Deserter (debuff)

Deserter is a varying-duration debuff granted to players upon prematurely leaving or being removed from a battleground. The debuff prevents the player from queuing for or entering battlegrounds.

Leaving or being removed from a battleground at any time before its completion will earn the player the Deserter debuff. If the player acquires a fresh Deserter debuff within a 20-minute "rolling window" the debuff will be reapplied with an additional 5 minutes of duration, up to a maximum of 20 minutes.

The debuff exists to deter players from gaining honor in a battleground by attending but not participating, since registering as AFK will cause the player to be removed from the battleground, as can being reported as such by other players. It also deters players from leaving a battleground due to an unfavorable match-up, and immediately queuing for another with the hope of a better match-up.