Until they seriously improve on that part just about anything else will work better. The point is that blender is absolutely 100% incapable of handling 16B vertex or more with the kind of performance you need to sculpt details fluidly on most systems (ryzen 5950 aside). SideFX Houdini can potentially be subbed to zbrush. It makes sculpting high detail quick once you figure it out though. Mind you - zbrush is one of the worse ever UI in existence. If you’re using Unreal in your pipeline (or Painter or Toolbag) this wont be a factor in the slightest. Maya LT is identical to Maya in every way, it just doesnt have certain features - most notably the transfer maps function and, if im reading the comparison right, in-app rendering. Not to sway your decision, however, because I love Maya But im set in my ways lol
If you want to save even more money, youre in a position to take on Blender and reduce your software cost to zero. In my experience, though, small and mid-size studios dont care what you use as long as the software is used legally and you produce assets they can use. Blender isnt used by big studios because its not industry standard, and its not industry standard because big studios dont use it. Maya is still abusively expensive, which is probably the main reason Blender is on a constant upward gain in the industry, but its a catch-22. I actually use xNormal quite extensively for high-to-low poly normal map baking and AO maps, which is totally free. Most people use Substance Painter or Marmoset Toolbag, which are both good options.