Q&A for How to Play Bunco

Anything! The host could buy prizes and each person could bring $5 to reimburse them. You could have prizes for the most Wins, the second most Wins, the most Buncos and even the most losses!

Ghosts: A ghost is used if an individual cannot attend and could not find a sub. The player with the ghost for a partner rolls for the ghost and collects only points for their team, not buncos or baby buncos, etc. Ghost players will not have a scorecard.

Travel occurs when you pick a combination of numbers that, when rolled by any player, gets them the "special" object (fuzzy dice, bean bag, etc). If a player rolls the picked combo of numbers, they yell "travel" and the object gets passed from the last holder. The player holding the object at the end of the game gets awarded a portion of the prize money.

Yes, unless you are at the head table. This is because a bunco is always worth 21 points and once the head table reaches 21 points the round is over.

Some variations of the game play starting from 2 to 6. Ones are not rolled for and if you roll three ones at any time in the game, it is called snake eyes and you and your partner lose all points scored for that number.

It is commonly played by adults. But the rules are straight orward enough that a group of children could play it, as long as they had an adult who understood the game to help get it rolling.

It depends on what you have set for your house rules. If you total rounds and buncos and there is a tie, then you have to do a roll off.

If you are rolling for your partner, they get the bunco. Since you were rolling for them, it counts for them.

Only the individual player scores for bunkos and baby buncos. Usually, one person at each table tracks the score of all four players.

You get 5 points for three of a kind rolled when it's not the round number.

You would set up for 16 people, and 2 people would play with a ghost.

You would play with 2 tables of 4 persons each. Individual play as opposed to team play might be more suitable.

Yes, you can but it may not be as convenient as playing with less people.

High score wins; in this case it would be your opponent, because he or she has gotten a Bunco PLUS a higher score.

Yes, if you set up 4 tables, which is appropriate for 16 players. Since there must be 4 players at a table, you will have two tables with 4 players and 2 tables each with 3 players and a "ghost." That will equal 16 players (with 2 being ghosts).

Write you name on a piece of blank or lined paper and make a line when someone gets a score and when they get 5, as that's a bunco.

The person will keep score of their table and their own score by writing it down on paper.

You will need 3 card tables with 12 chairs or use your dining room table and then use 2 card tables & 8 chairs. 9 dice. 12 pencils/pens. Paper to keep score for wins/loses/buncos. Note: We found it best for the supplies to go with the next host/hostess for the next month.

That term refers to when you roll 3 dice with the same number, but not of that particular round. For example, you are on Round 3, but you roll three 5's (like a Bunco but on a different number). There are various names given to this play.

A “mini bunco” is when you roll the same number on all three dice, but that number is not the round number. A “mini bunco” is worth 5 points.