The cheapest, and I've found, best, vessel for sourdough baking is the two-piece Lodge 3.2 quart Cast Iron Combo Cooker. It's $39.99. You bake the bread in the shallow skillet part with the top covering it for the first 20 minutes or so, then remove the top to let the bread brown. (The deep top part of the pan is used for soups and deep-frying.) It gives you built-in steam. Mauritzio from the Perfect Loaf (whose sourdough recipes appear here on King Arthur Baking) uses it.
theperfectloaf.com/how-to-bake-bread-in-a-dutch-oven.

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