Couple of questions....

[Skeelo]

Where are some ranged weapons? Can't stealing get you in any trouble at all?

[fable]

There are only two NPC characters you can acquire in the game who use ranged weapons. One is Ignus, whose normal attack is a kind of miniature fireball. The other is Nordom, and he more than makes up for the absence of ranged attacks from other characters. He's got two crossbolts in place of hands, and an enormous range of optical mods and variety of bolts to do damage.

Stealing can definitely get you in trouble. If you're caught pickpocketing or shoplifting, you will be attacked, and if you're caught in the Clerk's Ward or the Lower Ward, you'll also be attacked by a host of very nasty guards.

On the other hand, if you mean going through somebody's belongings in drawers, then no. That doesn't create any problems.

[VoodooDali]

I liked Nordom, but don't you think you get him too late in the game?

[fable]

Not really. It's almost pathetically easy to defeat most of the opponents you face earlier. When you get to the Clerk's Ward, the challenge of the game changes significantly, and that's when you get the opportunity to acquire Ignus, Nordom, Fall-From-Grace and/or Vhailor.