Greedfall

Greedfall, an Action RPG released in 2019, presents a fascinating case study when paired with the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. This combination of a mainstream 6-core CPU and an enthusiast flagship GPU creates a unique performance profile that is heavily dependent on resolution and settings. The measured frame rates reveal a system that can deliver extremely high refresh rates at 1080p but also show clear bottlenecks and scaling anomalies that warrant a closer look at the underlying hardware and the game's engine.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that the High preset at 3840x2160 provides the best balance, achieving an average of 105.5 FPS. While the Ultra preset is more demanding, it drops the average to 65.5 FPS, making High the superior choice for smooth 4K gameplay.

Q: How does the RTX 4090 rank against other tested combos in Greedfall?

A: This specific configuration ranks 35th out of 1705 tested combos. This places it in the top 2.1% of all systems tested, indicating that while it is a high-end performer, the CPU or other factors prevent it from being the absolute fastest pairing for this game.

Q: Is the CPU a limiting factor at 1080p?

A: Yes, the benchmark results strongly suggest a CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low (353.2 FPS) and High (255.1 FPS) is a massive 98.1 FPS, indicating that the frame rate is more sensitive to CPU load than GPU capability at this resolution.

Q: What is the most significant frame rate drop when going from High to Ultra settings?

A: The most substantial drop is at 3840x2160, where moving from High (105.5 FPS) to Ultra (65.5 FPS) results in a 40.0 FPS decrease. This is a 37.9% performance penalty for the higher visual fidelity.

Q: How much faster is the i5-12400 than its nearest rival?

A: In the provided benchmark data, the Intel Core i5-12400 has an average score of 19850. Its closest rival, the Intel Core i7-9700, has an average score of 19831, making the i5-12400 only 0.1% faster on average.

Q: What is the GPU's memory configuration and bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive memory bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s. This high bandwidth is crucial for handling high-resolution textures and complex scenes.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090, based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, is the dominant component in this system. The data indicates its role shifts dramatically depending on the workload. With a base clock of 2235 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz, the card has immense raw processing power. Its 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth provide a vast data pipeline for the game engine to draw from.

In Greedfall, the GPU's influence is most evident at higher resolutions. At 3840x2160, the frame rates vary significantly with settings, from 143.3 FPS on Low to 65.5 FPS on Ultra. This wide spread shows that the GPU is the primary driver of performance at 4K, with its capabilities being taxed heavily by the most demanding presets. The card's performance is also notable in its benchmark scores, where it achieves a Passmark G3D score of 38194, placing it in the 91st percentile of all GPUs. This is a clear indicator of its top-tier status, even if its nearest rivals in the database, such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4 (with a delta of -0.4%), are professional workstation cards rather than gaming equivalents.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and RTX 4090 achieves a rank of 35 out of 1705 tested combos in Greedfall. This is a strong result, placing the system in the top 2% of all configurations. However, the ranking also hints at untapped potential. The RTX 4090 is an end-of-life product with a successor already on the market, yet it still commands a high percentile rank. The fact that this combo is not ranked first suggests that the i5-12400 may be holding back the GPU in certain scenarios, preventing it from reaching the absolute peak performance that a more powerful CPU might unlock.

The data suggests that in CPU-bound scenarios, the i5-12400's performance is competitive with its direct rivals. Its average benchmark score of 19850 is within 0.4% of the Intel Core i5-11600K and 0.2% of the Intel Core i7-8700. This indicates a balanced performance level for a 6-core, 12-thread processor, but it also underscores that it is not a top-tier HEDT or workstation chip like the Threadripper PRO 5995WX, which is its rival with a score of 19928.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a complete picture of the system's capabilities. At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptionally high frame rates across all settings. The Low preset achieves 353.2 FPS, while Medium hits 278.1 FPS, High reaches 255.1 FPS, and even the demanding Ultra preset averages 163.7 FPS. These numbers are far beyond the refresh rate of most monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains very high but begins to show more differentiation. The Low preset still delivers an impressive 242.4 FPS. The High preset averages 174 FPS, and Medium is close behind at 190.6 FPS. The Ultra preset sees a more significant drop to 112.6 FPS, indicating that the GPU is starting to work harder.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's workload becomes the defining factor. The Low preset yields 143.3 FPS, which is still very playable. The High preset delivers a smooth 105.5 FPS, making it the optimal choice for a high-refresh-rate 4K experience. The Medium preset is slightly lower at 115.9 FPS, which is an anomaly compared to the scaling at other resolutions. The Ultra preset, however, presents a significant challenge, with the average FPS dropping to just 65.5 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the High preset is the clear recommendation for the best overall experience on this system. At 3840x2160, it is the only preset that combines high visual quality with a frame rate above 100 FPS, averaging 105.5 FPS. The Ultra preset, while visually superior, costs a significant 40.0 FPS compared to High at this resolution, which is a steep price for the performance hit.

At lower resolutions, the High preset also offers an excellent experience, with frame rates of 255.1 FPS at 1080p and 174 FPS at 1440p. These are high enough to take full advantage of most high-refresh-rate monitors. The Ultra preset is only recommended for players who prioritize visual fidelity and have a monitor that can take advantage of the frame rates, such as at 1080p where it still averages 163.7 FPS. For 4K, the data is clear: High is the sweet spot.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake family. With a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, it provides solid single-threaded performance, as evidenced by its 3dmark single-thread score of 910 and its Passmark single-thread score of 3456. Its performance in multithreaded tests is also respectable, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15935.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role appears to be most critical at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the limiting factor. The data shows a huge difference in frame rates between the Low preset (353.2 FPS) and the Ultra preset (163.7 FPS) at 1080p. This suggests that the CPU is able to feed the GPU enough draw calls to produce these high numbers, but as settings increase, the GPU's workload becomes the primary constraint. The CPU's performance is in line with its direct rivals, being only 0.1% faster than the i7-9700, but it is not in the same class as the Threadripper PRO 5995WX, which has a higher average benchmark score.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling of performance from 1080p to 4K provides insight into the system's balance. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 255.1 at 1080p to 174 at 1440p, a 31.8% decrease. The drop from 1440p to 4K is also significant, with the average falling to 105.5 FPS, a further 39.4% decrease. This shows a steady increase in GPU load as resolution increases.

The scaling pattern changes with the Ultra preset. The drop from 1080p (163.7 FPS) to 1440p (112.6 FPS) is a 31.2% decrease. However, the drop from 1440p to 4K (65.5 FPS) is a much larger 41.8% decrease. This steeper decline at 4K with Ultra settings indicates that the RTX 4090's resources are being heavily taxed, and the GPU is becoming the sole limiting component. The fact that the 4K Medium preset (115.9 FPS) is faster than the 4K High preset (105.5 FPS) is a notable anomaly in the data, suggesting that the High preset may have a specific setting that is disproportionately demanding on the GPU's architecture.