Bunco Groups
How to Find a Group or Start Your Own
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Bunco groups can be joined, or created. I'm often asked how to either find a bunco game group that needs members, or how to start your own group to play bunco.
This page will provide you with ideas on connecting with other bunco players or starting your own group.
Joining a Bunco Group
One great way to find a group to join is to ask around with friends and co-workers.
If you belong to a club, alumnae group, or neighborhood association, there may already be a group of it's members who get together on a regular basis to play bunco.
Another way to find groups in your area is to visit the website meetup.com. This website is way for people with similar interests to get together. Other sites like cafemom, mamapedia and Nextdoor are sources too.
If you do find a bunco group in your area, chances are that you'll be put on the "list" to join the game if there is a open spot. Many groups have 12 people as "regular" players, and the a "substitute" list of players, who get a chance to play when one of the regulars can't make it.
You'll find that each bunco group plays by it's own rules, there is no actual standard that everyone follows, except perhaps other than using three dice and having fun!
I think the most important part of joining a group is to make sure you fit well with the other members. This is a group you'll spend a lot of time with...
So you'll want the group to have members who are fun to be with, and who meet in a location that is convenient to you.
Rather than joining a group that is already in progress, many people choose to form their own bunco group.
Starting your Own Bunco Group
Gathering a group of twelve people to play bunco can be easier than you think. You don't have to have twelve...but it is ideal to have multiples of four.
The players can come from a related group, such as your neighborhood or workplace. Players can also help recruit more players. Part of the fun of bunco is getting to know people or getting to know them better.
The organizer will need to determine what bunco rules to follow. This is important because every group plays a little bit differently.
This is how my group plays the game of bunco.
Probably the biggest obstacle I have found to getting players to come is that they are apprehensive that they don't know how to play. I always tell them if you can roll dice and count to 21, you can play. There is no strategy, and only fun. Besides, everyone who plays was at one point a new person.
Other than that, gather you bunco supplies, decide on your prizes, and set the date!
It is fun to use bunco theme items like these bunco wine charms found at Amazon.com.
How our neighborhood bunco game got started
I have started two groups before, and thought I would share with you my experiences.
I had heard about this bunco (or bunko) game for years. I knew that everyone said it was a lot of fun...but I also heard it was a commitment. Once you signed into a group, you were responsible for attending. A demanding job with sometimes late hours, and later raising a family (will lots of late hours!) made me shy away from any commitment of my free time.
Also, even though I'm a big game person, the rules were a bit overwhelming for me (didn't know at the time that each group plays their own version...).
One day I was discussing it with some other girls in the neighborhood, and we agreed that it might be fun to schedule a regular girls night out. One of us had played in a regular group before, so she became our "bunco guru".
The next issue was the commitment of attending. That was a tough one.
You see, many of those interested were moms to small children, and it is hard to commit to anything with little ones running around (if you've been there, you know what I mean.)
We decided to adapt the rules so that we could play with whoever showed up.
Sometimes, if we don't have 8, 12, or 16, or whatever multiple of 4 we are trying to make, we play with a ghost. Other times, we play with extra people and take turns "rotating" out. Sometimes a few play, while a few just hang out.
It has been a great success for us!!
We found that as busy moms, it is still sometimes hard to get away every month, and knowing that "I'll just try to make it next month instead" can happen, over and over...we decided to eventually scale it back to once a quarter. This makes it a real "event" that everyone wants to make time for. We play in January, April, July and September.
Starting more Bunco Groups
I live in a big city, and I am member of a women's sorority alumnae group. We've found that it is really hard to get everyone together, because chapter members come from all over the city. Talking about this with a few other ladies that live in my part of town, I thought it would be great for those of us who live nearby to get together periodically for fun.
But what should we do?
Go out to eat? Hard to talk at a restaurant except with the people you are sitting with.
Pot Luck Suppers? No thanks, I had done a supper club and I'm just not into cooking!
Bunco? Eureka!
We started a bunco group by announcing that anyone could come play (not just those ladies living in our area). We meet once a month, and have a great time. In the beginning, I was the only one who had ever played. But the others saw how easy it was to play.
Whoever is hostess provides the house and paper plates, and the rest of us each bring a snack, from a bag of Chex Mix to a tray of cookies or veggies from the grocery store. Everyone does BYOB, and we bring cash for prizes.
It works out great and we have so much fun together each month.
Have any great bunco ideas to share?
If you've played this fun and easy game - share with our visitors your bunco themes, rules, recipes, prizes and photos!
Couples Bunco Idea (Shared by Missy in Youngsville, PA) - We have 8 couples, getting together monthly. Host couple picks the theme, handles purchasing prizes and food/beverages. Guests bring $2 smilie for the Smilie Basket. We pay $10 per couple to cover other prizes for the following month. We're into our second year and have had so many laughs! Guys really get into it too.
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