The Technomancer

# The Technomancer with Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting scalability challenge for the Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. Measured data across three resolutions and four settings presets reveals a system that transitions from heavily GPU-bound at 4K to progressively more CPU-influenced at 1080p, with the RTX 3080 Ti's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and the i7-13700K's 16 cores each playing distinct roles in the final frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for this combination shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution drops from 4K to 1080p, but the magnitude of the jumps tells a specific story about where the bottleneck lies. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 43 FPS average; dropping to 1440p Ultra raises that to 77 FPS, a 34 FPS improvement. Moving further down to 1080p Ultra yields 119 FPS, another 42 FPS gain. This scaling curve—where each resolution step down adds roughly 30-40 FPS at Ultra settings—indicates that at 4K, the GPU is the limiting component, struggling with the pixel throughput demanded by 3840x2160.

The pattern is even more pronounced at Low settings. At 4K Low, the average is 83 FPS; at 1440p Low, it jumps to 151 FPS; at 1080p Low, it reaches 231 FPS. The delta between 4K and 1440p Low is 68 FPS, and between 1440p and 1080p Low is 80 FPS. These large, consistent gains suggest that even at Low settings, the resolution reduction directly translates to GPU workload relief, meaning the RTX 3080 Ti's rendering throughput is the primary constraint across all resolutions.

However, the scaling ratio between 4K and 1080p narrows as settings increase. At Low, 1080p is 2.78x faster than 4K. At Medium, 1080p (178 FPS) is 2.78x faster than 4K (64 FPS). At High, 1080p (152 FPS) is 2.81x faster than 4K (54 FPS). At Ultra, 1080p (119 FPS) is 2.77x faster than 4K (43 FPS). This remarkably consistent ~2.8x scaling across all presets indicates a purely resolution-bound workload, with no sudden CPU stall appearing at lower resolutions.

The 1440p to 1080p transition at High settings shows 99 FPS to 152 FPS, a 53.5% increase. This is larger than the 4K to 1440p High increase of 83.3% (54 to 99 FPS), suggesting that while the GPU remains dominant, the i7-13700K's headroom becomes more relevant at 1080p. The data does not show any resolution where FPS plateaus, which would indicate a hard CPU limit, so the 13700K appears to keep pace even at 231 FPS Low 1080p.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K brings substantial processing resources to this pairing, and its specifications help explain why it does not become a limiting factor in The Technomancer. With 16 cores and 24 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, this Raptor Lake-S processor offers both high core count and high single-thread performance. The 3DMark single-thread score of 1136 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2116 demonstrate strong per-core capability, which matters for a 2016 game that likely does not scale perfectly across many threads.

The multi-threaded scores are equally robust: Cinebench R23 multicore reaches 30745, Geekbench multicore hits 19429, and 3DMark max-threads scores 12412. These numbers indicate that even if The Technomancer were to utilize multiple cores, the 13700K would have ample throughput. The PassMark multithread score of 45887 and the PassMark physics score of 2716 further confirm the CPU's ability to handle game logic and physics without bottlenecking the GPU.

What the measured FPS data suggests is that at 1080p Low, where the system reaches 231 FPS, the CPU is still not the primary constraint—otherwise, the scaling from 1440p to 1080p would show diminishing returns. The fact that the 1080p Low result is the highest measured FPS in the dataset, and no resolution shows a suspiciously flat FPS curve, implies the 13700K's performance is sufficient. The CPU's 30 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache provide fast access to game data, while the DDR4 and DDR5 memory support with a dual-channel bus gives flexibility for system memory bandwidth.

The i7-13700K's percentile rank of 89 among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46881, places it in the upper tier. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 with an average score of 46971 (delta -0.2%), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 at 47022 (delta -0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX at 46654 (delta 0.5%). This tight clustering means the 13700K is effectively at parity with these competitors, and in a game like The Technomancer, none of these would likely become a bottleneck at the frame rates observed.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the FPS behavior across resolutions. Built on the GA102 chip with Ampere architecture on an 8 nm Samsung process, this GPU features 10,240 shading units, 320 texture mapping units, and 112 ROPs. The boost clock of 1665 MHz and base clock of 1365 MHz drive a pixel rate of 186.5 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 532.8 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 34.10 TFLOPS.

The memory subsystem is particularly relevant for 4K gaming. The 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus provides 912.4 GB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for feeding the GPU at high resolutions. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (43 FPS) and 4K High (54 FPS) suggests that the 12 GB capacity is sufficient for The Technomancer's textures, as there is no indication of memory spilling or severe performance collapse that would occur with insufficient VRAM. The 4K Medium result of 64 FPS with a minimum of 54 FPS and maximum of 73 FPS shows a stable frame delivery pattern.

The RTX 3080 Ti's benchmark scores position it as a high-end GPU. The PassMark G3D score of 26896 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5077 indicate strong rasterization performance. The Geekbench OpenCL score of 170037 and Vulkan score of 192697 show compute capability that could benefit any GPU-accelerated effects in The Technomancer. The GPU's percentile rank of 83 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 41187, places it above the median but with notable rivals: the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 at 40870 (delta 0.8%), NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB at 41707 (delta -1.2%), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 at 40377 (delta 2%).

The scaling from 4K to 1440p at High settings (54 to 99 FPS, an 83% improvement) and from 1440p to 1080p at High (99 to 152 FPS, a 54% improvement) follows the expected GPU-bound behavior where pixel count reduction directly translates to FPS gains. The RTX 3080 Ti's 350 W TDP and 750 W suggested PSU indicate the power delivery needed to sustain these clocks, though no thermal throttling data is present in the measurements.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for The Technomancer, this specific pairing of Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti ranks 952 out of 3696 total combos. This places it in the 74th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly a quarter of tested systems perform better in this game, while three-quarters perform worse.

The rank of 952 out of 3696 is notable given the hardware's capabilities. The i7-13700K's 89th percentile CPU rank and the RTX 3080 Ti's 83rd percentile GPU rank might suggest a higher overall placement, but The Technomancer's age and optimization profile likely reward other combinations more heavily. The data shows that this combo is solidly above average, but not in the top tier, which aligns with the measured FPS being playable but not exceptional at 4K Ultra (43 FPS).

The CPU's nearest rivals, which all score within 0.5% of the 13700K, would likely produce nearly identical results when paired with the same GPU in this game. Similarly, the GPU's nearest rivals—particularly the RTX 5070 with a 2% higher average score—might shift the combo ranking slightly, but the delta is small enough that the overall position would remain similar. The rank suggests that the combination of a 2022 CPU with a 2021 GPU on a 2016 game hits a performance plateau that newer architectures might exceed, but the measured data confirms this is a capable setup for The Technomancer across all tested resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Technomancer?

A: At 1440p, the system delivers 77 FPS on Ultra, 99 FPS on High, and 116 FPS on Medium, making it the sweet spot for high refresh rates without sacrificing visual quality. At 4K, the best average is 83 FPS on Low, while Ultra drops to 43 FPS.

Q: How much faster is 1080p compared to 4K at the same settings?

A: Across all settings, 1080p is consistently about 2.8x faster than 4K. For example, High settings produce 152 FPS at 1080p versus 54 FPS at 4K, and Ultra produces 119 FPS versus 43 FPS.

Q: Does the i7-13700K bottleneck the RTX 3080 Ti in this game?

A: The data shows no evidence of CPU limitation. The FPS scales linearly with resolution reduction, with no plateau at 1080p, where the CPU would become more relevant. The 231 FPS result at 1080p Low indicates the CPU keeps pace even at high frame rates.

Q: How does the RTX 3080 Ti's memory affect 4K performance?

A: The 12 GB GDDR6X memory with 912.4 GB/s bandwidth supports 4K gameplay without severe drop-offs. The 4K results range from 43 FPS (Ultra) to 83 FPS (Low), showing the memory is not causing a catastrophic failure at any settings level.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The only min FPS data available is at Medium settings: 54 FPS at 4K, 99 FPS at 1440p, and 151 FPS at 1080p. These minimums match the High settings averages at each resolution, indicating stable frame delivery.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested systems?

A: It ranks 952 out of 3696 combinations, placing it in the upper quarter of tested systems. The CPU and GPU each rank in the 80th-90th percentile individually, but the game's age means newer combos often perform better.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a complete grid of average FPS across three resolutions and four settings presets, with additional min/max data available for Medium settings.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the results are as follows: Low settings produce an average of 83 FPS; Medium settings average 64 FPS with a minimum of 54 and maximum of 73; High settings average 54 FPS; Ultra settings average 43 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra at 4K is 40 FPS, showing that each settings tier costs roughly 10-11 FPS on average. The Medium min of 54 FPS matches the High average, suggesting frame pacing is consistent.

Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers scale upward significantly. Low averages 151 FPS; Medium averages 116 FPS with a minimum of 99 and maximum of 134; High averages 99 FPS; Ultra averages 77 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread at 1440p is 74 FPS, with each step down in settings yielding approximately 18-19 FPS. The Medium min of 99 FPS exactly matches the High average, again showing frame stability.

At 1920x1080, the system reaches its highest frame rates. Low averages 231 FPS; Medium averages 178 FPS with a minimum of 151 and maximum of 204; High averages 152 FPS; Ultra averages 119 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread is 112 FPS, with each settings tier costing roughly 28 FPS. The Medium min of 151 FPS matches the High average, and the Medium max of 204 FPS exceeds the Low average by a significant margin, indicating the GPU can burst well above its sustained average.

The pattern across all resolutions is consistent: Low offers the highest FPS, followed by Medium, then High, then Ultra. The gap between Medium and High is smaller than between Low and Medium, and the gap between High and Ultra is similar. This suggests that the Medium preset offers a balanced point where visual improvements cost less performance than the jump from Low to Medium.

Settings Recommendations

For 4K gaming, the data indicates that Medium settings provide the best balance of visual quality and performance. The 64 FPS average at 4K Medium, with a minimum of 54 FPS, stays above the typically desired 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. High settings at 4K drop to 54 FPS average, which is playable but may feel less fluid, while Ultra at 43 FPS is a significant compromise. Low at 83 FPS is smooth but sacrifices too much visual fidelity for a 2016 game that benefits from texture detail.

At 1440p, Ultra settings become viable with a 77 FPS average, making this the recommended resolution for maximum quality. The 1440p Ultra result of 77 FPS is higher than 4K Medium's 64 FPS, meaning players can achieve both higher resolution and higher settings than the 4K Medium option. For those prioritizing frame rate over absolute quality, 1440p High at 99 FPS offers a large margin above 60 FPS, and even 1440p Medium at 116 FPS with a 99 FPS minimum provides a solid high-refresh experience.

At 1080p, every settings preset exceeds 119 FPS, so the choice depends on the display's refresh rate. For a 120 Hz display, Ultra at 119 FPS is nearly ideal. For a 144 Hz or higher display, High at 152 FPS or Medium at 178 FPS are better fits, with Low at 231 FPS available for competitive play or maximum fluidity. The Medium preset at 1080p, with its 151 FPS minimum and 204 FPS maximum, offers the most consistent high-frame-rate experience across the entire measured dataset.

The recommendation hierarchy is: 1440p Ultra for balanced quality and performance, 4K Medium for resolution-focused play, and 1080p High or Ultra for high refresh rate monitors. The data does not suggest any settings combination that produces unplayable results, as the lowest measured average is 43 FPS at 4K Ultra, which remains technically playable but below smoothness thresholds. The 4K Low preset at 83 FPS, while sacrificing visual fidelity, demonstrates the RTX 3080 Ti's raw capability to drive high frame rates even at 4K when settings are reduced.