Coterie

Noun

 * 1) A circle of people who associate with one another.
 * The new junior employee joined our merry after-hours coterie.
 * 1) An exclusive group of people, who associate closely for a common purpose; a clique.
 * A tightly-knit coterie of executive powerbrokers made all the real decisions in the company.
 * 1) A communal burrow of prairie dogs.
 * The coterie was located in the middle of our wheat field.

Adjectives
half-serious; playful; philosophical; select; exclusive; cabal; formidable; numerous; assembled.

Thesaurus
age group, band, battalion, bevy, body, brigade, bunch, cabal, cadre, camarilla, cast, cell, charmed circle, circle, clan, clique, closed circle, cohort, company, complement, contingent, corps, covey, crew, crowd, detachment, detail, division, elite, elite group, faction, fleet, gang, group, grouping, groupment, in-group, ingroup, inner circle, junta, junto, mob, movement, out-group, outfit, pack, party, peer group, phalanx, platoon, posse, regiment, ring, salon, set, squad, stable, string, team, tribe, troop, troupe, we-group, wing