Greedfall

# Greedfall — Intel Core i7-14700KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB

The Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB delivers a playable but constrained experience in Greedfall, with benchmark results showing that the GPU becomes the decisive bottleneck as resolution increases. Across twelve measured configurations spanning three resolutions and four quality presets, average frame rates range from a low of 20 FPS at 4K Ultra to a high of 107 FPS at 1080p Low. This combination ranks 3254th out of 3703 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower percentile of system pairings, which is consistent with the RTX 3050 4 GB sitting at the 50th percentile among all GPUs while the processor ranks in the 94th percentile among all CPUs. The data indicates a substantial mismatch between the CPU's headroom and the GPU's delivery capacity, making resolution and settings selection critical for achieving acceptable performance.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance drop as resolution scales from 1080p to 4K, with the GPU clearly emerging as the limiting component. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 77 FPS at 1920x1080 to 53 FPS at 2560x1440, then down to 32 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 31% reduction moving from 1080p to 1440p, followed by a further 40% drop moving from 1440p to 4K. The scaling pattern is consistent across all quality presets, though the absolute deltas vary with the workload intensity.

Looking at Low settings, the frame rate declines from 107 FPS at 1080p to 74 FPS at 1440p, then to 44 FPS at 4K — a 31% and 41% reduction respectively. Medium settings show a similar trajectory: 84 FPS at 1080p, 58 FPS at 1440p, and 35 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings exhibit the most dramatic scaling, with 49 FPS at 1080p dropping to 34 FPS at 1440p and eventually to 20 FPS at 4K. The proportional consistency of these drops — roughly one-third fewer frames going from 1080p to 1440p and another 40% fewer going to 4K — strongly indicates that pixel throughput, not CPU processing, is governing performance.

At 1080p, the spread between Low and Ultra is 58 FPS (107 vs 49), which shows that even at the lowest resolution, the GPU cannot fully escape its limits. At 4K, the spread narrows to 24 FPS (44 vs 20), a compression that typically occurs when the renderer is saturated and settings have diminishing impact on the already-low frame rates. The measured minimum FPS values, available only for Medium settings, corroborate this: the 30 FPS floor at 4K Medium versus the 72 FPS floor at 1080p Medium demonstrates that frame pacing degrades alongside average throughput as resolution climbs. The data suggests that 1440p represents the practical ceiling for this combo, with 4K playable only at Low settings and even then only marginally above 40 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700KF brings substantial processing resources to this pairing, though Greedfall's measured results indicate that these resources are largely underutilized in most configurations. The processor features 20 cores and 28 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 and a single-core score of 6235, with a Geekbench multi-core score of 21462 and single-core score of 2578. These figures place the processor in the 94th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70163.

The nearest rival comparisons show that the i7-14700KF is tightly clustered with other high-end processors: it sits 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, 0.4% above the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, 0.9% above the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, and 1% below the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K. This positioning suggests that the CPU is more than capable of feeding any modern GPU in Greedfall, yet the measured frame rates are far lower than what the processor alone could theoretically support. At 1080p Low, the 107 FPS average is likely approaching the point where CPU limitations could begin to surface, but the consistent scaling pattern across resolutions points to GPU-bound behavior throughout.

The processor's high single-thread performance, evidenced by the 6235 Cinebench R23 single-core score and the 4480 Passmark single-thread score, should handle Greedfall's game logic and AI computations comfortably. The 125 W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 compatibility are relevant for system integration, but from a pure performance standpoint, the data shows no evidence that the CPU constrains the frame rates in any of the twelve measured configurations. The bottleneck sits squarely with the GPU, which is expected given the 50th percentile ranking of the RTX 3050 4 GB against all GPUs.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB ranks 3254th out of 3703 tested combos in Greedfall, placing it in the 12th percentile of all system pairings. This low ranking is notable given that the CPU alone sits in the 94th percentile among all processors — the discrepancy highlights how dramatically the GPU drags down the overall system performance in this game. For context, the GPU's 50th percentile ranking among all GPUs means it is exactly average in the broader hardware landscape, yet when paired with a top-tier processor, the combination still lands near the bottom of the combo rankings.

The rank of 3254 out of 3703 indicates that roughly 88% of tested system combinations outperform this pairing in Greedfall. This suggests that users who invested in the i7-14700KF for its strong multi-core and single-core capabilities will find those advantages largely unrealized in this title due to the RTX 3050 4 GB's limitations. The combo ranking reflects the reality that Greedfall's performance is heavily dependent on GPU throughput, and a mid-range GPU paired with a high-end CPU cannot overcome the renderer's demands at higher resolutions and settings.

Looking at the measured FPS data in the context of this ranking, the 107 FPS at 1080p Low is the only configuration that approaches a high-refresh-rate experience, while the 32 FPS at 4K High and 20 FPS at 4K Ultra are firmly in slideshow territory. The ranking suggests that users seeking smoother gameplay would need to either lower expectations to 1080p or consider a different GPU entirely. The data is clear: this CPU-GPU pairing is severely imbalanced for Greedfall, with the processor's capabilities far exceeding what the graphics card can deliver.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 3050 4 GB delivers its best results, with average frame rates of 107 FPS on Low, 84 FPS on Medium, 77 FPS on High, and 49 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset includes measured minimum and maximum values of 72 FPS and 97 FPS respectively, indicating a stable frame delivery within a 25 FPS band. The jump from Low to Medium costs 23 FPS, while moving from Medium to High costs only 7 FPS, and the leap to Ultra costs another 28 FPS — this non-linear scaling suggests that Ultra settings introduce disproportionately heavy effects that strain the GPU's 4 GB memory capacity.

At 2560x1440, average frame rates drop to 74 FPS on Low, 58 FPS on Medium, 53 FPS on High, and 34 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 50 FPS and a maximum of 67 FPS, a 17 FPS spread that is tighter than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is working closer to its limits. The transition from High to Ultra at 1440p costs 19 FPS, which is proportionally similar to the 28 FPS drop at 1080p. Notably, the 1440p High result of 53 FPS is nearly identical to the 1080p Ultra result of 49 FPS, suggesting that the visual quality trade-off between resolution and settings can be balanced to achieve similar performance.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become marginal: 44 FPS on Low, 35 FPS on Medium, 32 FPS on High, and 20 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset's minimum of 30 FPS and maximum of 40 FPS show that even the average is barely above the 30 FPS playability threshold, with dips below it. The 4K Low result of 44 FPS is the only 4K configuration that approaches a playable standard, while the 4K Ultra result of 20 FPS is effectively unplayable for any action-oriented gameplay. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at each settings level shows a consistent 40-41% reduction in frame rate, underscoring the GPU's bandwidth and fill-rate limitations at higher pixel counts.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB is built on the Ampere architecture with the GA107 chip, manufactured on Samsung's 8 nm process with 8,700 million transistors on a 200 mm² die. Its clock speeds are modest, with a base clock of 1545 MHz and a boost clock of 1740 MHz, while the 4 GB of GDDR6 memory runs at 1500 MHz with a 12 Gbps effective rate across a 128-bit bus, yielding 192.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory configuration is a critical constraint: at 4K resolution, the 4 GB capacity is likely insufficient for high-resolution textures, which explains the steep performance penalties at Ultra settings where texture quality demands exceed the available VRAM.

The GPU's compute resources include 2048 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, 32 ROPs, 16 ray tracing cores, and 64 tensor cores. Its pixel rate is 55.68 GPixel/s and texture rate is 111.4 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 7.127 TFLOPS (and FP16 at the same 7.127 TFLOPS due to the 1:1 ratio). The 90 W TDP and 250 W suggested PSU indicate a power-efficient design, but efficiency does not translate into raw throughput for demanding titles like Greedfall. The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provides adequate bandwidth for the GPU's 192.0 GB/s memory subsystem, though the x8 lane count could theoretically limit data transfer in some scenarios.

The GPU's 50th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it exactly at the median of the hardware landscape, yet in Greedfall, the measured results show it struggling at higher resolutions. The 4 GB memory size is particularly problematic: at 1080p Ultra, the 49 FPS average suggests the GPU is hitting memory capacity limits, while at 4K Ultra the 20 FPS result indicates severe thrashing or texture streaming issues. The memory bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s is also modest for 4K workloads, contributing to the 40% frame rate drops observed when moving from 1440p to 4K. The boost clock of 1740 MHz is the maximum achievable, but thermal and power constraints may prevent sustained operation at that frequency during extended gaming sessions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the twelve measured configurations, the optimal experience depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset at 77 FPS average provides the best balance between visual quality and performance, delivering smooth gameplay while maintaining meaningful graphical fidelity. The Medium preset at 84 FPS offers a 7 FPS improvement but at a noticeable visual cost, while the Ultra preset at 49 FPS is playable but drops below the 60 FPS threshold that many action RPG players prefer. The Low preset at 107 FPS is the only configuration that exceeds 100 FPS, but the visual degradation is substantial. For 1080p users, High is the recommended sweet spot.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset at 58 FPS is the most viable option, with the measured minimum of 50 FPS ensuring that frame drops stay above the 30 FPS stutter threshold. The High preset at 53 FPS is also acceptable, offering better visuals with only a 5 FPS penalty compared to Medium, but the lack of measured minimum values makes it harder to guarantee consistent frame pacing. The Low preset at 74 FPS is smooth but visually compromised, while the Ultra preset at 34 FPS is borderline playable but risks dipping into the 20s during intense scenes. For 1440p, Medium or High are both reasonable, with the choice depending on whether visual quality or frame rate stability takes priority.

At 3840x2160, only the Low preset at 44 FPS approaches a playable experience, though even this falls short of the 60 FPS standard. The Medium preset at 35 FPS is marginal, with the measured minimum of 30 FPS indicating that scenes with heavy particle effects or large crowds could drop below playability. The High preset at 32 FPS and Ultra preset at 20 FPS are not recommended for any gameplay scenario. The data suggests that 4K is not a viable resolution for this GPU in Greedfall, and users with 4K displays should either run the game at 1080p or 1440p with upscaling, or accept the Low preset as the only playable option at native 4K.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 provides the most consistent performance, with average frame rates ranging from 49 FPS on Ultra to 107 FPS on Low. At 2560x1440, the best result is 74 FPS on Low, while at 3840x2160, the best result is 44 FPS on Low. For a balance of visual quality and smoothness, 1920x1080 at High settings (77 FPS) is the recommended configuration.

Q: Can this combo run Greedfall at 60 FPS?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 107 FPS and the Medium preset achieves 84 FPS, both above 60 FPS. The High preset at 77 FPS also exceeds 60 FPS. At 2560x1440, only the Low preset at 74 FPS exceeds 60 FPS. At 3840x2160, no settings preset reaches 60 FPS — the highest result is 44 FPS on Low.

Q: How does the 4 GB VRAM affect performance at different settings?

A: The 4 GB memory capacity appears to be a limiting factor at higher settings. At 1920x1080, the drop from High (77 FPS) to Ultra (49 FPS) represents a 28 FPS penalty, while at 2560x1440, the same settings transition costs 19 FPS. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset drops to 20 FPS, suggesting that the VRAM capacity is severely strained at 4K resolution with high-quality textures.

Q: What is the combo's ranking compared to other tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 3254th out of 3703 tested combos in Greedfall, placing it in the lower 12% of all system pairings. This ranking is significantly below what the CPU's 94th percentile performance would suggest, indicating that the GPU is the primary factor holding back the overall system score.

Q: Which settings preset shows the most stable frame delivery?

A: The Medium preset is the only configuration with measured minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1920x1080, the range is 72 to 97 FPS (a 25 FPS spread), at 2560x1440, the range is 50 to 67 FPS (a 17 FPS spread), and at 3840x2160, the range is 30 to 40 FPS (a 10 FPS spread). The narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates more consistent but lower overall performance.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data strongly indicates the GPU is the limiting component. The resolution scaling shows consistent 31-41% frame rate reductions when moving from 1080p to 1440p and 1440p to 4K, which is characteristic of GPU-bound workloads. The CPU's 94th percentile ranking and high synthetic benchmark scores (Cinebench R23 multi-core 44167, single-core 6235) far exceed what Greedfall's measured results require, confirming the processor has ample headroom.