7- Card stud is seen by many, as a much more complex game than Texas Holdem and requires just as much if not more study, so a small post like this is by no means a total guide, just some of my own guidelines.
We can break down the starting hands into several distinct groups.
1) Rolled up trips. IE AAA- 444 etc.
General advise is to slowplay a huge hand like this, these hands are rare and its a total disaster to just win the antes. The higher the rolled up hand the more sense it makes to slow play, if you have AAA and come out raising, your likely to get nothing but a rack of folds, because the likelyhood of someone else having an Ace is low. Slow play until 5th then play fast.
Smaller rolled up hands against agressive players will sometimes get you paid off, with someone boarding a King and raising, ill reraise with hands from 999-222 and play very fast throught the hand.
In Stud8, ill generally play all rolled up hands very fast from the outset and hope to get a donk or 3 drawing to scrap low hands.
2) Concealed big pairs. IE AA2, KK5.
The great advantage of these hands is that your opponent cannot see the strength of your hand. Ill always play fast and make my opponents pay to draw me out. Unless im against 3 or less players, the likyhood of me waiting until 5th to raise is relatively high, this is player dependant. If you make aces up or kings up youll generally have the best hand.
In Stud8, i prefer to play small pots with these hands, because with the larger amount of players playing scrap low hands can be dangerous. Small pots unless you improve your hand quickly, execptions are when i have AA2 with the A2 suited. Which gives me backdoor flush and low possibilities.
3) Medium- Small Pairs, both concealed and doored.
These hands play well in multi-way pots, you will need to improve to win, ill try and see 4/5th cheaply and hope to improve by the big betting rounds.
4) 3 Card straight-flush hands. ie [jh] [10h] [9h]
Again very strong hands, the higher the better, as you overcards can sometimes be cosidered outs depentant on the amount of players. Sometimes ill play these hands fast, but againt multiple players ill hope to spike a 4 flush/ oesd and these hands become very playable.
Stud8---- Same as above, but the lower the better, almost always slow play.
5) 3 Suited cards. IE [Ah] [5h] [10h]
Getting into more dodgy ground here. Dump most of them if 2 or more of your outs are dead, having a few overs to other players door cards is an advantage of a few extra outs.
Stud 8- Playable if all the cards are 8 or lower, very playable.
5) 3 to a straight. IE [7h] [8c] [9d]
Decent cards in a multi-way pot, especially if ALL the cards are connected and none of you outs are dead, consider dropping if in the example above the 6 and 10 are out, and the pot is raised. If the cards are high and 2 of them are suited, you get backdoor and overcard outs, this hand still playes well multiway, attempt to see 5th cheaply and get out unless you have made an OESD/FD or hit you overcards.
Stud8, Fold unless all the cards are 8 or under. This game is easy
6) Highest door card, ie [2h] [6c] [Ad]
Plays well if folded to you in late position, raise every time, do the same with K high and occasionaly Q high.
Stud 8- Fold.
7) 3 Overcards to all the door cards.
If all 3 of you cards are all overcards to your opponents door cards you should raise, and keep the pressure on until 5th.
Stud8- Fold.
8) Stud8 hands. All baby suited cards are very playable, hands like A23 are much better than AKQ ovbiously. I generally try to see 5th cheaply, and if i have my low, ill raise and reraise, especially if i make some overcard outs.
This was a quick quick post top of my head stuff on starting hands, but as Rob metioned above, controlled aggression is sometimes the way forward depending on your opponents. Remember there is full books on this stuff, and id seriously recommend reading/studying some if you want a more rounded skill set.
EDIT : MISSED ONE. Ill do it later, guess which group ?