Question Trying to track down a stuttering issue in Crusader Kings 3

Apr 29, 2024
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Hi,
To start off, my PC specs:
  • Ryzen 9 5900x
  • Radeon 6900XT
  • 32 GBs RAM 3600MHz
  • Windows 11
  • 1440p@165MHz
  • 850w PSU
I am having a crazy stutter issue in a game called Crusader Kings 3 and even worse so when I play one of the total conversions mod (A Game of Thrones). I searched on their Discord and it seems a very small amount of people have this problem with most saying it runs even better than base game because the mod is overall smaller than the base game which is complete opposite for me and that leads me to believe it's something to do on my end. The base game runs mostly fine for me for hours before it starts lagging as the game progresses into its later stages, however with the mod it starts to stutter after a very brief session and just refuses to go away.

Initially I thought it was due to me having not enough RAM (16GB) and the game seems to be using most of it (like 90% utilization) so I upgraded my RAM to 32GBs and that did not solve the issue at all, and the game is still using an abnormally large % of my RAM (like 20 GBs after just playing it for 5 minutes). When I first upgraded my RAMs it was with 4 x 8 GBs of G.SKILL Trident Z Royal, however it BSOD'd me and after memtest revealed it had thousands of errors meanwhile my old RAM sticks and another new temporary pair I just bought (Corsair Vengeance 2 x 16 3600MHz) passed the first two test passes no problem so I am currently RMA'ing those.

Anyway, again, I looked up on Google for this game and it seems to affect only a small % of people. I reinstalled the game, put it on another drive. Updated my BIOS. Updated my motherboard drivers. Turned off some services I don't need in msconfig. Turned off Malwarebytes.

I used MSI Afterburner overlay and both my CPU and GPU utilization were quite low and the temp never goes beyond 75 degrees. I noticed my GPU clock speed would drop down to 3 digits, sometimes even 2 digits and 0 whenever the stutter happens (which is very frequently). I used AMD Adrenaline to put the minimum frequency of my GPU to 100MHz below its max already but that didn't seem to do anything.

I've been trying to track this down just so I can play this awesome mod in a game I really like but I have no clue what it is and the fact that it's only happening to me and a few people is driving me nuts. Is it my RAM? Is it my GPU? I feel like the high memory usage is a huge red flag but I can't tell why that's happening. Is my GPU downclocking at those stuttering moments indicative of a GPU problem? My drivers are up-to-date & I've tried a lot of solutions and fixes offered on the game's forum and discord but none helped.

This is what I'm dealing with and it gets worse:
https://streamable.com/acpq9r

Any help is appreciated.
 
which graphics settings do you use?
try using lower settings, to check if it´s getting better or not
are you using a HDD where the game is installed to?

to have a look what the problem could be:
run userbenchmark.com and post the http link of your result, e.g. https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/28977730

Reset the BIOS by jumper clrCMOS or JBAT or similar (eventually you will have to set the boot priority correctly after that)

check windows integrity
open the command prompt as administrator and type DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-open-an-elevated-command-prompt-2618088
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...em-files/bc609315-da1f-4775-812c-695b60477a93


clean boot
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/929135/how-to-perform-a-clean-boot-in-windows


check the memory by running memtest.org usb autoinstaller (bootable USB flash drive)


check the hard drive for errors with its manufacturer´s tool and if available, update the firmware

use ddu uninstaller and reinstall the latest graphics driver
 
Apr 29, 2024
4
0
10
which graphics settings do you use?
try using lower settings, to check if it´s getting better or not
are you using a HDD where the game is installed to?

to have a look what the problem could be:
run userbenchmark.com and post the http link of your result, e.g. https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/28977730

Reset the BIOS by jumper clrCMOS or JBAT or similar (eventually you will have to set the boot priority correctly after that)

check windows integrity
open the command prompt as administrator and type DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-open-an-elevated-command-prompt-2618088
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...em-files/bc609315-da1f-4775-812c-695b60477a93


clean boot
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/929135/how-to-perform-a-clean-boot-in-windows


check the memory by running memtest.org usb autoinstaller (bootable USB flash drive)


check the hard drive for errors with its manufacturer´s tool and if available, update the firmware

use ddu uninstaller and reinstall the latest graphics driver

Hi,

I run highest but I have tried turning off and dialing down settings but nothing helped. I first installed it on an NVME SSD drive, then reinstalled again on another SSD. I only have 1 HDD and uses it for storage only.

Going to try the other things you mentioned once I get home. Thanks.
 
Last edited:
do you mean this string?
sfc /scannow
or this
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

try a lower refresh rate and resolution like 1080p @60Hz

try the suggestions of the last post:
 
Apr 29, 2024
4
0
10
do you mean this string?
sfc /scannow
or this
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

try a lower refresh rate and resolution like 1080p @60Hz

try the suggestions of the last post:
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

I've already tried everything posted on Paradox forums regarding similar issues that I could find, including that.