Final checklist, seventy six days out
Consolidating everything from a year of these threads into one post so nobody has to search.
Before November 12: decide your edition, preorder if you want the Vintage pack, clear your storage, buy any expansion card now rather than in the rush.
November 12: preload opens. Physical copies ship, and they are a code in a box, not a disc.
November 18: nothing left to do. Charge your controllers, do your shopping, sleep.
November 19: unlock hour unconfirmed, probably local midnight. There will be a large day one patch on top of the preload, so leave headroom. The game needs one licence check even for single player, so be online once. If it fails, wait an hour. Do not reinstall anything.
That is the complete list. There is nothing else. I have been looking for something else to organise for three weeks and there is nothing.