Lower DEC for wins this season?

I normally rely on winning DEC during a season so that I can rent cards for the next season.

This is especially important as rental prices have been skyrocketing over the last few seasons.

But I have noticed a trend this season... my DEC per win is lower than it was last season.

Hmmm... Checklist time...

1. I am in the same league as I was this time last season (generally the last 5 or 6 days before the end of the season I am in the same league)
2. I have roughly the same amount of power as I did last season
3. I have slightly more rating that I did last season
4. My capture rate is a lot higher than it was last season (about 85%-90% this season vs 75%-85% at the same time last season)

So all in all I am in a similar situation. Probably better as my DEC capture rate is higher.

So why last season was I getting around 15-20 DEC per win, but this season only getting around 7 DEC per win? It doesn't seem to matter if i am on a "win" streak or not, it is maxing out at around 7 DEC.

I am slightly nervous as this probably won't be sustainable in the future - whereby my DEC from wins won't cover the cost of renting. And I can't afford to "mass buy" enough cards to get me into the higher leagues without renting.

Hopefully Splinterlands is just supressing the DEC so that when the new Chaos Legions card packs are released people will buy (and pay) for those with external capital rather than DEC won in-game.

Fingers crossed it stabilises again in the future.

What are your experiences? I would be curious to know.