My opinions on playing Warlock.
1) A lot of people are saying to take EB. Don't feel like you have to. My favorite part of the Warlock is the flavor, and "I cast Eldritch Blast" is not very interesting. The only reason I might recommend it is if you want something reliable and effective to fall back on when things get serious, and it is time to stop trying flavorful risky things. Unless your DM rewards those kinds of things, in which case you don't need to stop ever.
2) You say you are not going for full optimization, so you should be fine with any Boon, and any patron. Just find one that tells the story you want. If you have a specific patron in mind, talk with your DM about what area that Patron would fall under. For example, I wanted a Bladelock of Davy Jones, so I wound up as Undying. You could also go Tomelock of Undying, and have your patron be Necronomicon. Or chainlock, and have your Patron Ghost be your familiar. Just have fun, and make it interesting to yourself, and you should be fine.
1) A lot of people are saying to take EB. Don't feel like you have to. My favorite part of the Warlock is the flavor, and "I cast Eldritch Blast" is not very interesting. The only reason I might recommend it is if you want something reliable and effective to fall back on when things get serious, and it is time to stop trying flavorful risky things. Unless your DM rewards those kinds of things, in which case you don't need to stop ever.
2) You say you are not going for full optimization, so you should be fine with any Boon, and any patron. Just find one that tells the story you want. If you have a specific patron in mind, talk with your DM about what area that Patron would fall under. For example, I wanted a Bladelock of Davy Jones, so I wound up as Undying. You could also go Tomelock of Undying, and have your patron be Necronomicon. Or chainlock, and have your Patron Ghost be your familiar. Just have fun, and make it interesting to yourself, and you should be fine.