Topic: What controller do you need in order to use the wii classic and wii eshop?

What controller(s) do I need to obtain? Also is the numchuck necessary?

Obviously you need a wii remote. The nunchuck is required for most wii discs and a lot of wii downloads. For the classics, you need the classic controller pro.

For Wii Shop:

Wiimote (sideways) standard control for NES, C64, MS, MD, TG, most Neo Geo and Arcade games and many WiiWare games.
Wiimote + Classic Controller / Classic Controller Pro (needed for SNES and N64 games, optional for the other VC's, optional in many WiiWare games)
Wiimote + Nunchuk (needed for many WiiWare games)
Wiimote + Balance Board (+Nunchuk) mostly optional for certain WiiWare games with the Balance Board feature.

For Wii U eShop you need:

Wii U GamePad (obviously needed for all games)
Wiimote (+Nunchuk) is often a standard secondary control scheme. Musthave for multiplayer.
Wii U Pro Controller (optional so far, not used much)