Blizzard unveiled the World of Warcraft patch roadmap for the remainder of Dragonflight and the upcoming expansion, The War Within, on Dec. 19, 2023. The roadmap is easy to understand, but the mysterious Patch 10.2.6 has players wondering what’s coming.
Marked on the roadmap with skull and crossbones, Patch 10.2.6 is set to release between 10.2.5 and season four. What makes it peculiar is that it doesn’t outline any features or content. On top of that, Dragonflight only had 0.0, 0.5, and 0.7 patches—never 0.6. So, what is this mysterious Patch 10.2.6?
WoW Dragonflight Patch explained
Nobody knows what WoW Dragonflight Patch 10.2.6 is at this point (except the devs, of course). Blizzard has revealed absolutely nothing about this update, and players can only speculate.
In the roadmap, the patch has a smaller tab than the others. This leads me to believe it won’t be a full-blown patch, akin to Patches 10.2 and 10.2.5, but rather a big event packed with cosmetics, mounts, and achievements.
Some players believe it will be related to pirates, especially because many expected the expansion after Dragonflight would include them. Blizzard president Mike Ybarra, however, ruled out pirates as a possible theme for the next expansion.
It remains to be seen if pirates will feature in Patch 10.2.6. Again, this is just pure speculation.
When does WoW Dragonflight Patch 10.2.6 release?
Blizzard has yet to confirm an official release date for WoW Dragonflight Patch 10.2.6. But the release window for it is between winter and spring 2024.
Dragonflight patch cadence has been one patch every two months. I don’t think Blizzard will count this as a proper patch, meaning season four will still launch two months after Patch 10.2.5. I’d expect Patch 10.2.6 roughly one month after Seeds of Renewal, probably in mid-February.
