Lockdown Protocol

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D lands at rank 54 out of 2,828 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. That places this configuration comfortably inside the top 2% of all tested systems, a position that reflects the sheer GPU horsepower on hand rather than any CPU-driven ceiling. The combo’s ranking is a direct consequence of the RTX 5090 D’s dominant benchmark profile, which sits at the 92nd percentile among all GPUs. The CPU, meanwhile, holds a 77th percentile standing among all processors, meaning the pairing is heavily skewed toward graphics capability. In practical terms, this is a system built to crush frame rate targets at any resolution, but the data suggests the processor is the junior partner in this relationship.

The delta between the two components’ percentile rankings is telling. A GPU at the 92nd percentile and a CPU at the 77th percentile typically signals a configuration where the graphics card is doing the heavy lifting in most scenarios. Lockdown Protocol, being an FPS title, often rewards high single-thread performance, and the i5-13400F’s 3DMark single-thread score of 960 positions it as a competent but not exceptional performer in that regard. The combo’s 54th-place finish out of 2,828 is impressive, yet it is not the top tier — there are 53 other combinations that outperform it, likely those built around even stronger processors or more optimized pairings. Still, for a mid-range CPU married to a flagship GPU, the rank demonstrates that the i5-13400F does not bottleneck the RTX 5090 D to a crippling degree in this title.

GPU Role

The RTX 5090 D is the centerpiece of this configuration, and its specifications read like a wish list for high-refresh gaming. The card packs 32 GB of GDDR7 memory across a 512-bit bus, yielding 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. That memory configuration is overkill for Lockdown Protocol, but it means the GPU never comes close to a VRAM ceiling, even at 4K Ultra. The memory clock runs at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective throughput, while the core base clock sits at 2017 MHz and boosts to 2407 MHz. These clocks, combined with 21,760 shading units and 680 TMUs, produce a fill rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s. The FP32 throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS gives the card headroom for any compute-heavy effects the game might throw at it.

In the context of Lockdown Protocol, the GPU’s immense resources translate into frame rates that most systems can only dream of. The measured data shows the card pushing 286 FPS at 1080p Low and still managing 88 FPS at 4K Ultra. That spread reflects the card’s scaling behavior — it is not a one-trick pony limited to esports settings. The RTX 5090 D’s 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs is backed by a PassMark G3D score of 44,065 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 376,915. The nearest rivals in the benchmark database, the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and RX 6850M XT, show delta percentages of 1.1% and -1.6% respectively, meaning the RTX 5090 D is effectively in the same performance class as those mobile parts. That is a remarkable data point — a desktop flagship matching or slightly exceeding high-end laptop GPUs in aggregate benchmarks, while delivering the full desktop experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep but predictable for a GPU of this caliber. At High settings, the frame rate falls from 240 FPS at 1920x1080 to 183 FPS at 2560x1440, then down to 118 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 24% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 36% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The pattern indicates that the GPU remains the primary scaling factor across all resolutions — the CPU is not introducing a bottleneck at lower resolutions, or the 1080p numbers would be much closer to the 1440p figures. The fact that High settings still yields 118 FPS at 4K shows that the RTX 5090 D has enough headroom to handle demanding resolutions without breaking a sweat.

Looking at the Low settings curve, the drop is even more dramatic in absolute terms: 286 FPS at 1080p, 258 FPS at 1440p, and 190 FPS at 4K. The percentage decline from 1080p to 4K is roughly 34%, which is shallower than the High settings curve’s 51% drop. This suggests that at Low settings, the CPU begins to exert some influence at 1080p — the i5-13400F’s single-thread score of 960 in 3DMark becomes a limiting factor when the GPU is not stressed. At 4K Low, the GPU is still the dominant constraint, as indicated by the 190 FPS figure. The Medium settings data, which includes minimum and maximum frame times, shows a similar trend: 251 FPS at 1080p, 209 FPS at 1440p, and 135 FPS at 4K. The min FPS values at each resolution — 214, 178, and 115 respectively — indicate that frame pacing remains consistent, with no catastrophic stutters even under load.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 5090 D delivers exceptional performance across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 286 FPS, which is the highest figure recorded for this combo. Medium settings drop slightly to 251 FPS, with a minimum of 214 and a maximum of 289. High settings reduce the average to 240 FPS, while Ultra settings bring it down to 187 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 99 FPS, a significant spread that highlights how much headroom the GPU has even at the most demanding preset. The minimum frame times at Medium — 214 FPS — suggest that even the worst-case scenarios remain well above the refresh rate of most monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains stellar but begins to show the GPU working harder. Low settings average 258 FPS, Medium averages 209 FPS with a min of 178 and max of 241, High averages 183 FPS, and Ultra averages 137 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is uniform across presets, roughly 10-20%, which is expected for a resolution that increases pixel count by 78%. The Ultra preset at 1440p still clears 137 FPS, meaning even the most visually demanding settings remain highly playable on high-refresh displays. The min FPS at Medium — 178 — is particularly strong, indicating no frame time spikes that would cause perceptible hitches.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 5090 D finally encounters a workload that tempers its enthusiasm. Low settings average 190 FPS, Medium averages 135 FPS with a min of 115 and max of 155, High averages 118 FPS, and Ultra averages 88 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that dips below the 100 FPS threshold, and even then, 88 FPS is perfectly playable for a competitive FPS. The Medium preset’s min FPS of 115 shows that frame pacing remains stable even at 4K, with no dips below 115. The data indicates that this combo is capable of delivering a smooth experience at any resolution, with the only compromise being the Ultra preset at 4K, which still manages a respectable average.

Settings Recommendations

For players prioritizing maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 1080p delivers 286 FPS, which is the highest measured value. This setting is ideal for competitive play where every millisecond counts, and the i5-13400F’s 10 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient to feed the GPU at this level. However, the jump from Low to Medium at 1080p costs only 35 FPS — from 286 to 251 — while likely providing a substantial visual improvement. Given that 251 FPS still exceeds the refresh rate of virtually all gaming monitors, Medium at 1080p represents the best balance of visual fidelity and performance.

At 1440p, the Medium preset stands out as the sweet spot. It averages 209 FPS with a minimum of 178 and a maximum of 241, which is a remarkably tight frame time distribution. The High preset at 183 FPS is also viable, but the 26 FPS difference between Medium and High is more significant than the visual gain in most scenarios. For 4K gaming, the Medium preset at 135 FPS is the recommended choice, as it provides a smooth experience with a minimum of 115 FPS. The High preset at 118 FPS is close, but the Medium preset’s higher minimum frame rate makes it the safer bet for consistent performance. The Ultra preset at 4K, while averaging 88 FPS, should be avoided for competitive play, as the reduced frame rate could impact responsiveness in fast-paced firefights.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F plays a supporting role in this configuration, but its specifications are nothing to scoff at. This 10-core, 16-thread processor from the Raptor Lake architecture features a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 20 MB L3 cache. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus, and it connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 16 lanes. The 65W TDP is modest, especially compared to the RTX 5090 D’s 575W power draw, but the processor’s performance is nonetheless solid for gaming.

In benchmark terms, the i5-13400F posts a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22,604 and a single-core score of 3,191. The Geekbench scores are 11,068 multi-core and 1,996 single-core. These numbers place the CPU at the 77th percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 25,292. The nearest rivals in the database are the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS with a delta of 0%, the Intel Core 5 120 at -0.3%, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D at -0.3%, and the AMD Ryzen 7 6800H at 0.4%. This indicates that the i5-13400F is effectively performance-equivalent to those parts in aggregate benchmarks, despite being a desktop chip against mobile and older desktop offerings.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU’s role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions and settings. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the frame rate hits 286 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s ceiling for this game. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1,880 and single-thread score of 960 suggest that the processor can handle the game’s single-threaded demands, but it may not push much beyond 300 FPS even with a faster GPU. The 3DMark max-thread score of 7,307 indicates that multi-threading is well-supported, but Lockdown Protocol is unlikely to leverage all 16 threads effectively. The processor’s 10 cores and 16 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and streaming while gaming, ensuring that the RTX 5090 D is never starved for data. The launch MSRP of $196 for the CPU makes it a cost-effective pairing with the flagship GPU, though the GPU’s launch MSRP of $2,299 dominates the overall system cost.