The Sword of the Dawn (1977)

Dorian Hawkmoon and Huillam D'Averc infiltrate Londra in the guise of two emissaries from Asiacommunista. They head for the hilly land of Yel to find the mystic sorcerer who has knowledge of trans-dimensional travel. They find him but end up engaged in a quest to recover the Sword of the Dawn and save the Runestaff. Unfortunately, there's an army of pirates between them and the Sword... ( )

The last two books in this series tailed off a bit, as Dorian Hawkmoon wanders away from his home and the battle against the Empire and encounters other opponents tied into the destiny of the Runestaff. At this point, this becomes more like an Elric novel, and less like the previous two books, though Dorian Hawkmoon is still a more likeable hero. ( )

http://www.sfreader.com/read_review.asp?book=1087 ( )

Despite Dorian Hawkmoon's best efforts, the Dark Empire is still expanding. It is growing so much he has to take extraodinary efforts to protect his own turf. Doing so, however, doesn't solve the greater problem at hand. Heroes are made to do heroic things, and Hawkmoon is the Eternal Champion, and the Sword of the Dawn calls.

http://superprose.blogspot.com/2006/12/hawkmoon-runestaff-3-sword-of-dawn.html ( )