Resources:
TSW Gear Planner http://forums.thesecretworld.com/showthread.php?t=57674 - this spreadsheet like app allows you to specify all gear slots, signets (including colour), and works right up to 10.5 gear
Glyph Calculator http://seekrit.info/Tools/Glyph_Calculator.htm concentrates only on the Glyphs, and only goes up to 10.4, but you can save builds and share them by URL (web bookmark) which makes them handy in game.
ACT http://advancedcombattracker.com/download.php also helps for doing your own research, rather than relying on sometimes out of date, or just plain wrong stuff on the forums. This very useful tool was developed by an Everquest 2 player, for, you guessed it - EQ2. Where I spend quite a few hours poring over combat, and even having it do its Text-To-Speech tricks to call out jousts - Its not as useful in TSW, but there is a plugin which makes the basic parsing at least work.
Stats you Need:
Block
Penetrated hits hurt. These can be counted by raising your char's Block. Exact level isn't possible, but you as a minimum want these to be infrequent enough, that your Healer doesn't hate you, and 2 in a row are unlikely. 600+ is what I think is a minimum - I ran with 622 for a the longest time (admittedly with a Hammer secondary). You can add in a Block Kickback, Block Stim (probably triggered off YOUR penetrating), Abilities like Trucker and Stone Wall. These can make Polaris 6/6 doable with lesser gear, or a breeze at 10.4
Hit
To interrupt the bosses insta-kill, aggro-wipe or just hurt lots abilities you need to be able to land your ability on them. For this you need Hit. Again 600+ is a minimum, with abilities like Fever Pitch, and perhaps a Signet of Castigation, you are reasonably safe even in the Hell dungeons, or the nasty one Facilty where a glanced hit does damage back to you (like some annoying mobs in Egypt who heal on glance).
3rd Stat
Once you have the 600/600 above, the next stat (or increasing one of them) is more optional.
There are several useful things you could spend your points on next.
- Penetrate - This allows you to debilitate using 12gouge (and possibly Fatal Flourish) = 30% damage reduction at 10 stacks.
Physical Protection - reduces most of the damage somewhat (as currently Magical hitting bosses are a minority)
Defence - Well it used to be good, so if you have left over PvP gear from glance tanking days .... you might get a few extra glances
Evade - Spikier damage, as it either misses you entirely or hits hard. Not something I've used so can't comment on its utility or amounts needed to be useful.
Why to Put Stats:
First - do NOT Glyph an item with mixed stats. You lose slightly overall in rounding (for min-maxers) but it makes it a lot harder to swap equipment around for different fights.
Second - if you want to play multiple roles (and even if you don't its headache inducing not to) - try to minimise hybrid talismans. What I mean by that is Penetrate Glyph on a Healing Talisman, Block on an Attack Rating one - that kind of thing. You can't avoid it entirely in Leech Healing, but you can mainly in Tanking.
Third - Train to Cairo, and the new 1.7 quests give access to blank BUT UPGRADEABLE 10.1 purple talismans for Head and Neck respectively. These save your hard earned credits, by jump starting your gear. The Head signet (Kingdom) is also nice for stat limited characters like Tanks and Leech Healers. Thinis - well thats for another thread.
Fourth - Be optimistic, save room for those New York raid upgrades that you know you deserve :)
Finally - and this is my personal contribution - Head talismans are cheap (see Third above), AND they have the biggest stats. So make them optional. ie Put your basic essential stats on everything else (well bar weapons), so that you can swap the head item between fights.
Where to Put Stats:
Head - optional. Health/Penetrate mostly for me, but Penetrate, Physical Protection (N.Y. Raid / Ankh), Block - whatever defensive stat you need for that fight, Attack Rating instead of Health for when you don't need 10k health. I don't have an evade set (yet), as Kickback, Stim and a couple of Chaos actives are enough to survive Machine Tyrant, and none of the bosses prior (in Hell Raised) the "increased damage until you evade" buff is serious enough to warrant it, and Brooklyn Bracer will do evades all by itself.
Finger - Major - Health/Block
Neck - Major - Attack Rating/Hit Rating
Wrist - Major - Health/Block - make room for the Brooklyn Bracer
Luck - Minor - Attack Rating/Hit Rating - make room for Subway Tokens
Waist - Minor - Health/Block - make room for the N.Y. Buckle
Occult - Minor - Attack Rating/Hit Rating
Weapon - Sword - Penetration (for clearing the path and blade builder)
This has 1 major and 2 minors with attack rating, which at 10.4.4 gives you 10.8k Health,
and so pleases the standard PUG healer who is scared by 4 digits (9999 or below). For those who aren't - well thats when you bring out the Attack Rating animas and the Attack/Pen head.
Overall stats with the above are:
10.4.4 : 10.6k Health, 761 Block, 658 Hit, 638 Pen
10.5.5 : 11k Health, 827 Block, 710 Hit, 682 Pen
You can go with 1 Major Attack Rating and 1 Minor as a minimum, or go to silly extremes of Attack Rating if your group's healer is bored.
For re-use you can Leech Heal or DPS with your Attack/Hit and Attack/Pen items, as long as you pretend the signets are appropriate (mind you an Ablation signet isn't entirely wasted on a DPS or Healer)
Other Random Thoughts:
Off hand should be shotgun, 'cause it just looks good.
Okay, in order of priority because:
Defensive Turret (see also Shotgun SP weapon passive)
Breaching Shot - check with 12gouge and 1point Clearing the Path consumers for synergy
Clean Up
Flack Jacket
(and for the cheapskates - all of those can be done with no penalty with a QL0 weapon).
Blood is another useful alternative - Cold Blooded is the best taunt in the game, and Exquisite Corpse is the best damage mitigation (Diamond Grit is the same effect but much longer re-use)
Art of War is the best tank elite in the game, bar none. Interrupt, Save (glances hit softer), and Forced Aggro - all in one.
Do NOT put Hit rating on your weapons. Your whip has the best re-use of any interrupt, and will not get the benefit.
Signet of the Kingdom (free) and an Ablation Signet on a minor are pretty nice. Breaching, Castigation and Rejuvenation are the other good ones. Purple if you can get them, but Blue aren't too expensive. The rest don't give much bang for the buck. I have blue Order ones in non-Kingdom head gear, mainly as they aren't horribly expensive, but the proc rate isn't stellar.
Thanks for it, really good job. I hope everyone will contribute like this! 
Honestly, yes, I can't think of any game -especially AO, AoC, CoH/CoV- where tanking is, on average, as tough as in TSW. 
