You live in Socal, 2WD, locker, lift and All-Terrains is like a religion to some folks out there, you can do a lot with a 2WD with the right basic mods. Rock crawling and driving in the mud no, but open desert, definitely yes. Also, remember that almost all open class Trophy Trucks in the Baja 500 and 1000 are 2WD, I don't think there has been a 4WD winner in over a decade.
As for lifts, I think every single lift that is sold can also fit the 2WD. You may have some spare parts in on some full suspension lifts, but levels and most basic stuff are advertised as 2WD/4WD. Some venders/resellers don't put the 2WD in the ads, but if you look at the factory sites, most will say 2WD.