Greedfall

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 secures a combo rank of 1922 out of 2938 tested combinations in Greedfall. That places this setup in the bottom third of all tested combos, which is a surprising result given the individual components' benchmark standings. The CPU sits at the 88th percentile against all processors, while the GPU reaches the 72nd percentile against all graphics cards — yet their combined performance in this Action RPG lands at roughly the 35th percentile mark (1922 divided by 2938). This gap between component-level potential and in-game synergy suggests something about Greedfall's engine or workload characteristics is not playing to this combo's strengths.

Digging into the data, the CPU's average benchmark score of 44466 places it within a hair's breadth of its nearest rivals. The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D scores 44573, a delta of -0.2%, meaning the Intel part is essentially tied with that chip. Similarly, the Intel Core i9-13950HX trails by just 0.3%, the AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 by 0.4%, and the Intel Core i5-13600 by 0.5%. These are all sub-1% differences, indicating the Ultra X9 388H is competitively positioned in raw compute. On the GPU side, the RTX 5060's average benchmark score of 26331 sits against rivals like the AMD Radeon 860M (26401, delta -0.3%), NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (26421, delta -0.3%), AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (26553, delta -0.8%), and AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT (26011, delta 1.2%). Again, all deltas are within 1.2%, suggesting the GPU is also well-matched against its direct competitors.

Yet the in-game rank tells a different story. With only 1006 combos below it and 1936 above, this pairing is clearly not optimizing Greedfall's specific demands. The data implies that while each component holds its own in synthetic benchmarks, their combined profile — 16 cores at moderate clocks, 8 GB VRAM, and a 128-bit memory bus — may create a bottleneck unique to this title's rendering paths. The rank is not catastrophic, but it is notably below what the component percentiles would predict, warranting a closer look at where the FPS actually lands across resolutions and settings.

# GPU Role

The RTX 5060 brings 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock runs at 2280 MHz with a boost of 2497 MHz, and the memory operates at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective speed. The GPU packs 3840 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 raster operation pipelines, along with 30 ray tracing cores and 120 tensor cores. These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 119.9 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 299.6 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance at 19.18 TFLOPS.

In Greedfall specifically, the GPU's memory configuration appears to be a limiting factor at higher resolutions. The 8 GB VRAM capacity, while standard for this class, becomes strained when the game demands larger framebuffers. The measured FPS data supports this: at 4K Ultra, the combo manages only 29 FPS average, a steep drop from 4K High's 46 FPS. That 17 FPS gap between Ultra and High at 4K is far larger than the equivalent gap at 1080p, where Ultra delivers 71 FPS versus High's 111 FPS — a 40 FPS difference. The compression of the Ultra-to-High delta at higher resolutions suggests the GPU is hitting memory or bandwidth walls rather than pure shader throughput limits.

The 128-bit bus width is notably narrow for a 50-series card, and the 448.0 GB/s bandwidth, while respectable, must feed 3840 shading units. In a game like Greedfall with dense environments and complex lighting, this imbalance becomes apparent. The RTX 5060's benchmark scores reflect this: its Passmark G3D score of 20891 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3628 are solid midrange numbers, but the GPU's 72nd percentile ranking indicates it is not a top-tier part. The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the GPU has enough headroom to push high frame rates, but at 4K, the combination of VRAM size and bus width creates a bottleneck that no amount of clock speed can overcome.

# FAQ

Q: How does this combo rank against all tested configurations in Greedfall?

A: It ranks 1922 out of 2938 tested combos, placing it in the lower third of all pairings for this game.

Q: What is the best FPS this combo achieves at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo reaches 156 FPS average. With Medium settings, it drops to 122 FPS, High yields 111 FPS, and Ultra produces 71 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU hold back the GPU in Greedfall?

A: The data does not indicate CPU limitation. The CPU's 16 cores and 5.10 GHz boost clock are strong, and its benchmark scores are within 0.5% of top rivals. The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a consistent GPU-driven drop, suggesting the GPU is the primary constraint.

Q: How does the RTX 5060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 5060's average benchmark score of 26331 is within 1.2% of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT (26011) and within 0.8% of the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (26553). It trails the AMD Radeon 860M by 0.3% and the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 by 0.3%.

Q: Is 8 GB of VRAM sufficient for Greedfall at 4K?

A: The measured data suggests marginal performance at 4K. The combo achieves 46 FPS at 4K High and 51 FPS at 4K Medium, but Ultra drops to 29 FPS. The large gap between Medium and Ultra implies VRAM or bandwidth constraints at the highest settings.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread performance relative to its multi-thread score?

A: The CPU scores 2200.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 18911 in multi-core. Its Passmark single-thread score is 4280, while multi-thread reaches 36811. These ratios indicate balanced performance, with single-thread strength that should handle game logic well.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 156 FPS average, which is the highest number recorded across all configurations. Medium settings drop to 122 FPS with a minimum of 104 and maximum of 141, providing a playable range with some headroom. High settings yield 111 FPS, still well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Ultra settings fall to 71 FPS, which is noticeably lower but still playable for most users. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 85 FPS, indicating that settings have a substantial impact at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates compress somewhat. Low settings achieve 108 FPS, Medium delivers 85 FPS with a minimum of 72 and maximum of 98, High produces 77 FPS, and Ultra drops to 49 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread narrows to 59 FPS, showing that resolution scaling is beginning to tax the GPU. The Medium setting's minimum of 72 FPS is particularly notable — it indicates that even during demanding scenes, the combo holds above 60 FPS at 1440p Medium.

At 3840x2160, the numbers reveal significant strain. Low settings manage 64 FPS, Medium achieves 51 FPS with a minimum of 43 and maximum of 58, High drops to 46 FPS, and Ultra falls to 29 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread narrows further to 35 FPS, and more importantly, the Ultra setting's 29 FPS is below the threshold for comfortable gameplay. The Medium setting's minimum of 43 FPS suggests occasional stutters in heavy scenes. This resolution profile clearly shows the GPU's limits, with only Low settings maintaining a comfortable average at 4K.

# Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is telling. At Low settings, the combo goes from 156 FPS at 1080p to 108 FPS at 1440p to 64 FPS at 4K. That represents a 31% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 41% drop from 1440p to 4K. Total scaling from 1080p to 4K at Low is a 59% reduction in frame rate. At Medium settings, the progression is 122 FPS to 85 FPS to 51 FPS — a 30% drop to 1440p and a 40% drop to 4K, for a total 58% reduction. High settings show 111 FPS to 77 FPS to 46 FPS, with drops of 31% and 40%, totaling 59%. Ultra settings move from 71 FPS to 49 FPS to 29 FPS, dropping 31% to 1440p and 41% to 4K, for a total 59% reduction.

These percentages are remarkably consistent across all settings, hovering around 30% for the first step and 40% for the second. The uniformity of these drops — regardless of quality preset — points to a resolution-bound limitation rather than a settings-driven one. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the 1080p to 1440p drop to be smaller, as the GPU would have headroom at lower resolutions. Instead, the consistent 30%/40% split suggests the GPU's rendering throughput scales predictably with pixel count, which is characteristic of a fill-rate or bandwidth-limited scenario.

The 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are the likely culprits. At 1080p, the framebuffer fits comfortably within VRAM, and the bandwidth is sufficient. As resolution increases, the memory footprint grows, and the 128-bit bus struggles to feed the 3840 shading units. The data implies that the RTX 5060 is a 1080p and 1440p card for Greedfall, with 4K being viable only at Low settings. The 64 FPS at 4K Low is playable, but the 29 FPS at 4K Ultra is not, and the jump between Medium (51 FPS) and Ultra (29 FPS) is a 43% drop that cannot be explained by pixel count alone — it points to VRAM capacity being exceeded at Ultra.

# Settings Recommendations

For users targeting 1080p, the data strongly favors High settings. The 111 FPS average at High is only 11 FPS lower than Medium's 122 FPS, but High delivers visibly better image quality. Ultra's 71 FPS is a significant drop, and the 40 FPS difference between High and Ultra is not justified for most players. The 1080p High setting provides the best balance of fluidity and fidelity, with the 111 FPS average leaving ample headroom for dips in demanding scenes.

At 1440p, Medium settings emerge as the sweet spot. The 85 FPS average with a 72 FPS minimum ensures consistent gameplay above 60 FPS, while High's 77 FPS average is still comfortable but offers less margin. Ultra's 49 FPS average falls below the 60 FPS threshold and is not recommended for smooth play. Low's 108 FPS is smooth but sacrifices too much visual quality for a game that emphasizes atmosphere. The Medium preset at 1440p offers the best compromise, keeping the minimum above 70 FPS while maintaining acceptable detail levels.

For 4K, the choices are constrained. Low settings at 64 FPS average is the only preset that maintains a playable frame rate, though it will look noticeably pared down. Medium's 51 FPS average with a 43 FPS minimum is borderline — it may be acceptable for slower-paced exploration but will struggle in combat sequences. High's 46 FPS and Ultra's 29 FPS are not recommended for any serious play. Given the data, 4K users should either accept Low settings or consider dropping to 1440p, where Medium delivers a far superior experience with an 85 FPS average.

# CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H brings 16 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. Its architecture is Panther Lake, built on a 3 nm process, and it features 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports LPDDR5X memory on a dual-channel bus with 153.6 GB/s bandwidth. Its Cinebench scores are 2955 (R15 multi-core), 309.5 (R15 single-core), 13101 (R20 multi-core), 1849 (R20 single-core), 18911 (R23 multi-core), and 2200.5 (R23 single-core). Passmark results show 36811 in multithreaded tests and 4280 in single-thread.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The FPS scaling across resolutions is consistent and predictable, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see frame rates plateau at lower resolutions — for example, 1080p and 1440p should show similar FPS if the CPU cannot feed the GPU fast enough. Instead, the data shows 156 FPS at 1080p Low versus 108 FPS at 1440p Low, a clear 31% drop that indicates the GPU is the active constraint.

The CPU's nearest rivals all score within 0.5% of its average benchmark, and its 88th percentile ranking confirms it is a strong processor. The 16-core configuration with a 5.10 GHz boost clock provides ample single-thread performance for game logic, and the 18 MB L3 cache is sufficient for most workloads. The data suggests that the Ultra X9 388H is not holding back the RTX 5060 in this title, and any performance deficiencies in Greedfall are attributable to the GPU's memory subsystem rather than CPU compute capabilities. The 25 W TDP is notably low for a 16-core part, and the 3 nm process likely contributes to efficient sustained performance, though this efficiency does not translate to higher in-game frame rates when the GPU is the bottleneck.