These right-handed scissors are a leaden gray; their size varies on the cosmological stature of their wielder: in the hands of one of the Moirai they appear to be of a normal size for cutting threads (though perhaps a bit large for Clotho and Lachesis), in the hands of a mere god they appear to be over large, as though a child were attempting to use an adult’s tool. For demigods and mortals of such power as to be their equals (archmages etc.) they’re more like gardening shears in a child’s hands, and must be used two-handed. Lesser mortals may also use them two-handed; in this case each blade appears to be as long as a sword.

Regardless of the bearer’s prowess, the known power of these frightful instruments are usable in full. They include the ability to

• bring death by severing the thread of an individual’s life. In this respect, the shears act as a vorpal two-handed sword, except that the death thus inflicted is not necessarily decapitative, and creatures which can survive without their heads are in no way immune to this effect. For the purposes of attacking the Shears not only gain the +3 attack bonus typical of vorpal swords (representing their ability to cut a creature’s thread with directly cutting the creature’s body), but also the ability to ignore any armor the creature is wearing (because they can easily cut through it – see below). This ability is presumed to be ineffective against the Fates, and those who are wise know better than to speculate whether gods can be thus cast down…at least out loud.
• end even magic, by cutting a spell at the center of its effect or origin point; this has the effect of a Disjunction (an automatically successful Dispel Magic) on the targeted spell only.
• cut through all material objects as though they were cloth. Note that this doesn’t allow large volumes to be cut in any single motion – although it’s possible to tunnel a path through a mountain in this way, it will still take a long time.

In addition, the Shears are rumored to have at least some of the following abilities, in addition to a number of other, miscellaneous abilities:

1. A dim, perhaps merely empathic intelligence coupled with a special purpose: to destroy undead (likely by either disintegrating or disrupting them)
2. The ability to operate against distinct individuals, objects, or magical effects at a distance assuming the bearer can directly cut a proxy object with a sufficiently sympathetic connection to the target.
3. The power to foul water, making it unfit for any sort of consumption as it becomes polluted, metallic, and reddish in color, reminiscent of rust and of blood (treat this as a reversed Purify Food and Drink).
4. Some capacity to sever even the relationships between individuals.

The side effects and other drawbacks of the Shears of Atropos are generally unknown, though it is widely assumed that the Fates (and Atropos in particular) wants them back; and as ending lives is generally within her purview anyway she probably won’t be shy about leaving a trail of bodies – or shattered empires – behind her as she attempts to reclaim her tools.