Bethesda spreads the word that the long-awaited Creation Kit for their RPG The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is now available, along with a Skyrim High-Rez Texture Pack, which can be snatched as free DLC via Steam.

Modders rejoice! We’re pleased to announce that the Skyrim Creation Kit is now available!

With the Creation Kit’s release, fans can now upload, download, and install custom content through the Skyrim Workshop on Steam. Get a crash course by reading level designer Joel Burgess’ blog post, and be sure to read up on our list of best practices for modding. Need more help? Don’t forget to to check out the official Wiki at www.CreationKit.com. In the coming days and weeks, we’ll be sharing tutorial videos for beginners and experts alike. Check out the first tutorial above, and visit the Bethesda Game Studios YouTube Channel for more.

In addition to releasing the Creation Kit and Skyrim Workshop, today we’re allowing players to experience Skyrim as you’ve never seen it before with the Skyrim High-Resolution Texture Pack. Before downloading it from Steam, make sure your system requirements exceed Skyrim’s recommended specs before attempting to install, including Windows Vista/7, a minimum of 4GB of system RAM, and a DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with at least 1 GB of RAM and the latest drivers.

There's also a Creation Kit Tutorial video available.