Nix is the escape hatch!

More packages than any other package manager you're likely to encounter.

If something isn't packaged for nix, it's often simple to package yourself. Even when this isn't simple, it's often simple to use nix to bring the build dependencies into your environment and then follow the usual (non-nix) build instructions.

I'm a lowly self-taught hobbyist who works in an entirely unrelated industry. If I can do it, you can.