Specific stats don't really matter till you get to 30. Leveling up in the beginning can help you find your play style. DPs, or support. You can try to be a tank, but why waste time with that, when you can just put out loads of DPS? In your character tab you can find all of the Important stats. Hit the D-pad to go to the next category. Survivability is where you will find all of your defensive stats like: Health. Armor damage mitigation. Protection from elites. Exotic damage resistance. Of course your stamina stat affects your max health. Look out for gear pieces with high armor stats, and bonus armor attributes to get your Armor damage mitigation as high as possible. This will decrease the overall damage you receive. The new cap is 75%, but you can only reach it after level 30. Protection from elites is the damage you receive from the yellow bar enemies. Exotic damage resilience is the damage you receive from other sources like burning, bleeding, and such. I've heard that it also reduces damage from agent sticky bombs, if your into PvP. Hopefully this helps you survive better. Don't hesitate if you have more questions. I'll try to answer them the best I can. Good luck!