They are fairly priced for all the power that you get at your fingertips. Years of hard work by the programmers went into making that program a reality, and for that I think it is fairly priced.
If you can't afford it why not look into SL, or Cubasis, one of which would probably suit your needs for less $. Cubasis is under $100 last time I checked. Also, Steinberg has this Studio Case bundle that my friend picked up for $230 on sale...it's unbelivable all the stuff he got for that price. SL, lite versions of Halion, Groove Agent, The Grand, and I think Kontact.
How important is your music to you? Do you want the confidence of knowing that the hours and days you spend on your music is not going to just disappear because a crack goes bad on you? Do you want recording tech to continue to improve? Do the legal thing and buy your software, don't steal it.