Howdy! These are both good questions, so let's hit them both.
1. Warlocks can make their pact while in transit between their universe and this one. It's up to you whether this is a memory that Papyrus reclaims or if it stays fuzzy to him. Your question did make us realize that this should be included in the general Warlock description, so we've gone ahead and added it to the Paths page — thank you for bringing this to our attention!
2. Patrons in Balance are designed to be a bit choose your own adventure. You're absolutely welcome to choose and use your character's patron as flavor, to further their character development, for shenanigans, etc. However, it's certainly possible for patrons to be more involved in the plot. That being said, the plot involvement of any character's patron (or deity, in the case of clerics, paladins, etc) is dependent on that character's involvement and the player's choices.
To clarify a bit, when patrons have in the past become more active players in the plot, it's been after the character in question explored the setting and plot in a way relevant to their patron. The more action a player takes to get their character and patron involved, the more likely it is that the mods will find a way to incorporate the patron in either minor or major plot elements. As an example, you might have a Seeker-type patron urge their Warlock to get involved in solving some obtuse arcane puzzle that has specific relevance to that patron. The only limitation, really, is that the patron cannot take action on their own and must do so through their Warlock, but otherwise, the patron's involvement is yours to shape.
no subject
1. Warlocks can make their pact while in transit between their universe and this one. It's up to you whether this is a memory that Papyrus reclaims or if it stays fuzzy to him. Your question did make us realize that this should be included in the general Warlock description, so we've gone ahead and added it to the Paths page — thank you for bringing this to our attention!
2. Patrons in Balance are designed to be a bit choose your own adventure. You're absolutely welcome to choose and use your character's patron as flavor, to further their character development, for shenanigans, etc. However, it's certainly possible for patrons to be more involved in the plot. That being said, the plot involvement of any character's patron (or deity, in the case of clerics, paladins, etc) is dependent on that character's involvement and the player's choices.
To clarify a bit, when patrons have in the past become more active players in the plot, it's been after the character in question explored the setting and plot in a way relevant to their patron. The more action a player takes to get their character and patron involved, the more likely it is that the mods will find a way to incorporate the patron in either minor or major plot elements. As an example, you might have a Seeker-type patron urge their Warlock to get involved in solving some obtuse arcane puzzle that has specific relevance to that patron. The only limitation, really, is that the patron cannot take action on their own and must do so through their Warlock, but otherwise, the patron's involvement is yours to shape.