Welcome to the server!
About a week ago I started on the server as a warrior and started out with nothing but my starting tunic and gimp sword. Hopefully some of my experiences can help you out.
I started off as a dwarf warrior for a few reasons. Not ever requiring a shrink, decent warrior stats and the dwarf jumping roll! The decision to go dwarf has had its obvious advantages and also benefited from the abundance of small armor. I personally bought some early pieces but realized that I could have waited and acquired them all myself after a little more time.
I spent most of my time initially getting into Crushbone and then moving to Unrest around level 12. Groups are pretty easy to acquire in these zones but you do have to realize that they will be packed during prime time hours and there will be trains. I eventually moved to HHK goblins and did pretty well there. I've also seen a lot of stuff in ooc for groups in the commons, oasis and other areas. The server is pretty populated at the lower levels and finding a group should not be to harsh.
In terms of choosing the Warrior as a class, be prepared to have some struggles. You will still get groups for a tank position but you will have a much harder time with threat compared to a pally or sk. If I were you, I would do your best to tank in areas where you are higher than the npc level. You basically have your melee and slam/kick to hold threat and don't have special abilities like blind or disease cloud!
[You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] Taunt does work very well in putting you at the top of the hate list on mobs that are blue and below, but you will not really ever have it work (or if it can work) on anything above you.
In terms of advice for gear for an un-twinked warrior, here are some general tips...
-Work on that full set of bronze. Generally large bronze is a bit harder to come by and this might be a harder task. You have three very popular tanking classes which use large races and that helps make the large bronze a bit more rare. I have grouped with other tanks that have been trolls/ogres/barbs that were un-twinked as well and rarely see them in a full set of bronze. An additional route is to get some banded armor crafted. Both paths generally seem to be about 1 plat per AC.
-Weapons are going to be a struggle. I used rusty weapons till I acquired some bronze weapon in crushbone. I eventually was gifted some cold iron morning star by a higher level that ran though the zone. That helped out a bit thankfully. However you will need to acquire some forms of weapon eventually. Just watch the auction/ooc channels and see if anything pops up. For lower end weapons you can look to expect from 10-25 plat to get ya going. However you will need to work towards a pretty specific weapon line for your threat generation. I will list those below with some additional comments.
Gnoll Hide Lariat:
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=2665
I am 36 and I use a pair of these now. The damage/delay ratio is not great but they are fast weapons. Eventually they really come into there own when you are level 25 and the stun proc will finally work. The proc itself is pretty amazing for threat and generally helps out healers a ton. The proc rate is pretty random and some fights you wont proc at all and others you will chain stun a mob. I do not see them on auction often but I would expect to pay around 25-50pp each. You might consider doing a "/who all paw" or possibly check those in south karana that might be acquiring them in there hunting.
Obsidian Shard:
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=676
I am actually looking for one of these weapons now. I have seen many warriors use them and have heard good reviews. After getting one I might determine if I want to use one or two at a time. It does proc well before the lariat I mentioned above (I think at level 16) so that might help out early on. Like the lariats, you might have a hard time finding these on auction. I have been watching the past few days and have little luck. I am pretty sure you can expect to pay between 200-400pp depending on who you are buying from.
Other weapons of worth for a low level warrior that might work out as well...
Polished Granite Tomahawk: (no more than 100pp really)
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=239
Silvery War Axe: (not sure on cost)
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=251
Enameled Black Mace: (not sure on cost)
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=95
List can go on... but hopefully this gives you something to start on. Good luck and if you have any questions feel free to shoot a tell to Skaff in game.