Next ‘Skyrim’ DLC Release Date Is Here: How To Build A House, Adopt Children And More In Hearthfire [TRAILER]

The new DLC allows characters in the game to mark their territory like never before-with the ability to adopt children, build homes from the ground up and more. Although this isn't as big of a DLC as the preceding "Dawnguard," it adds yet another dimension to the massive world of "Skyrim."

Although some of the rumors which circulated before the DLC's release indicated that the expansion would include zombies, there is one piece of speculation that held to be true. At least one characteristic from the Game Jam video that was shown at DICE 2012 surfaced in the "Skyrim" "Hearthfire" DLC, and that's the ability to adopt children.

So how do you go about adopting a child for your family in "Skyrim?" Follow the steps below:

1. After purchasing your own plot of land creating your own home, the first step is to make sure there is a spare bedroom in your house. This means that players must build a main hall and conjoining spaces to make room for the child to live.

2. Next, players must find a child to adopt. This can be done by locating a homeless child in the city and speaking to him or her.

3. Once a child is found, a conversational option such as "I could adopt you, if you like?" will pop up. If the child says yes, then he or she will move into your house. However, if players don't have the right features in their house yet, the child will not be able to move in.

For those having trouble building their own house, here are a few tips and tricks to get started.

- To purchase land, a player will first have to buddy-up to one of Skyrim's Jarls, such as the Siddgeir of Falkreath. In this example, the Siddgeir of Falkreath asked a player to retrieve some Black-Briar Mead from Riften and then clear out the cave of bandits. These are quests that most players have already completed.

- After gaining Siddgeir's trust, a new line of dialogue appears. He informs the player that he or she is not allowed to buy land in Falkreath and that they must speak to his steward. Before completing the mission, the line of dialogue would only appear in cities with pre-built houses available for purchase.

- After speaking to Nenya the steward, she offers a small land plot for 5,000 gold. A quest marker than pops up which leads players to a new icon on the map called "Lakeview Manor," which is just down the road from Riverwood. However, the manor has yet to be built because it is up to the player to build it.

- Players will see a chest, and anvil, a workbench and a schematics table upon entering the land. The chest contains starting materials to build the house, and characters move to the work bench to begin using these materials. For example, bringing the stone in the chest to the workbench allows players to build the home's foundation by finding them in the menu and selecting "build."

- Next, players must build the frame of their home. To do this, travel to the lumber mill just outside of Solitude and speak to an orc named Kharag gro-Shurkul. Here players can buy limber for only 200 gold.

- Now it is time to build the roof, walls, doors and lock. The anvil is used to turn iron into nails, which is crucial for most items players will craft.

Although the "Hearthfire" DLC may not seem as exciting as the vampire-based quests of "Dawnguard," the expansion adds an element of creativity players get from games like "Minecraft" and "The Sims" and brings it to the adventurous world of "Skyrim." Before this DLC, gamers could only get this kind of "Skyrim" experience from using mods on the PC version.

Check out the official trailer for "Hearthfire" below.