Get ready for login queues: It can take 20 minutes (or more!) to set up your Warband

Patch day for World of Warcraft always means change is on the horizon, but when patch 11.0.1 goes live later today it will include a massive change to the way our accounts work: Warbands. This will enable a host of new account-wide features, including shared reputations (at least some reputations) and shared banks, but it also represents a significant shift in how WoW views your characters. And that shift is going to take some time to process: it could take 20 minutes for the servers to set up your Warband, according to Blizzard.

When you first log on to patch 11.0.1, WoW will need to process your characters to convert them to the new Warband system, and that will almost certainly lead to delays — particularly on patch day when everyone is slamming the servers at once. You won’t need to do anything special to start the conversion, but you will have to wait until it’s finished to log on and play. So even when the servers come online, don’t necessarily expect to be able to login immediately, as this may cause login queues.

But it’s hard to tell the scope of the problem, since Blizzard’s statement on the matter is quite nonspecific, saying that processing “can take up to 20 minutes or longer.” Well, Blizz, is it up to 20 minutes or longer than 20 minutes? The warning suggests it could go either way.

I, for one, am glad that I don’t have a full-scale alt army to be processed — but that’s no guarantee I’ll get off easy. Just be aware that we’re expecting extra delays with today’s maintenance. Be prepared to be patient (and maybe have another game lined up to occupy you, just in case).