Greg Edwards-268690 (3/12/2014)
Although I will admit - Core skills, and 'Nice to Have - you will need these skills' - will drive a lot of debate at times.Kind of like building a data warehouse. You may never be done, as technology and user requirements are ever changing.
And if you wait until you can do the whole thing, chances are you will never get to implementation.
I could easily see several articles, not just 1 huge one which could be quite large.
Some of the 'why you should know this' might be important, especially to a newbie.
The last point you make is roughly how I see it panning out, a paragraph or two per point with good references for those wishing to dig deeper rather than a single humungous article. A digestible article with concise and compelling reasons for each key point. Many developers won't know all of the stuff listed and this format - which encourages cherry-picking - would be more attractive initially and less of a time-thief in the longer term.
For fast, accurate and documented assistance in answering your questions, please read this article.
Understanding and using APPLY, (I) and (II) Paul White
Hidden RBAR: Triangular Joins / The "Numbers" or "Tally" Table: What it is and how it replaces a loop Jeff Moden