A lot has been made about the changes to the ranking system on Splinterlands. I think it is fair to say that the game has become pay to win. Not that it is a bad thing, however. 

The rewards payouts were too high previously. I was competing in Diamond I and Champion III just before the changes were made and now I find myself in Silver I and Gold III. That's a huge reduction in the number of daily and season rewards cards for me. Not going to lie, I was massively disappointed at first. 

As I got used to the lower rewards payouts, I could see the benefit of the changes not only from the supply side, but also the demand side. Now, players are incentivized to hold on to their cards in order to maintain their league eligibility. There's also a market for higher Dec value cards for players who want to move up leagues fast. 

Recent Market Action

Here, you can see some of the sales I made. Trading a gold epic Pyromancer for $12 as well as a couple of other epic cards. Previously, they'd sit on the market for days but now they were all taken off my hands within a day. Huge thumbs up!

Think Twice About Promoting

Which brings me to another point. If you're borderline moving up a league, it might not be worth the extra couple of rewards cards to do so. Especially, early on in the season. It was so hard getting the daily quest done, with many losses in a row. The Dec earned per battle was lower and the rewards, as you can see, were nothing to brag about.