diff --git a/src/ClaudeDo.Worker/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecService.cs b/src/ClaudeDo.Worker/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecService.cs
index 3df4b60b..a8f22759 100644
--- a/src/ClaudeDo.Worker/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecService.cs
+++ b/src/ClaudeDo.Worker/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecService.cs
@@ -75,7 +75,8 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecService
     /// Throws KeyNotFoundException if the task doesn't exist, InvalidOperationException
     /// if it's Running/Queued. If the task has no usable worktree yet, one is created on
     /// demand (same mechanism as an autonomous run) provided the task's list has a working
-    /// directory pointing at a git repo -- otherwise throws InvalidOperationException. Resumes
+    /// directory pointing at a git repo; a non-repo directory is opened directly, and a list with
+    /// no working directory at all (manual/reminder list) opens in the user's home dir. Resumes
     /// (--resume) this task's own last interactive session (TaskEntity.InteractiveSessionId) if
     /// it has one, else the latest autonomous run's session; a task that has never run either
     /// way, or whose worktree was just created fresh, gets a fresh-start spec instead -- pre-
@@ -94,6 +95,7 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecService
         var isFreshWorktree = false;
         string sessionDir;
         bool sessionIsWorktree;
+        var seedSkills = true;
 
         if (worktree is null || worktree.State is not (WorktreeState.Active or WorktreeState.Kept))
         {
@@ -105,10 +107,17 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecService
             // existing shape in the codebase (a list-handler task also has no worktree and commits
             // straight to the list's working dir), so no WorktreeEntity is created here either.
             var list = await new ListRepository(ctx).GetByIdAsync(task.ListId, ct);
-            if (list?.WorkingDir is null)
-                throw new InvalidOperationException("This task has no working directory configured -- can't create a worktree.");
-
-            if (await _git.IsGitRepoAsync(list.WorkingDir, ct))
+            if (list is null || string.IsNullOrEmpty(list.WorkingDir))
+            {
+                // A manual/reminder list has no repo at all -- open the session in the user's
+                // home directory instead of refusing it. Skills are deliberately NOT seeded
+                // there: the destination would be the user's REAL ~/.claude/skills, not a
+                // throwaway session copy.
+                sessionDir = Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.UserProfile);
+                sessionIsWorktree = false;
+                seedSkills = false;
+            }
+            else if (await _git.IsGitRepoAsync(list.WorkingDir, ct))
             {
                 // A stale (Merged/Discarded) row is already tracked in `ctx`'s identity map from
                 // the read above -- CreateAsync replaces it via its OWN context, so re-querying on
@@ -146,9 +155,12 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecService
         // history the task accumulated before its previous worktree went away.
         var run = isFreshWorktree ? null : await new TaskRunRepository(ctx).GetLatestByTaskIdAsync(taskId, ct);
 
-        var requestedSkills = TaskRunner.UnionSkillNames(task.SessionSkills, listConfig?.SessionSkills, globalSettings.SessionSkills);
-        var skillNames = await FilterToInstalledSkillsAsync(requestedSkills, ct);
-        await _skillSeeder.SeedAsync(sessionDir, skillNames, isWorktree: sessionIsWorktree, ct);
+        if (seedSkills)
+        {
+            var requestedSkills = TaskRunner.UnionSkillNames(task.SessionSkills, listConfig?.SessionSkills, globalSettings.SessionSkills);
+            var skillNames = await FilterToInstalledSkillsAsync(requestedSkills, ct);
+            await _skillSeeder.SeedAsync(sessionDir, skillNames, isWorktree: sessionIsWorktree, ct);
+        }
 
         var resolvedClaude = WindowsTerminalLauncher.Resolve(_claudePath)
             ?? throw new InvalidOperationException($"claude executable not found: {_claudePath}");
diff --git a/tests/ClaudeDo.Worker.Tests/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests.cs b/tests/ClaudeDo.Worker.Tests/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests.cs
index 0703fdf4..e3c500af 100644
--- a/tests/ClaudeDo.Worker.Tests/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests.cs
+++ b/tests/ClaudeDo.Worker.Tests/Runner/InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests.cs
@@ -220,8 +220,15 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests : IDisposable
     }
 
     [Fact]
-    public async Task BuildForTaskAsync_NoWorktreeRow_NoWorkingDirConfigured_ThrowsInvalidOperation()
+    public async Task BuildForTaskAsync_NoWorktreeRow_NoWorkingDirConfigured_OpensInUserHomeWithoutSeedingSkills()
     {
+        _registry.Installed.Add(new SessionSkillEntity
+        {
+            Name = "installed-skill", SourceUrl = "https://example.com/x.git",
+            PinnedRef = "abc", Subpath = "skills/installed-skill", Description = "d",
+            AddedAt = DateTimeOffset.UtcNow,
+        });
+
         var listId = await SeedListAsync();
         using (var ctx = _db.CreateContext())
         {
@@ -230,11 +237,18 @@ public sealed class InteractiveLaunchSpecServiceTests : IDisposable
             await ctx.SaveChangesAsync();
         }
         var taskId = Guid.NewGuid().ToString();
-        await SeedTaskAsync(taskId, listId, TaskStatus.Idle);
+        await SeedTaskAsync(taskId, listId, TaskStatus.Idle,
+            sessionSkillsJson: "[\"installed-skill\"]");
 
         var svc = BuildService();
-        await Assert.ThrowsAsync<InvalidOperationException>(
-            () => svc.BuildForTaskAsync(taskId, CancellationToken.None));
+        var spec = await svc.BuildForTaskAsync(taskId, CancellationToken.None);
+
+        Assert.Equal(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.UserProfile), spec.Cwd);
+        // Seeding here would copy into the user's REAL ~/.claude/skills.
+        Assert.Empty(_seeder.Calls);
+
+        using var readCtx = _db.CreateContext();
+        Assert.Null(await new WorktreeRepository(readCtx).GetByTaskIdAsync(taskId));
     }
 
     [Fact]