I have a Way of the Four Elements monk PC who likes to use the Shape the Flowing River elemental discipline to make all manner of shapes out of ice by expending a single ki point, such as creating a hemisphere with portcullises to protect the party, or stairs to reach inaccessible locations.
In the PHB (p. 81), Shape the Flowing River says "any manner you chose", but manner is singular and the list of options are given as "or" statements.
Wouldn't making stairs require 1 ki point to be expended to form a pillar, and then additional ki points to be spent for each lowered step? Can StFR even move ice sideways?