Greedfall

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers a remarkable performance profile in Greedfall, a 2019 Action RPG. The benchmark data reveals a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, yet still possesses enough CPU headroom to push frame rates to extreme levels at 1080p. This combination ranks in the top 2% of all tested configurations, positioning it as one of the most potent setups for this title.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling across resolutions tells a clear story about where the bottleneck lies. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at Ultra settings, the average FPS drops by 32.8% from 162.1 to 109.1. The subsequent jump to 3840x2160 at Ultra results in a further 39.2% reduction, landing at 66.3 FPS. This steep decline indicates that the RTX 4090 is the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases, while the i7-12700K remains largely underutilized.

At lower settings, the pattern becomes even more pronounced. At 1080p Low, the system achieves an average of 352.4 FPS, which is an extraordinary figure. When scaling to 1440p Low, the average drops to 242.5 FPS, a 31.2% reduction. Continuing to 4K Low yields 145.5 FPS, another 40% decline. This consistent 30-40% performance hit per resolution step at low settings suggests the rendering pipeline is heavily saturated by the GPU's shading and rasterization workload, even when the visual load is minimal.

The data implies that at 1080p, the system is nearing the practical limits of the game engine's draw call processing, as the CPU's 12 cores and 20 threads are capable of feeding the GPU at very high rates. The diminishing returns between High and Ultra settings at each resolution further confirm that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute throughput are the deciding factors, not the processor's single-thread performance.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 achieves a combo rank of 34 out of 1705 tested configurations in Greedfall. This places it in the 98th percentile of all combinations, signifying exceptional performance for this title. The ranking suggests that only a handful of more exotic or newer components can outperform this pairing in this specific workload.

The CPU itself holds an 89th percentile ranking against all processors, with an average benchmark score of 35,684. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, scores slightly higher at 35,802, a delta of -0.3%, which is within statistical noise. Meanwhile, the Intel Core i7-13700T trails by 0.6% and the Intel Core i5-14500HX is 0.7% behind, indicating that the i7-12700K is competitively positioned in raw processing power.

The GPU's percentile ranking is even higher at 91, with an average benchmark score of 66,473. The data shows its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla T4, which is 0.4% slower, and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56, which is 0.9% slower. This suggests the RTX 4090 is not just powerful but also well-optimized for gaming workloads, justifying its high placement in the overall combo ranking.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is the undisputed workhorse in this pairing, featuring 16,384 shading units and 512 texture mapping units. Its massive 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s, which is critical for handling the high-resolution textures and complex shaders in Greedfall's environments. The GPU's boost clock of 2520 MHz allows it to sustain high throughput in demanding scenes.

The benchmark results show that the GPU's performance ceiling is rarely the limiting factor at 1080p, where it achieves 352.4 FPS on Low settings. However, at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 66.3, indicating that the GPU is being pushed to its limits. The 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is substantial, yet the game's engine still manages to create a significant performance gap between settings, highlighting the complexity of the rendering pipeline.

The RTX 4090's 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores are present, though Greedfall does not heavily utilize ray tracing or DLSS in these measurements. The data suggests that the raw rasterization performance is what drives the scores, as the transition from Medium to High settings at 4K only costs 9.1 FPS, but the jump from High to Ultra costs 38.8 FPS. This non-linear scaling points to specific shader complexity or memory allocation thresholds being exceeded at the Ultra preset.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptional frame rates across all settings. The Low preset achieves an average of 352.4 FPS, while Medium reaches 279.3 FPS. High settings produce 254.3 FPS, and Ultra drops to 162.1 FPS. These numbers indicate that even the most demanding settings at this resolution are easily handled, making it ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures remain very high. Low settings yield 242.5 FPS, Medium provides 193 FPS, and High settings reach 176.2 FPS. The Ultra preset still manages an impressive 109.1 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution shows a 55% reduction in performance, consistent with the increased pixel shader workload.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more demanding. The Low preset averages 145.5 FPS, which is still excellent for 4K gaming. Medium settings drop to 114.2 FPS, and High settings achieve 105.1 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most taxing, with an average of 66.3 FPS. This is still playable, but it represents a 54.4% drop from Low to Ultra, demonstrating the significant impact of the highest quality settings on the GPU.

Settings Recommendations

For players targeting 4K resolution, the High preset at 105.1 FPS offers an excellent balance between visual fidelity and performance, providing a smooth experience without the steep cost of Ultra settings. The Medium preset at 114.2 FPS is also a strong choice for those prioritizing frame rate stability. The Ultra preset at 66.3 FPS is viable for users who demand maximum visual quality and have a VRR display.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset at 109.1 FPS is the clear recommendation, as it delivers high fidelity without sacrificing responsiveness. The High preset at 176.2 FPS is ideal for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, while the Medium preset at 193 FPS offers a slightly higher frame rate for minimal visual compromise. The Low preset at 242.5 FPS is only necessary for extreme refresh rates.

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 162.1 FPS is the best choice, as it provides the full visual experience while still exceeding the refresh rate of most standard monitors. The High preset at 254.3 FPS is perfect for 240Hz displays, and the Medium preset at 279.3 FPS offers even more headroom. The Low preset at 352.4 FPS is excessive for most users but demonstrates the system's capability for esports-level frame rates.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 352.4 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The Ultra preset at this resolution still achieves a robust 162.1 FPS.

*Q: How does the combo rank compare to other tested systems in Greedfall?*

A: The Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination ranks 34th out of 1705 tested combos, placing it in the top 2% of all configurations.

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

A: At 3840x2160, the High preset averages 105.1 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 66.3 FPS, representing a 36.9% reduction in performance.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1440p?

A: The data indicates a GPU bottleneck, as the frame rates scale significantly with resolution and settings changes. The CPU's 12 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for the RTX 4090's workload at this resolution.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all graphics cards?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 holds a 91st percentile ranking, with an average benchmark score of 66,473, indicating it is a top-tier performer.

Q: How much memory does the GPU have, and what is its bandwidth?

A: The RTX 4090 features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory with a 384-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K, with its 12 cores and 20 threads, provides a solid foundation for this gaming system. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz ensure strong single-thread performance, which is crucial for game logic and physics calculations. The 25 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency, benefiting frame pacing.

The CPU's benchmark scores are substantial, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29,241 and a single-core score of 4,128. In the context of Greedfall, the processor's 89th percentile ranking against all CPUs indicates it is more than capable of keeping up with the RTX 4090. The data shows that at 1080p, the system achieves over 350 FPS, suggesting the CPU is not a bottleneck in this scenario.

However, the CPU's role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed. The benchmark results show that the frame rate ceiling at 1080p Low is 352.4 FPS, which is likely near the engine's or CPU's limit for draw call submission. The i7-12700K's PassMark multithread score of 34,404 and single-thread score of 4,013 support this, indicating it can handle high instruction throughput. The processor's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, show a negligible 0.3% difference in average score, confirming that the i7-12700K is well-matched for this GPU.