Cabalists are often overlooked in favour of other casting classes when it comes to grouping. Theurgists are welcomed for their PBT, Wizards for their damage and Sorcerors for their Crowd Control. This is a real shame as a Cabalist can make some really positive contributions to any group.

Being a Cabalist you're biased surely ?

Quite possibly but look at what Matter Cabalists have to offer :

Pulling – Using Clouded Sight puts Matter Cabalists right up there with Scouts as the best pullers in Albion. Controversially you could argue that Matter Cabalists make the best puller. The purpose of the pull being to get the mob to the group means the fact that Clouded Sight does no damage to the mob it’s simple for a group to pick up the agro. Also seeing as you’re only getting the mob’s attention you should use the lowest level Clouded Sight which uses next to no power making it an extremely efficient pull.

Crowd Control – AMatter Cabalist can’t hope to match the awesome Crowd Control of a Sorceror however his single target root can be used to good effect in situations where there are 1 or 2 additional mobs. Don’t forget Simmy either . . . if you have too many targets for your group to handle stick your Sim on one of them, it’ll tie the mob up for a while and buy your group valuable time – I’ve lost track the number of times my Sim has saved other peoples lives.

Debuffs – Against tougher mobs make sure you use your debuffs. These can make quite a difference to the melee classes in the group however people are largely unaware of their effects infortunately.

Damage - Whilst not being able to match the likes of a Fire Wizard in the damage department we are certainly more than capable of accounting for ourselves when it comes to damage output. Don't forget that you can add to your nuking power by using the Ruby pet. Seeing as he'll happily sit there nuking away with no power considerations at all he's a welcome asset to any group.

Shift Health - Although not in the matter line once you pass level 40 you will be able to put points into Body, giving you access to the Shift Health spell line. This allows you to heal other people using your hitpoints and whilst you’re never going to do a Cleric or Friar out of a job you can sometimes save the day. It’s a great feeling when you mange to save soemones life by giving them your hitpoints.

What can I do if I can't get into those uber groups ?

An important point about grouping is size, just because the group size limit is 8 people that deosn’t mean you have to have 8 people. Don’t understimate the potential of smaller groups. Cabalists work particularly well when partnered with other classes. As an example try grouping with a Fire Wizard, find a patch of aggressive mobs (try Grove Nymphs if they are the right level for you) then send in your Sim with his damage shield on. Let the mobs bunch up around the pet, they will all take damage due to hitting his shield (allowing you your Sim to hold agro) then let the Fire Wizard AOE them until dead.

Is there an advantage to playing an often ignored class ?

Sometimes yes. Allot of people are largely ignorant of exactly what Cabalists can do however this can work in your favour as you will sometimes get seen as just another caster. Who cares as long as you get a group :P