What exactly happens when you change your 3DS region?
In the 3DS' System settings app, you can try to change your region settings (Country and State/Region). If you attempt to do this, though, a warning is displayed which basically says anything related to the e-Shop won't work any more. Here's the warning:
If you change your country settings, you will no longer be able to use services that require a Nintendo Network ID, such as browsing Nintendo eShop or posting to Miiverse.
My question is, what exactly will happen if I change that region? Will my 3DS be "disconnected" from my Nintendo Network ID, will my downloaded content disappear/be uninstalled, will I be able to create a new Nintendo Network ID? Will I be able to restore the previous state and connection to my Network ID by changing back to the original region?
Note that this is not about the market region as in region-lock. This is about the thing you enter when you create your profile for the first time.
Pictures about "What exactly happens when you change your 3DS region?"
What happens if I change region on 3DS?
If you change the region of your device: You will not be able to use your NNID (if you have one). NNIDs are locked to the region that they were created in. You may not be able to access the eShop, even if you delete your eShop account beforehand.Can you change the region of a 3DS game?
Tap Profile. Tap Region Settings. Select the country and tap OK. Select the region and tap OK to return to the profile menu.Can you play online with a region Change 3DS?
3DS cares more about the region of the game, not region of the console. IE if you have a US copy of the game and you region change to EU (assuming you are using custom firmware to perform the region change), then you will still only connect to US servers.Does the 3DS region lock DS games?
While all 3DS software is region-locked, Nintendo DS software is not. Because that region-locking isn't encoded into the DS software, you can play software from all regions on your 3DS.Changing the 3DS REGION - UPDATED GUIDE 2020
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Brett Sayles, Karolina Grabowska, Karolina Grabowska, Karolina Grabowska