List of Water Margin characters
Wikimedia list article
The following is a list of characters in Water Margin, one of the Classic Chinese Novels.
108 Heroes
The 108 Heroes are at the core of the plot of Water Margin. Based on the Taoist concept that each person's destiny is tied to a "Star of Destiny" (宿星), the 108 Heroes are formerly 108 demons who were banished by the supreme deity Shangdi. Having repented since their expulsion, the 108 demons are accidentally released from their place of confinement, and are reincarnated as 108 heroes who band together for the cause of justice. They are divided into the 36 Heavenly Spirits and 72 Earthly Fiends.
36 Heavenly Spirits
The 36 Heavenly Spirits (天罡三十六星) are:
72 Earthly Fiends
The 72 Earthly Fiends (地煞七十二星) are:
Chao Gai's story
He Tao (何濤) is a law enforcement officer from Jizhou assigned to the case of the theft of the birthday gifts for Cai Jing. After identifying Chao Gai as one of the seven thieves, he leads his men to arrest them. However, he suffers a disastrous defeat in the area around Liangshan Marsh, and ends up being captured by Chao Gai and his friends. Ruan Xiaoqi cuts off one of his ears before releasing him to report his defeat to the government.
He Qing (何清) is He Tao's younger brother.
The public source identifies “List of Water Margin characters” as wikimedia list article. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around List, Water and Margin.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “List of Water Margin characters”, the useful work is to connect “wikimedia list article” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q116769835. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “List of Water Margin characters”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow List of Water Margin characters primary sources, List of Water Margin characters archive and List research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “List of Water Margin characters”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “List of Water Margin characters” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.