Shield Reinforcement (3C5)

[MLJ]

When does the target of a volley declare that he is spending Energy Points to reinforce shields?
Option (1): After the attacker has rolled dice to determine the number of damage points of the volley.
or
Option (2): Prior to the attacker rolling the dice for the number damage points of the volley.
[Option (2) makes sense to me, but our group is split in the interpretation of (3C5) SHIELD REINFORCEMENT.]

[mjwest]

It is Option 3: After all weapons rolls are made, immediately before Damage Allocation. You get to know how much damage that shield is taking before you have to reinforce that shield.

Note that this for each volley. If the target ship is hit by multiple volleys, they get to make the choice to use shield reinforcement before Damage Allocation on each volley. (Subject to available power, of course.)