The Technomancer

The Technomancer pairs a six-core Intel Core i5-9400 with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, a combination that delivers playable frame rates across most settings but reveals a clear performance ceiling at higher resolutions. This 2016 Action RPG is not particularly demanding by modern standards, yet the data shows that the CPU becomes a significant limiting factor when you push past 1080p. The benchmark results indicate a system that is GPU-heavy on paper but behaves like a balanced setup in practice, with the RTX 3080 Ti's raw power being held back by the older processor in several scenarios.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep but not uniform across all settings, which tells you exactly where the bottleneck sits. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 177.2 at 1920x1080 to 81.7 at 3840x2160, a reduction of roughly 54%. At High settings, the drop is from 149 to 56.1, a 62% decrease. The Ultra preset shows the most severe scaling, going from 118.7 at 1080p down to 40.8 at 4K, which is a 66% loss. This pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at high resolutions, but the interesting part is the gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p: only 58.5 FPS separates them, while at 4K that gap shrinks to 40.9 FPS.

The limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p, the i5-9400's six threads are likely the ceiling, as the RTX 3080 Ti can easily push past 150 FPS even on Medium settings. The data supports this: jumping from Low to Ultra at 1080p only costs 58.5 FPS, which is modest for such a large graphical leap. At 1440p, the GPU starts to take over, but the CPU still matters—Low hits 153.8 FPS while Ultra drops to 78.9. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the dominant constraint, with Low at 81.7 FPS and Ultra at 40.8 FPS, showing that the RTX 3080 Ti's memory bandwidth and compute are what you're paying for at that resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing sits at rank 554 out of 1656 combos for The Technomancer. That places it in the top third of all configurations, which is respectable given the age of the CPU. The i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2305 puts it at the 50th percentile among all CPUs, and its nearest rivals are closely matched: the Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2300 (0.2% ahead), the Intel Core i3-1125G4 scores 2299 (0.2% ahead), and the Intel Xeon E-2134 scores 2295 (0.4% ahead). Only the Intel Core i7-8809G beats it by a meaningful margin at 2319, which is 0.6% higher.

The GPU is a different story. The RTX 3080 Ti's average benchmark score of 41224 places it in the 83rd percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are very close: the RTX 3090 scores 41441 (0.5% higher), the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 scores 41610 (0.9% higher), and the RTX 5070 scores 41687 (1.1% higher). The NVIDIA Tesla M40 trails at 41897, which is 1.6% higher, but that's an outlier. What this means for The Technomancer is that the combo rank reflects a CPU that is merely average paired with a GPU that is well above average, and the game's results show that the CPU's mediocrity holds the combo back from higher rankings.

GPU Role

The RTX 3080 Ti brings 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, offering 912.4 GB/s of bandwidth. That is a massive amount of memory bandwidth for a game from 2016, and it shows in the 4K results where the GPU is most stressed. The chip runs at a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost of 1665 MHz, with memory clocked at 1188 MHz (19 Gbps effective). These clocks are not extreme, but the sheer number of shading units—10240—and 320 TMUs give it enough raw throughput to handle The Technomancer's effects at high settings.

The GPU's VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor here, as 12 GB is more than enough for a game that predates the RTX 30-series. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the combo still manages 40.8 FPS, which suggests the GPU is not running out of memory but rather hitting a compute limit. The RTX 3080 Ti's pixel rate of 186.5 GPixel/s and texture rate of 532.8 GTexel/s are more than adequate for this title, so the measured FPS drops are more about the CPU's inability to feed the GPU at lower resolutions and the GPU's absolute compute limit at higher ones. The GPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all GPUs is consistent with its performance here, as it clearly outclasses the CPU in this pairing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 177.2 FPS, which is the highest average in the entire dataset. Medium drops to 156.1 FPS, High comes in at 149 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 118.7 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 58.5 FPS loss, which is a 33% reduction. These numbers suggest that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary constraint, as the RTX 3080 Ti should be capable of far more than 177 FPS on Low settings if the processor could keep up.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 153.8 FPS on Low, 120 FPS on Medium, 98.3 FPS on High, and 78.9 FPS on Ultra. The step from Low to Medium is a 33.8 FPS drop, while High to Ultra costs 19.4 FPS. This resolution marks the transition point where the GPU begins to matter more, but the CPU still has influence—the Low preset's 153.8 FPS is still well above what most 1440p monitors can display, so you have headroom.

At 3840x2160, the numbers become more demanding: 81.7 FPS on Low, 65.8 FPS on Medium, 56.1 FPS on High, and 40.8 FPS on Ultra. The scaling here is more linear, with each preset step costing roughly 15-20 FPS. This is classic GPU-bound behavior, where the RTX 3080 Ti's compute and memory bandwidth are the deciding factors. The 4K Ultra result of 40.8 FPS is just above playable, but it's not a smooth experience for a fast-paced Action RPG.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p owners, the Ultra preset at 118.7 FPS is the clear choice, as it provides the best visual quality while still maintaining a high refresh rate. The drop from Ultra to High only gains 30.3 FPS, which is not worth the visual degradation. If you have a 144Hz monitor, High at 149 FPS is also viable, but Ultra is the better balance.

At 1440p, the High preset at 98.3 FPS is the sweet spot. It offers a solid frame rate that is close to 100 FPS, and the step down to Medium only gains 21.7 FPS, which is not a meaningful improvement. Ultra at 78.9 FPS is playable but may feel less smooth on high-refresh displays. For competitive play, Low at 153.8 FPS is the best option, but for a single-player RPG, High is the recommended preset.

At 4K, the Medium preset at 65.8 FPS is the best experience. It provides a frame rate that is comfortably above 60 FPS, and the visual difference from High (56.1 FPS) is minimal. Low at 81.7 FPS is playable but sacrifices too much visual fidelity. Ultra at 40.8 FPS should be avoided unless you prioritize graphics over smoothness, as the frame rate is too low for consistent gameplay.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-9400 a bottleneck for the RTX 3080 Ti in The Technomancer?

A: Yes, at 1080p the data shows the CPU limits performance. The Low preset only reaches 177.2 FPS, which is far below what the RTX 3080 Ti could achieve with a stronger processor. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain 60+ FPS?

A: At 4K, the Medium preset delivers 65.8 FPS, which is the highest setting that stays above 60 FPS. At 1440p, even Ultra at 78.9 FPS exceeds 60 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 3080 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in this game?

A: The RTX 3080 Ti's average benchmark score of 41224 is 0.5% lower than the RTX 3090 and 1.1% lower than the RTX 5070. In practice, this means performance in The Technomancer should be nearly identical to those cards.

Q: Does the 12 GB VRAM cause any issues at 4K Ultra?

A: No, the 4K Ultra result of 40.8 FPS is limited by compute power, not memory capacity. The 12 GB VRAM is not a constraint for this game.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking and how does it affect the combo rank?

A: The i5-9400 sits at the 50th percentile among all CPUs. The combo ranks 554 out of 1656 in The Technomancer, which is in the top third, but the CPU's average performance holds the pairing back from a higher rank.

Q: Should I use the Low preset for competitive play?

A: At 1080p and 1440p, Low offers 177.2 FPS and 153.8 FPS respectively, which are ideal for high-refresh monitors. However, the game is a single-player Action RPG, so the High or Ultra presets are more appropriate for the experience.