Definitive explanation of "bridge mode" in the business gateway router.

I'm trying to ascertain if flipping my gateway into "bridged" mode would be advantageous to me.

I've currently got 5 static ip addresses and a number of (currently broken due to some kind of firmware issue) port forwards assigned to my gateway address.

Can someone point me to an explanation of what "bridged" mode is specifically, and what the effects are?  I've got a limited understanding of it and haven't been able to find anything online that addresses those customers with more than a single static IP address.

Thanks folks!

g.