The issue with bestas bane isn't that that it's a ranged weapon, it's the fact that the status bolts almost always procced, it allowed thf to apply statuses which might not have been otherwise available. Acid bolts were wonderful, blind bolts, sleep bolts, and bloody bolts were capable of keeping a skilled thf alive. If alternatives were available, I'm sure people would use them. Bestas Bane is great and a step in the right direction, however the proc rate on blind is mediocre enough that it's not worth relying on for blind. Drain samba is available to those who /dnc, however frequently ninja is the subjob of choice.

While I realize the paradigm is changing for the game, and for the most part I'm quite pleased with the direction it's going, seeing some of the utility that thf had evaporate disappoints me. It may not be a popular idea either, but having thrown items which could deliver statuses would be wonderful as well. A great example would be smoke bombs which go in the ammo slot and inflict blind upon the target (NIN already have kurayami, but smoke bombs or metsubishi would be right up their alley).

Job abilities which perform some of these statuses would be great as well. As an example, Hamstring could be used from behind, deal no damage and inflict weight upon the target. Qiqirin have a move called strap cutter which removes armor, thfs could use a similar move which simply applies a defense down to the target, similar to angon. Eye gouge could be used to inflict blind.

There are many options for the devs to consider, and given their ongoing quality of life changes, I believe that the devs will eventually work on this issue.