High elf can grab friends as their cantrip. That and guidance from Shadowheart should be enough to get you through most interactions with charisma as dump stat.
Friends isn't really any good anymore as it turns targets hostile after it ends.
I'm playing tactician mode and I have yet to see anybody turn hostile after using friends on them. Not saying that it will never happen, but so far not once. I've used it plenty.
Huh I haven’t noticed because whenever I use friends, I run the fuck away and wait until the next day before going back.
That has been my strategy as well. You can see a red aura surrounding their feet while its on. Just don't talk to them for a while and it seems fine.
