I’d heard of bunco before but never actually seen it in action.

That changed when I was asked to be a substitute player in a friend’s bunco group.

Because I’d never played, I Googled the rules so I could emerse myself in the game. If I was going to be a bunco player, I was going to be the best one this side of the Mississippi, and hopefully that other side, too.

I was a little worried though, because the rules I looked up said the only skills you needed were the ability to count and do simple math.

Drat! I’m already at a disadvantage and I haven’t even cradled the dice in my hand.

Counting and math are not my strong points, but there was food involved as an incentive so I was in. I’d just have to pray I could add correctly and hope for the best.

When bunco night arrived, I drove anxiously to the destination, telling myself it would be like rolling for Yahtzee, but with only three dice.

There are six rounds in bunco, progressing in order from one to six, and the number of the round serves as the target for that round’s rolls. Within the round, players alternate turns rolling three dice, trying to get the target number on one roll. When it’s round one, you want to roll three ones. Round two, you’re going for twos and so on and so forth.

Players get a point for each die that matches the target and get to keep rolling until they don’t roll whatever the target number is. Rolling three of the target number — a bunco — ends the round. Rolling three of any other number gets you five points.

We played to 25 points.

With each round, the two partners at each table with the highest score get to count that round as a win on their individual score sheets. After 24 rounds, the wins and losses — and buncos — are tallied and prizes are awarded to the players with the most in each.

So, food and prizes. What’s not to like about this game?

Bunco isn’t new. While learning to play, I discovered it originated from 19th-century England, but became popular in 1855 when bunco parlors popped up around San Francisco. After the Civil War, the game evolved into a parlor game and I can just imagine some Southern belle, sitting pretty on a settee, daintily tossing her dice and commenting, “My, my. It seems as if I have rolled myself a bunco.”

That would not have worked last night. In fact, when I did roll a bunco, which is what you get when all three dice flip up to the number you were rolling for, I yelled, “Bunco!” quite loudly, but was told I needed to holler even louder to be heard over the noise.

Remember, it’s 12 women at three tables, all rolling dice and chit-chatting.

There’s not a lot of skill involved, except for remembering what round you’re on and the other ladies and your score card can keep you straight on that.

What I learned during my introduction to bunco is that the rules I read were all wrong. The goal of the game is not to roll the dice and hit the target numbers each round. But rather it’s to spend time with 11 wonderful women and share stories about husbands and kids and jobs with others who totally get it.

Because the losing teams at the three tables move every four rounds, the foursomes change several times throughout the night. I heard about wedding plans, and Disney trips, and vacations with the grandchildren, with the occasional “Bunco!” yelled out over the noise.

I rolled a bunco only once in the 24 rounds, however, I scored an impressive 16 wins with only eight losses. So the newbie sub took home the prize for most wins!

After the dice were quiet and the prizes given, we all stood around for a bit more, talking about the good ol’ days and happy times, before heading off to our lives ready to face another day.

It was a good night, with good people and good food. And for a few hours on a Monday night, it was easy to forget all the troubles in the world and just roll with it.

Donna Campbell is managing editor of The Daily Leader. Email her at donna.campbell@dailyleader.com.