actually i would like to know how much theory helps in the overall mastery of guitar. Would playing songs via tabs suffice over years or at some point we'd have to stoop down and study theory in order to progress?

Very insightful. and i'd like to know, to reconfirm, scales are of the same pattern even from different starting positions? pardon me, i've only just started to delve into scale playing and it seems pretty dry up till now.

ah, i meant to change the key, from the same beginning string to a higher/lower fret, i'd be using the same pattern right? as opposed to shifting it to a diff string, which would require further transposing?

oh okay, duly noted, thanks for the tip-off. haha.