In Nikon Country, the 12-24, the 28-70 and the 70-200mm VR are considered the "Three Kings." The 17-55mm is also considered an excellent mid-range lens. I'd agree with the recommendations that Kamera RAWr has made. Yes, for anything more specialized you'd want the lenses made for those purposes: fisheye, macro, extra-fast prime, etc....
When I bought my first DSLR (D70) I began the strategy which has stood me in good stead ever since, and that was buying the best lens that I could afford in a given range and also considering under which circumstances and for which purpose I would be using a particular lens. The excellent 18-70mm came as the kit lens with my D70, so my first additional purchase was the 70-200mm VR. A month or two later I bought the prime 50mm f/1.4, having a specific purpose for it in mind. Several months later I bought my first macro lens because I really loved shooting close-ups and macros with my Coolpix and was eager to get back into that now that I had a DSLR. It was only later that I purchased the 12-24mm lens, knowing that I'd be going on a brief vacation where the wide angle lens would be most useful. Other lenses found their way to my bag as the need/desire/budget arose....
If today I were told that I could keep only three of my lenses, I would hold on to "the Beast" and the 70-200mm VR and then agonize over whether to keep the 12-24mm and then use extension tubes/diopter filters for doing macro work or to keep one of my macro lenses (probably the 105mm VR).... I would assess: how often do I shoot (or want to shoot) wide-angle views? How often do I shoot (or want to shoot) close-ups and macro? It is really important to determine what it is one likes to shoot and to make decisions around lenses based on that. If someone rarely shoots wide-angle, prefers telephoto all the time, is a birder/nature shooter or spends most of the time shooting sports, then maybe for him or her a 300mm or 400mm lens would be among the three that were to be purchased/kept. If someone really likes to get up close and personal with flowers and bugs, a macro lens would be a candidate for being in the "top three..."
So for each photographer, the "just three lenses" could be a different mix, depending upon individual preferences and shooting styles. It's important to really assess what you're planning to do with a particular lens/lens focal range before making a purchase decision.
