I use a screenshot as reference but I don't trace it. You can notice that I actually have some proportion faults. I usually start with the head but I often have to re-do it several times until it looks ok; It's the first one I'm doing with a tablet, I draw the others on a plane surface then scanned them. When I draw the tiger I didn't know yet what pose the ranger would be (behind or in front of him, sitting or lying...). I wanted him to look majestic and the ranger to look small and fragile beside him. But I finally found that the in-game pose was a good reference. May be next time some action pose.
Just for the record. This is not anime. A human head is really 1/8th of the whole body, specifically in drawing that is the norm. I can also see where thereference is coming from but these certainly do not look traced and it never crossed my mind. I like to think Orseis is one of those people who has a very keen eye for detail overall.
Thanx again for comments, it helps to make me keep up
I just finished this one, in a slightly different style. I know my ranger's look by heart now... ^^ Hope you like it.