The coastal towns of Dorlaf and Kratz have always preserved their own identity, more affiliated with one another than the rest of their respective provinces. When, in 1209-45 Dorlaf was divided into two for election purposes the split was east-west. Many still feel that this should be renewed, though any Zabric autonomy movement is certainly absent. Typically the rivalry between the ports is also almost as big as any feelings of solidarity - rivalry which has at times broken out into violence or pirate raids.
Many of the Dorlafan ports are ancient settlements. Denlich, Marlborough and Malpelich are all recorded in First Partition archives, though only the former boasts buildings more than a few hundred years old. Obviously fishing is traditionally the mainstay of their economies, though Kolborough was developed with the Ellniss trade in mind, with varying success. Big sailings are usually only attempted when the region is at loggerheads with Zabrial, as during the 500's and 600's wars or when the Erish had moved into Dorlaf, and then only from Kolborough. The coastal towns were amongst the last in Dorlaf to fall to the Erish, and only a drawn-out war of attrition by Queen Nareas secured their capture. After recovering from the war the ports enjoyed a reputation for prosperity and, hem hem, 'liveliness' under the Erish Empire, never particularly prestigious but popular amongst the wealthier sort of merchant (a trend continued today). The Erish attempted at various times to develop the harbours and docks to allow regular ocean-hopping but never succeeded, largely because of sabotage by the rebel groups continuing to flourish. The golden years for the ports were really the 1000's and 1100's; not too scarred by the Erish Empire collapse, free from the civil strife most of Christoté suffered, they benefited from the dependability of fishing and the greater trade opportunities offered by the foundation of the Confederacy. Since then, the ports have suffered through competition from both Ellniss and Kakranfé. The latter have been an especially serious threat. Since their revolution the Kakranfans gradually replaced their military obsessions with more commercial activities, and have a larger, better equipped fleet with access to many of the same types of fish as the Christotan ports. With the Central Plains agricultural revolution coming to fruition in the 1200's the coast-inland imbalance was gradually reversed in Dorlaf. Kakranfé's wars with Cuorn Tall didn't help in stirring up greater piracy (though mainly further north), though Denlich, like Salbair, benefited from the increased naval presence which Christoté's involvement in the wars created. More recently, the outlook for the Dorlafan ports has improved. The science of boat building has rapidly improved so Christotan fishing vessels are at least on an equal with Kakranfan ones. The ports have also learnt to diversify their economies, not before time; northern ones into agriculture, southern towns, stuck in fens and marshes, more though crafts. Most importantly, the troubles in East Zabrial have given the towns the chance to develop into Christoté's major port and have already pinched some Kakranfan and Ellniss trade. So far Port Crabal has the edge over any, but Kolborough (a navigable river straight through to the Cities), Greene (deep harbour, lying on Keskos Way), Denlich (heavily fortified, all-mod-cons harbour and lighthouse) and Marlborough (placid waters, good facilities) all have hopes. Unfortunately the respective Town Councils and praetors all need money from elsewhere, and neither Huwdone House nor Fortraine's lot want to be seen taking sides on this competition.
A chief feature of the Dorlafan coast is that a lot of it is falling into the sea. The huge limestone cliffs of the Sandian coast have held firm for centuries (unfortunately rivers have been similarly unsuccessful, making sizeable harbours rare) but Stameslow and Balar, further north, have periodic landslips, and only mans endeavour have kept the Grecian Peninsular in one piece and attached to the mainland. The cliffs around Denlich and Stolky Point are none too stable, but the Tamar Headland really gets the fun stuff. When the December storms roar westwards across the ocean they hit the headland full on; given that it is low, flat country, with little protective cliffs and already absorbing the broad River Brail, the effects are often big. Early tin mines, long since abandoned, has further eroded the area, and the Tamar Headland is a mess of marshes, fens, rivers and streams, flooding regularly. The most spectacular moment came in 936 when a hellish storm destroyed Westlich, a medium-sized port near the mouth of the Brail. Including those in nearby villages the loss of life ran into the hundreds; a jagged island in the estuary is all that remains of Westlich today.
Kolborough is the largest of the Dorlafan ports nowadays; possibly because being one of the few safe areas left on the Tamar Headland there has been a lot of local migration. It is perched on a solid plateau about fifty feet above one of the Brail estuaries, with an ingenious web of cables, ropes and pulleys to haul men, boats and goods down to the sea and even across the estuary and fenlands. A belter of a harbour wall, a series of dams and weirs, and an excellent drainage system of the plateau also bear testament to man's engineering skills. In other aspects though Kolborough is a bit of a mess, with high levels of poverty, overcrowding of Jalkinesque proportions and split into religious factions (chiefly Narlan v. Garrath) which both deadlock its Town Council and sometimes leads to impressively bloody street warfare. Its tag as Dorlaf's answer to East Zabrial isn't meant to be complimentary; yet Kolborough should be in better state. The proximity of the marshes and fens, reasonably uncommon habitat, give it access to various rare herbs in a sellers market, there are thriving local weaving and food production industries, fishing is good and varied, especially for shellfish, and every other year there's a big marsh connected festival which fills the pubs even more.