While I've been playing RPGs on and off since the early '90s, my last campaign that got past the lowest levels was also in the early '90s using 2e. Now I'm GM-ing for my sister, brother-in-law, and pre-teen nephews. Their only experience is the Beginner Box campaign I just ran them through.
We're getting ready to start a Jade Regent campaign, and due to their inexperience, I'm somewhat micro-managing the character creation process. I've told each of them to come up with the race, class, alignment, and campaign trait they'd like to play (limited to CRB races & classes). Then we'll discuss their choices as a group, and I'll go over any gaps or conflicts that I see in their party and potential methods of dealing with them. Finally, they'll decide if or how to cover those gaps or avoid those conflicts.
They seem to have decided to throw me a curveball, however, and my youngest nephew (who I was sure would play a sorcerer, wizard, or bard) decided he wanted an animal companion and is planning on playing a druid. That leaves the party as a dwarf druid, an elf ranger, a half-elf paladin, and whatever my sister decides on (which will almost certainly be a martial character of some sort).
There are a lot of other gaps that I know how to describe to them, but I'm not sure exactly what the lack of an arcane caster would mean for the party. What issues is a party lacking an arcane caster likely to run into? I'm thinking they won't be able to do much blasting, and they'll miss out on some utility spells (like See Inivisibility, but what else?). Is that it? I'm also assuming that the way to cover those kinds of gaps is with magic items (and UMD where necessary).
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
-Joe