generation tasks. The CPU's memory support for DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and 89.6 GB/s bandwidth ensures that data can flow quickly to the GPU. While the CPU is not the bottleneck at higher resolutions, its performance at 1080p shows that it can keep up with the powerful GPU, delivering frame rates that are well above the refresh rates of most monitors.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal settings depend on the user's resolution and refresh rate priorities. For 1920x1080, all presets deliver high average frame rates, but the Medium preset offers a balanced experience with an average of 351 FPS and a minimum of 298 FPS. This ensures smooth gameplay even in intense scenes, while the Low preset at 471 FPS may be excessive for most displays. The High preset at 301 FPS is also a strong choice, providing a better visual quality without sacrificing performance. The Ultra preset at 216 FPS is still playable, but the jump from Medium to Ultra results in a 38% drop in average FPS, which may not be worth the visual gains in a roguelike where readability is key.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset stands out with an average of 221 FPS and a minimum of 188 FPS, making it the best choice for high-refresh-rate gaming. The High preset at 190 FPS is also viable, while the Ultra preset at 136 FPS is more demanding but still above 120 FPS. The Low preset at 298 FPS is unnecessary for most users, as the Medium settings already provide a significant visual upgrade over Low. For 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the most balanced, averaging 116 FPS with a minimum of 98 FPS, ensuring that the game stays above 90 FPS in most scenarios. The High preset at 99 FPS is borderline for a 100 Hz display, while the Ultra preset at 71 FPS is best reserved for users with 60 Hz monitors who prioritize visual fidelity.

The data suggests that the Medium preset is the sweet spot across all resolutions, as it maintains a minimum frame rate above 98 FPS at 4K and above 188 FPS at 1440p. This provides a consistent experience without the frame rate dips that might occur on Ultra settings. For users with 144 Hz monitors at 1440p, the High preset is also a valid option, as it averages 190 FPS. Ultimately, the recommended settings are Medium for 4K and 1440p, and Medium or High for 1080p, depending on whether the user prefers higher frame rates or slightly better visuals.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 achieves a rank of 610 out of 2,935 tested combos in Barony. This places the system in the top 20.8% of all tested configurations, which is a strong result for a mobile CPU paired with a desktop-class GPU. The rank is likely influenced by the fact that Barony is not a graphically demanding game, allowing the CPU to play a more significant role in determining overall performance. The CPU's percentile of 85 among all CPUs indicates that it is faster than 85% of tested processors, while the GPU's percentile of 88 among all GPUs shows it is in the top 12% of graphics cards.

When looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is statistically tied with the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 (delta -0.1%), the Intel Core 7 250H (delta -0.2%), and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (delta -0.4%). This means that swapping the CPU for a similar-tier part would have a negligible impact on the overall combo ranking. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Arc Pro A60 (delta 0%) and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (delta 0.3%), also show minimal performance differences, suggesting that the RTX 4090 is the dominant factor in this combo's ranking.

The rank of 610 is particularly impressive given that the RTX 4090 is an end-of-life product, but its raw performance in this game is still among the top. The data shows that the combo outperforms 79% of all tested systems, which is expected given the high-end nature of both components. However, the rank also reflects the game's engine and its ability to scale with hardware, as the frame rates at 1080p are exceptionally high, pushing the limits of what the CPU can deliver. Overall, this combo is well-suited for Barony, and users can expect a top-tier experience with minimal compromises.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a high-end graphics card based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, with a 5 nm process node and 76,300 million transistors. It features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive 1.01 TB/s of memory bandwidth. The GPU's base clock is 2235 MHz, with a boost clock of 2520 MHz, and it has 16,384 shading units, 512 TMUs, and 176 ROPs. These specifications make it an extremely powerful GPU, capable of handling the most demanding workloads, including Barony at 4K Ultra.

In Barony, the GPU's role is primarily to render the game's 3D environments and effects. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average frame rate is 71 FPS, while at 4K Low, it jumps to 156 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is the primary scaling factor for resolution and settings. The RTX 4090's 24 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for Barony, which is a roguelike with relatively simple textures and geometry, meaning that the GPU is not memory-constrained in this title. The high memory bandwidth ensures that textures and frame buffers can be accessed quickly, contributing to the high frame rates observed.

The GPU's benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 38,194 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 271,631, underscore its compute capability. Compared to its nearest rivals, the RTX 4090 is essentially tied with the Intel Arc Pro A60 (delta 0%) and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (delta 0.3%), which are both professional-grade GPUs. However, the RTX 4090's consumer-oriented design allows it to achieve higher frame rates in gaming scenarios, as evidenced by the measured FPS data. At 1440p Ultra, the GPU delivers 136 FPS, and at 1080p Ultra, it reaches 216 FPS, demonstrating that it is not a bottleneck until the resolution and settings are pushed to extremes.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a detailed picture of the combo's performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 471 on Low to 216 on Ultra. The Medium preset averages 351 FPS, with a minimum of 298 FPS and a maximum of 403 FPS. The High preset averages 301 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the system is capable of exceeding 300 FPS on most presets, making it ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS drops but remains high. The Low preset averages 298 FPS, while Medium averages 221 FPS with a minimum of 188 FPS and a maximum of 254 FPS. High averages 190 FPS, and Ultra averages 136 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a 37% decrease in FPS on Low settings (from 471 to 298), which is a moderate drop. At 3840x2160, the averages are 156 FPS on Low, 116 FPS on Medium (with a minimum of 98 FPS and maximum of 133 FPS), 99 FPS on High, and 71 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced, with the Low preset falling by 48% (from 298 to 156 FPS).

The data also highlights the impact of settings within each resolution. At 4K, moving from Low to Ultra reduces the average FPS by 55%, while at 1440p, the reduction is 54%, and at 1080p, it is 54%. This consistency suggests that the GPU is the primary factor in settings scaling, as the relative performance drops are similar across resolutions. The Medium preset consistently provides the best balance of performance and stability, as it is the only preset with minimum FPS data, and those minimums are still high enough to avoid noticeable stuttering.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the bottleneck dynamics of this system. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 471, which is an extremely high number that indicates the CPU is capable of generating frames faster than the GPU can render them. When the resolution increases to 1440p, the average FPS on Low drops to 298, a 37% decrease. This is a significant drop, but it is expected as the GPU has to render more pixels. At 4K Low, the average FPS further drops to 156, a 48% decrease from 1440p. The scaling from 1080p to 4K on Low settings shows a total reduction of 67%, which is a typical pattern for a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions.

For the Medium preset, the scaling is similar: from 351 FPS at 1080p to 221 FPS at 1440p (a 37% drop) and then to 116 FPS at 4K (a 48% drop from 1440p). The High preset shows a 37% drop from 1080p to 1440p (301 to 190 FPS) and a 48% drop from 1440p to 4K (190 to 99 FPS). The Ultra preset also follows this pattern, with a 37% drop from 1080p to 1440p (216 to 136 FPS) and a 48% drop from 1440p to 4K (136 to 71 FPS). The consistency of these percentage drops across all settings indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor, as the CPU has enough headroom to handle the increased pixel count without impacting performance.

This scaling behavior suggests that the RTX 4090 is the bottleneck at 4K, while the CPU is the bottleneck at 1080p. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high that the CPU's ability to process game logic becomes the limiting factor, as the GPU can render frames faster than the CPU can deliver them. At 4K, the GPU's rendering workload becomes the primary constraint, and the CPU has sufficient capacity to keep up. The data shows that the system is well-balanced for 1440p, where both components are utilized effectively, resulting in frame rates that are high enough for competitive play while maintaining visual quality.