False Swipe is a move that stops causing damage to a pokémon once that pokémon's HP is down to 1. Because of this, False Swipe will never KO the target pokémon. This is very helpful for when you're trying to catch a wild pokémon, because the lower the wild pokémon's HP is, the more likely a thrown pokéball will successfully catch it.
How to get TM54 False Swipe
In Pokémon Black and White, you can get the TM for False Swipe as soon as your Pokédex says that you have seen 30 different types of pokémon.
Once you have seen 30 types, go back to Nuvema Town (where you started the game) and talk to Professor Juniper in her lab. When she checks on your Pokédex and sees that you have seen at least 30 different pokémon types, she will give you TM54 False Swipe.
Which Pokémon can Learn False Swipe from TM54?
There aren't many pre-National Pokédex pokémon that can learn False Swipe. Here is the list:
- Oshawott
- Dewott
- Samurott
- Leavanny
- Karrablast
- Escavalier
- Axew
- Fraxure
- Haxorus
- Pawniard
- Bisharp
- Cobalion
- Terrakion
- Virizion
- Keldeo
If you didn't choose Oshawott as your starter or just don't want to teach False Swipe to your Oshawott, then the soonest that you can get a pokémon with False Swipe (Leavanny) is after you defeat Lenora and get the Basic Badge in Nacrene City. Once you defeat Lenora, you can get into the inner area of Pinwheel Forest.
In the inner part of Pinwheel Forest, you can catch Sewaddle in the grass. You will have to level it up to level 20 so that it evolves into Swadloon. Then if you increase Swadloon's happiness enough, it will evolve into Leavanny the next time it levels up. You can then teach False Swipe to Leavanny.
How to increase a pokémon's happiness
There are quite a few ways to increase a pokémon's happiness. These include:
- Walking around with that pokémon in your party
- Leveling up that pokémon
- Asking a woman in a building in Castelia City to give it a massage
- Using vitamins and EV berries
There are a few things that decrease a pokémon's happiness:
- Getting KOed
- Using Energy Root, EnergyPowder, Heal Powder, or Revival Herb
- Getting traded (this reset's the pokémon's happiness to the base level)
Checking your pokémon's happiness level
A woman in Nacrene City will tell you how happy your pokémon is. She is in the second house to the right of the Pokémon Center. If you ask her to check a pokémon and she says "It is quite friendly to you! You must be a kind person!" then it means that the pokémon is either close to or has reached the level of happiness that it needs to be in order to evolve from happiness, if it is a pokémon that evolves from happiness. If the woman says "It is super friendly to you! I'm a bit jealous!" then the pokémon is definitely happy enough to evolve when it levels up next time, if it is a pokémon that evolves from happiness. If she says anything else, then the pokémon is not happy enough to evolve from happiness yet.