My favourite visual Water Margin (apart from the NTV show that got me into it in the first place, but had a weird overlay of Japanese sexism and bondage) was the Chinese TV show that they made, I think in the 90s. I probably have the DVDs somewhere or other, though no English subtitles.
The Water Margin is a good game, go for it! Personally, I would have considered the following options: 1) GURPS. Doesn't work for your group, but I'd have considered it. 2) Adapting Maelstrom: Domesday for China. (It's set for times soon after a conquest) or Maelstrom: Rome (Roman society, with its patrons and clients, is close enough). I'd probably just end up combining them both, using MD ...
Tempted to steal Outlaws of the Water Margin's Motivation system. But I'm already doing that for Phaserip. If it's a good system it's worth stealing twice.
That reminds me of the issue of modelling WillPower in games that I waxed on about in the Outlaws of the Water Margin thread..,
In many historical (and potentially) ahistorical settings, Etiquette is kind of a big deal. Empire of the Petal Throne, Bushido/Sengoku and other games set in Feudal Japan, Outlaws of the Water Margin, all focus on societies with strictly codified forms of etiquette. And, while it's often...
Paul Mason's Outlaws of the Water Margin, which has no set list of attributes, rather characters have a list of talents (natural proficiencies) and a list of skills, and any bonuses for a roll are added up. With a few specific exceptions, most things can be taken either as a talent or a skill, or both.