noob battlegrounds questions

Hi,
I currently have two chars, my main is a 56 pally and my alt is a 18
warrior. I haven't tried battlegrounds or pvp before, except once when
i healed someone who was in pvp mode, got mine turned on and then
killed by a 60, when i was still in my 20s but...i wanted to try
battlegrounds, as i've heard the rewards are good, especially towards
getting better gear and weapons. is it better for me to use my pally
or warrior, as the warrior is lower level, or does it not matter? i
will be using both eventually but i wanted to start with one to get use
to the atmosphere. and how does it work, does death cause a lose in
armor durability as well? and points/merit for rewards, how to collect
towards gear/weapons?

Thanks.

You might fair better playing in the teens battlegrounds, as you will
not be facing offa against seasoned players who know their toon.
However, you also may face an army of twinks. Really up to you, but
remember that it has a learning curve to become good at.

Rewards: XP from finishing and giving reward objects to approp. npcs.
Rank gives rewards (Cloak for Sgt, Etc.) and repuation gained for
participating in and finishing specific BGs gives you rep with that
faction. For example, WSG friendly gives you access to a nice trinket.
Check the main website for the "pvp minisite" for all rewards for all
pvp factions.