Greedfall

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti delivers a high-refresh-rate experience in Greedfall, but the data reveals a clear shift in system bottleneck as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the combination produces exceptionally high frame rates, with the Low preset averaging 269 FPS. Scaling to High reduces this to 208 FPS, and the Ultra preset still holds a solid 133 FPS average. These figures suggest that at 1080p, the CPU is frequently the limiting factor, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames well beyond the processor’s ability to feed it instructions.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very strong but begin to show a more balanced workload between the CPU and GPU. The Low preset averages 202 FPS, a 25% drop from the 1080p Low result, while High averages 144 FPS and Medium 159 FPS. Ultra at 1440p delivers 92 FPS, which is a substantial 31% reduction compared to the 1080p Ultra result. The scaling pattern here indicates that the RTX 4070 Ti is still capable of pushing high frame rates at this resolution, but the CPU’s six cores and six threads are starting to become a more noticeable constraint, particularly in the lower settings where the GPU could otherwise run faster.

At 3840x2160, the bottleneck shifts decisively to the GPU. The Ultra preset drops to 55 FPS, a steep decline from the 92 FPS at 1440p, underscoring the immense pixel-pushing demand of 4K. High averages 86 FPS, while Medium reaches 95 FPS, and Low climbs to 120 FPS. The gap between 1440p and 4K for the Low preset is 82 FPS, which is a 41% reduction; for High, the reduction is 58 FPS, or 40%. This consistent scaling pattern across settings strongly suggests that the limiting component at 4K is the GPU, as the CPU’s performance ceiling is high enough to keep up with the reduced frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The benchmark database ranks this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti at position 614 out of 3703 tested combos for Greedfall. This places the pairing in the top 16.6% of all configurations tested, indicating that it is a well-above-average performer for this title. The ranking reflects the substantial GPU power of the RTX 4070 Ti, which compensates for the older, more modest CPU. The data shows that while the i5-9400 is not a high-end processor, its six cores and 4.10 GHz boost clock provide adequate support for the GPU in most scenarios, allowing the combo to achieve frame rates that many other pairings cannot reach.

The percentile data for the individual components further contextualizes this rank. The GPU sits in the 84th percentile among all tested GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 44795, demonstrating that it is a high-tier part. The CPU, however, is in the 47th percentile among all CPUs, with an average score of 2254, placing it in the middle of the pack. The discrepancy in component tiering explains why the combo ranks as high as it does: the GPU is doing the heavy lifting, and the CPU is sufficient to avoid crippling bottlenecks in most of the measured settings. The nearest rivals to the CPU in terms of average benchmark score include the Intel Core i7-1068NG7, which scores 2259, and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500, scoring 2246, with deltas of -0.2% and 0.4%, respectively, showing that the i5-9400 is closely matched with these processors in general compute tasks.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience depends heavily on the target resolution and the user’s preference for visual fidelity versus frame rate smoothness. At 1920x1080, the High preset is the recommended starting point, as it delivers a 208 FPS average, which is far beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. The Ultra preset at 1080p still provides 133 FPS, making it a viable choice for users with high-refresh displays who want maximum quality, though the 75 FPS drop from High to Ultra is significant. The Medium preset offers 229 FPS, which is only 21 FPS higher than High, suggesting that High provides a better balance of image quality and performance.

For 2560x1440, the High preset again stands out as the best value in terms of measured performance, yielding 144 FPS. This is sufficient for most 144Hz monitors, and the jump to Medium only increases the average to 159 FPS, a marginal gain of 15 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p falls to 92 FPS, which is still playable but represents a substantial 52 FPS loss from High; users prioritizing frame rate over absolute detail should avoid Ultra here. At 3840x2160, the situation changes due to the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck. The Medium preset averages 95 FPS, which is a strong result for 4K, and it offers a 9 FPS improvement over High. The Low preset reaches 120 FPS, but that comes with a noticeable visual downgrade. For 4K, the Medium preset provides the best compromise, as it maintains a smooth frame rate while preserving a reasonable level of graphical detail.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of how the combo performs across the three standard resolutions and four quality settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 269 FPS, the highest score recorded for this combo. Medium averages 229 FPS, with a minimum of 194 FPS and a maximum of 263 FPS, indicating a tight frame pacing. High drops to 208 FPS, and Ultra is the lowest at 1080p, averaging 133 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 136 FPS, which highlights the significant cost of enabling the highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 202 FPS, which is still an excellent result for a 1440p resolution. Medium averages 159 FPS, with a minimum of 135 FPS and a maximum of 182 FPS, showing a slightly wider variance than at 1080p. High averages 144 FPS, and Ultra averages 92 FPS. The reduction from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings, with Low dropping by 67 FPS, Medium by 70 FPS, High by 64 FPS, and Ultra by 41 FPS. This pattern suggests that the GPU is handling the increased pixel count efficiently, while the CPU maintains its output.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 120 FPS, which is a remarkable result for 4K. Medium averages 95 FPS, with a minimum of 80 FPS and a maximum of 109 FPS. High averages 86 FPS, and Ultra averages 55 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced, with Low decreasing by 82 FPS, Medium by 64 FPS, High by 58 FPS, and Ultra by 37 FPS. The Ultra setting at 4K is the only measured configuration that falls below 60 FPS, indicating that it is not ideal for a smooth experience on this hardware, while all other settings remain playable.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Greedfall?

A: Based on the measured FPS, 2560x1440 offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The High preset at 1440p averages 144 FPS, which is smooth for most displays, while 1080p provides higher frame rates but with less visual detail, and 4K drops to 86 FPS on High.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Greedfall?

A: Yes, but with caveats. The Medium preset at 3840x2160 averages 95 FPS, and Low averages 120 FPS, making these settings viable for 4K. However, the Ultra preset only averages 55 FPS, which may not be smooth enough for fast-paced action.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance at different resolutions?

A: At 1080p, the CPU is more likely to be the limiting factor, as frame rates are high and the GPU has spare capacity. At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, as the resolution demands more from the graphics card, and the CPU’s role diminishes.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p, the difference is 136 FPS, with Low averaging 269 FPS and Ultra averaging 133 FPS. At 1440p, the difference is 110 FPS (202 vs 92), and at 4K, the difference is 65 FPS (120 vs 55).

Q: Is the RTX 4070 Ti a high-performing GPU in this context?

A: The GPU’s benchmark data shows it is in the 84th percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 44795. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile, which scores 45152, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT, scoring 45384, indicating it is a strong performer.

Q: How does the i5-9400 compare to its closest rivals?

A: The CPU has an average benchmark score of 2254, placing it in the 47th percentile. Its nearest rivals, the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500, score 2259 and 2246, respectively, with deltas of -0.2% and 0.4%, meaning they are nearly identical in performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor built on the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. It has 9 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration, with a memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. In the context of Greedfall, this CPU’s specifications are sufficient to prevent severe bottlenecks, but the data suggests it does limit peak frame rates in lower-resolution settings. At 1080p, the average FPS for the Low preset is 269, which is far beyond what most monitors can display, but the CPU’s six threads may struggle to sustain such high frame rates in more CPU-intensive scenes, as seen in the variance between settings.

The CPU’s benchmark scores provide a baseline for its compute capability. In Cinebench R20, it scores 2784 in multicore and 392 in single-core; in Geekbench, it scores 5141 multicore and 1389 single-core. These numbers are moderate, reflecting its middle-of-the-road percentile ranking of 47. The i5-9400’s performance in Greedfall is adequate for the GPU to reach high frame rates at 1440p and 4K, but at 1080p, the frame rates plateau at a level that suggests the CPU is the primary constraint. The L3 cache size of 9 MB is shared across all cores, which is typical for this generation, and the 14 nm process node is older than the GPU’s 5 nm node, but it does not appear to be a limiting factor in this title.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is a high-end graphics card based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring the AD104 chip with 7680 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. It has 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The GPU’s clocks are set at a base of 2310 MHz and a boost of 2610 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz, or 21 Gbps effective. These specifications position the GPU as a top-tier part, as evidenced by its 84th percentile ranking and an average benchmark score of 44795. In Greedfall, the GPU’s role is dominant at higher resolutions, where the measured FPS scales directly with the pixel count.

The GPU’s memory capacity of 12 GB is ample for this game, even at 4K, as the data shows no signs of memory-related stuttering or frame drops, with the Medium preset at 4K maintaining a minimum FPS of 80. The GPU’s compute capabilities, including 40.09 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 208.8 GPixel/s, allow it to handle the game’s rendering demands efficiently. The texture rate of 626.4 GTexel/s also ensures that high-resolution textures do not cause performance degradation. The RTX 4070 Ti’s launch MSRP is 799 USD, and its performance in Greedfall reflects its high-end positioning, delivering playable frame rates at 4K on Medium settings and excellent performance at 1440p and 1080p.