Oriental type stuff. I'm not overkeen on the background, but the mechanics are good. Very good. 3rd Edition actually managed to improve things. If the system was somewhat more generic, I might even use it for something else, but it would require work to shift it out of Rokugan, so I won't.
I did think of using the dice mechanic in Yags (well, the 1st Edition dice mechanic, which changed in 2nd and changed again in 3rd), but decided against it (if I'd come up with the idea myself, I probably would have used it).
Basically, roll a number of dice equal to attribute + skill, keep a number of dice equal to attribute. Dice = d10, and each '10' is a roll-up. I'd quite happily loose the roll ups.
The big advantage is that it keeps both attributes and skills important. Attributes are still more important, but the cost differences make it worthwhile putting up skills.
An emphasis is a sort of specialisation bought on a skill. It can grant a small bonus when you use the skill in that area. They are fixed, and the cost of an emphasis is proportional to the number you already have on that skill.
They have the advantage of allowing a bit more detail on skills without neeeding a lot skills.
When a skill reaches a certain level, the character gets a mastery bonus. For example, when defence reaches 3, the character gets a permanent bonus to their TN to be hit. This gives another reason to raise skills.
My big problem with the combat system isn't actually the combat system, but the way skillls work. It is very easy to get a roll up, and so very difficult to predict when you are about to die. It makes things a bit random, and means that even a farmer can kill a skilled warrior in single combat. It's a bit too unpredictable for my liking.