About Arlington Board Gamers

Who are we?

The Arlington Board Gamers is a group of friends that all happen to enjoy board games. We've been meeting consistently since 2002, though people have come and gone (and come back) during that time.

How are we?

Generally pretty friendly and welcoming to new folks. We have some pretty experienced gamers, but are most always willing to teach a game. In the rare times when people want an experienced game only, there's always going to be another alternative.

When are we?

We meet the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month. Rarely, there are exceptions, so be sure to keep an eye on the Game Days page for news on any upcoming changes. Also, unless you specifically disable it, once you're a member of this site, you should get an email notification of any changes to the schedule.

Where are we?

We meet at the home of the founder of ABG and the admin of this site, John Kerr. This is in the Ballston area of Arlington, VA. We're about a 15 minute walk from the Ballston Metro stop, if you don't want to drive. For more exact directions, see the 'How do I attend?" section below.

What do we play?

Mostly 'Euro' style board games, but we branch out into pretty much every style. War Games, Games that are more theme and luck oriented, Card games.. even an occasional dexterity game all make it to the table from time to time. I will say that if you are almost entirely interested in something other than Euros, this might not be the group for you. If you aren't sure what I mean by these terms, I can say that 90% of the games in the BoardGameGeek top 100 (http://boardgamegeek.com/browse/boardgame) have been played here at some point.

How can I attend?

While this isn't entirely a public group, we're pretty welcoming to new folks. I do have space limitations that sometimes are an issue, but I try to accomodate everyone I can. If you are interested and enthusiastic, send me an email at the email address of 'notify' at this sites URL. Or you can post on the BGG guild page here: ABG on BGG

What should I expect?

We generally have enough people to have 2-4 games going at once. We tend to have between 8 to 14 people in any one game day (rarely, there will be less or more). There will be some junk food snacks and sodas. Feel free to bring a contribution, but don't feel obligated to. We'll have dinner delivered around 7pm (one or more of pizza, chinese, thai), where everyone pays their share. Sometimes, people will walk over to a close grocery store, as well. We start at 1pm and continue until 1am or so. Feel free to arrive late or leave early, or to stay the whole time. Help yourself to the sodas and snacks, that's what they are for.

What's expected of me?

We're pretty easy going. Mainly, I expect everyone to do what they can to make things fun for everyone else. Don't abandon a game unless you really have to, and try to give as much warning as possible if that might happen. Try to be as upbeat and enthusiastic as possible, even if you aren't enjoying the game. Have fun! Oh, I do try to record the results of every game played, so make sure the game you're in gets recorded!

What can I bring?

Like I mentioned above, feel free to bring a snack to share, or not. My game list on BGG is infrequently updated, but still about 80% accurate: John's games. Feel free to bring any games you like, of course, but if I have it you likely don't need to.