The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting stress profile for the Intel Core i5-13400F and AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT combination. The data measured for this pairing reveals a system that is heavily balanced toward GPU-bound performance at higher resolutions, with the CPU's capabilities only becoming a potential constraint at the lowest settings and resolutions. The benchmark results indicate a wide performance envelope, stretching from a highly playable 49.6 FPS at 4K Ultra to a swift 207.4 FPS at 1080p Low, showcasing the adaptability of this hardware duo across different visual fidelity targets.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory position it as a versatile desktop component. In the context of The Technomancer, the data suggests that this CPU provides a robust foundation that rarely becomes the primary bottleneck. The average FPS differential between the 1080p Low and 1080p Ultra settings is substantial, moving from 207.4 FPS down to 108.3 FPS, which indicates that the graphics workload is scaling significantly with settings, implying the GPU is doing the heavy lifting.

However, the CPU's role becomes more apparent when examining the 1080p Low result. The 207.4 FPS figure is exceptionally high, and it is at this point that the processor's 3DMark scores, such as 7,314 in the 16-thread test and 9,600 in the single-thread test, become relevant. These scores suggest a processor capable of feeding frames at a very high rate. The benchmark data positions the i5-13400F in the 82nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 25,236, placing it in a dead heat with rivals like the Intel Core i7-13620H, which is only 0.1% faster. This performance class suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor when moving from 1080p Medium to High, where the FPS drops from 162.4 to 135.2, a change attributable more to GPU load than CPU capability.

The implication is that The Technomancer, despite being an older title, is well-optimized to leverage multiple threads, and the i5-13400F's combination of 16 threads and high boost clock is sufficient to keep the GPU supplied with data. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1,880 and the 4-thread score of 3,459 indicate strong per-core performance, which is crucial for games that rely on a few main threads. The data shows a clear trend where the CPU's headroom is only approached at the very highest frame rates, suggesting that for most gaming scenarios, the i5-13400F is an enabler, not a constraint.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT, built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip, is a formidable graphics card. It features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. Its boost clock is listed at 2430 MHz, with a game clock of 2124 MHz. These specifications directly correlate with the measured FPS results in The Technomancer. The GPU's performance, as indicated by its 76th percentile ranking among all GPUs and an average benchmark score of 32,619, is the dominant factor in determining frame rates at higher resolutions and settings.

The scaling of FPS with resolution at High settings is telling. The performance drops from 135.2 FPS at 1080p to 90.5 FPS at 1440p, and further to 49.6 FPS at 4K. This near-halving of performance from 1440p to 4K is a classic sign of a GPU-bound workload, where the rendering resolution directly impacts the fill rate and memory bandwidth requirements. The RX 7800 XT's 233.3 GPixel/s pixel rate and 583.2 GTexel/s texture rate are being taxed significantly at 4K, especially with the High settings preset. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor in this scenario, as the game's asset sizes are unlikely to exceed that threshold, even at 4K Ultra.

The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD FirePro S9300 X2, show a delta of only 0.2%, indicating the RX 7800 XT is in a tightly contested performance tier. The data reveals that the 7800 XT is the primary driver of the gaming experience, with its compute power (37.32 TFLOPS FP32) directly influencing the average FPS figures. At 4K Ultra, the 38.9 FPS result is a clear indication that the GPU is reaching its limits with the most demanding settings, whereas at 1080p Low, the 207.4 FPS result shows the GPU has ample headroom to push very high frame rates.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how the system scales across resolutions. At Low settings, the progression is 207.4 FPS at 1080p, 138.9 FPS at 1440p, and 75.6 FPS at 4K. This represents a drop of 33% from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 46% drop from 1440p to 4K. This pattern is characteristic of a system that is becoming increasingly GPU-limited as resolution increases. The CPU is capable of maintaining high frame rates, but the GPU's rendering workload grows exponentially with pixel count.

At High settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. From 135.2 FPS at 1080p, the frame rate drops to 90.5 FPS at 1440p (a 33% reduction) and then to 49.6 FPS at 4K (a 45% reduction from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and High settings suggests a stable performance ceiling dictated by the GPU. The transition from 1080p to 4K at High settings results in a 63% reduction in FPS, which is a substantial penalty but expected for a GPU in this class.

The data strongly implies that the limiting component is the GPU across all resolutions and settings tested. The CPU's benchmark scores, which are in the 82nd percentile, suggest it has the headroom to support even higher frame rates if the GPU could deliver them. The evidence for this is the 1080p Low result of 207.4 FPS; if the CPU were a bottleneck, we would expect to see frame rates plateau at a lower value regardless of settings. Instead, the FPS scales inversely with settings, a hallmark of GPU-bound performance. The 4K Ultra result of 38.9 FPS is a clear outlier in terms of playability, but it confirms that the GPU is the component being pushed to its absolute limit.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo, and at what settings?

A: The highest average FPS is 207.4, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest performance rival according to benchmark data?

A: The Intel Core i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25,236, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i7-13620H's score of 25,201, indicating they are statistically equivalent in performance.

Q: What is the most demanding configuration tested in terms of FPS output?

A: The most demanding configuration is at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings, yielding an average FPS of 38.9.

Q: Does the GPU's performance percentile align with its in-game FPS at 4K?

A: The GPU is in the 76th percentile of all GPUs, and at 4K High settings it produces 49.6 FPS. This moderate percentile ranking is consistent with a high-end card that still struggles with 4K Ultra settings, as evidenced by the 38.9 FPS result.

Q: Is there a significant performance jump from 1440p to 1080p?

A: Yes, at High settings, the average FPS jumps from 90.5 at 2560x1440 to 135.2 at 1920x1080, representing a 49% increase in performance.

Q: What is the overall rank of this hardware combination among tested combos for this game?

A: This combination ranks 616th out of 1,656 total tested combos, placing it in the top 37% of all systems tested for The Technomancer.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following is the exact measured average FPS data for the Intel Core i5-13400F and AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT combination across all tested resolutions and settings.

1920x1080:

• Low: 207.4 FPS
• Medium: 162.4 FPS
• High: 135.2 FPS
• Ultra: 108.3 FPS

2560x1440:

• Low: 138.9 FPS
• Medium: 102.6 FPS
• High: 90.5 FPS
• Ultra: 72.1 FPS

3840x2160:

• Low: 75.6 FPS
• Medium: 60.0 FPS
• High: 49.6 FPS
• Ultra: 38.9 FPS

The data shows a clear and consistent hierarchy. The 1080p Low setting is the only configuration that exceeds 200 FPS, while the 4K Ultra setting is the only one that falls below 40 FPS. The step from Medium to High settings incurs a performance cost of roughly 17% at 1080p and 1440p, while the step from High to Ultra incurs a cost of roughly 20% at 1080p and 20% at 1440p. At 4K, the cost of moving from High to Ultra is a 22% drop, from 49.6 to 38.9 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For a 60 FPS target, the 1440p High preset is the most demanding configuration that comfortably achieves this, with an average of 90.5 FPS. This provides a significant visual quality boost over Medium (102.6 FPS) while maintaining a substantial frame rate buffer. Pushing to 1440p Ultra yields 72.1 FPS, which is still above 60 FPS and offers the highest fidelity at this resolution.

For 4K gaming, the data suggests that the Ultra preset is not viable for smooth gameplay, with a 38.9 FPS average. The High preset at 4K produces 49.6 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. The Medium preset at 4K achieves exactly 60.0 FPS, making it the best choice for a balanced 4K experience, as it provides a stable 60 FPS baseline with moderate visual enhancements. The Low preset at 4K (75.6 FPS) is an option for those prioritizing frame rate over visual quality, but Medium offers a superior balance.

At 1080p, the Ultra preset is the recommended choice, as it delivers an average of 108.3 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides the full visual experience. The High preset (135.2 FPS) and Medium preset (162.4 FPS) are also excellent options for high refresh rate monitors, but the performance gain from dropping below Ultra is less critical when the base frame rate is already so high. The 1080p Low preset is only recommended for competitive play where maximizing FPS to 207.4 is the absolute priority.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-13400F and AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT combination is ranked 616th out of 1,656 tested combos for The Technomancer. This ranking, which places the system in the top 37% of all configurations, is a reflection of the balance between the two components. The CPU's 82nd percentile performance and the GPU's 76th percentile performance indicate a well-matched pairing, where neither component is severely underpowered relative to the other.

The ranking suggests that while this is not a top-tier enthusiast setup for this specific game, it is a highly capable system that outperforms the majority of tested combinations. The data implies that the bottleneck is almost exclusively the GPU at higher resolutions, so the ranking could potentially be improved by pairing the i5-13400F with a more powerful GPU, which would push the system higher in the combo rankings. Conversely, the CPU's strong benchmark scores ensure that it won't hold back the GPU in most scenarios, making this a cohesive and effective pairing for The Technomancer. The 616th rank confirms the GPU's 4K limitations rather than a reflection of any CPU deficiency.