[quote=@Crimmy]
Is this the Beiyang Republic, or KMT Republic? And they're effectively neutered everywhere but Jiangsu province?

I could legitimately start a warlord state in Guangdong? With all the economic power and prosperity that the province entails?
[/quote]

I guess this is set in the Warlord Era, aka the "Everything's fucked" period in Chinese history back when there was no union what so ever. It's basically the fall of the Republic which was formed after the 1911 uprising. The Kuomintang would historically be the strongest faction and unite China untill they eventually fell to Mao's communist revolution.

That's my guess though, and it looks pretty interesting :)